A lasting legacy

Since stepping down as UTS Chancellor in February 2016, Professor Vicki Sara AO has announced plans to continue her work in advancing the cause of university education, having accepted the role of Patron of the UTS Creating Futures Bequest Society. She has also revealed her intention to make a bequest of her own to UTS with a view to benefiting disadvantaged students – a generous gesture that is sure to have a lasting impact at UTS.

Together, we can ensure that UTS continues to educate global citizens for the many years to come and produce research with real impact.

"The honour of being Patron to the UTS Creating Futures Bequest Society is one that I have accepted with great humility and hope for the future," says Sara of the new appointment. "Together, we can ensure that UTS continues to educate global citizens for the many years to come and produce research with real impact."

The bequest Sara intends to make to UTS will be a significant one. "My mother left school when she was 12 to work in a factory. I don’t ever want to be part of a society where that happens again," Sara explains. "I want to use my money, my knowledge, everything I’ve learned, to enable me to provide scholarships."

That said, the bequest she intends to make to UTS will be "to support scholarships to provide opportunities for study at UTS."

Sara’s legacy gift to UTS follows a similar gift from former Vice-Chancellor, Professor Ross Milbourne, who intends to leave a bequest to benefit sports students at UTS who need assistance with overseas travel. Together, this represents the first time in Australia that both a Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor will make a bequest to their university.

The UTS Creating Futures Bequest Society allows UTS’s closest friends to have a meaningful, long-term impact on education at UTS.