Burgmann College Confers Honorary Fellowships on Dr Aunty Matilda House-Williams OAM and Dr Thérèse Rein
On Friday 11 September, Burgmann College conferred Honorary Fellowships on two extraordinary women: Dr Aunty Matilda House-Williams OAM and alumna Dr Thérèse Rein. The joint ceremony, held in the College's Common Room, was one of the most moving occasions in Burgmann's recent history.
Burgmann resident, Noah Smith, ably and warmly served as MC of the ceremony. Noah holds a leadership position at the College as the inaugural Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Advocate.
Paul Girrawah House, Aunty Matilda's son, delivered a moving Welcome to Country to open proceedings, joined on stage by his friend Dr Ed Wensing, who played the clap sticks while Paul played the yidaki.
For Aunty Matilda, Thérèse, and the Hon Dr Kevin Rudd AC, the day carried special significance. In 2008, Aunty Matilda delivered the first ever Welcome to Country held at Parliament House, the day before Kevin, then Prime Minister, delivered the National Apology to the Stolen Generations. That shared history and friendship has continued in the years since and gave Friday's ceremony a significance beyond the occasion itself.
In her acceptance remarks, Thérèse recalled that history vividly: how Aunty Matilda welcomed the incoming Government's first Cabinet to The Lodge in 2007 with a Welcome to Country and Smoking Ceremony, and how she and Kevin later welcomed members of the Stolen Generations, anxious and tearful, into the Prime Ministerial Courtyard on the morning of the Apology. 'This is your house,' she remembered telling them.
A Conferral Conducted with Pride
Chair of Council, Greg Mills, in conferring the awards, spoke of what the honour means to the College and its community.
Today's recipients embody the very best of what it means to serve and care for this College — two remarkable women whose leadership has shaped this nation, and whose impact is felt right across Australia.
Dr Aunty Matilda House-Williams OAM
As a Ngambri (Kamberri), Wallabalooa (Ngunnawal) and Wiradyuri Elder, and a custodian of the land on which Burgmann stands, Aunty Matilda's connection to the College reaches back long before her formal association began in 2018. Since then, she has welcomed every new generation of residents to Country, led Burgmann's first Smoking Ceremony as a whole-community event, and supported the development of the College's inaugural Reconciliation Action Plan.
Beyond the College, her lifetime of distinguished service includes being one of the original members of the Aboriginal Tent Embassy in 1972, founding the Tjabal Indigenous Higher Education Centre at ANU in 1989, and being the first person to perform a Welcome to Country at the opening of Federal Parliament, in 2008. In 2017, ANU recognised her lifelong contribution with an Honorary Doctorate. In 2023 she was named NAIDOC Female Elder of the Year, and in 2026 Burgmann joined her in celebrating her award of the Medal of the Order of Australia.
Dr Thérèse Rein
Thérèse's connection to Burgmann began as a resident during her studies at the ANU, where she embraced the College's culture of respect, inclusivity, and egalitarianism. Her distinguished record of service to the Australian community includes recognition with a Human Rights Medal in 2010 for her long-term dedication to human rights, particularly the rights of people with disability; being named Telstra's Business Woman of the Year (QLD) in 2012; and her ongoing role, since 2019, as Co-Chair of the National Apology Foundation. She has also lent her time as patron to organisations spanning disability advocacy, the arts and food relief.
A Gift Between Friends
In a moment that moved the room, Aunty Matilda gifted Thérèse her own possum-skin cloak during the ceremony, a profound and generous gesture of respect between two women whose contributions to this country have long been intertwined.
To be wearing this wonderful possum cloak is beautiful. What a gift. I will treasure this forever and pass it to my children, with your permission.
That lesson, Thérèse said, shaped the culture she later built while leading a company that grew to more than 6,000 colleagues across ten countries, serving half a million people — always beginning, in her words, with respect for each person as an individual, free of label or judgement.
Investing in the Next Generation
Principal Dr Brenda Holt spoke about what an honour it is for the Burgmann community to have two such remarkable women leaders accept this recognition. She reflected on what their achievements mean for the students living at Burgmann today: living proof, she said, of the contribution a Burgmann education can help make possible, and an inspiration for the next generation of students and leaders to make their own most meaningful contribution to society.
Distinguished Guests
The ceremony was attended by a number of distinguished guests, including former Prime Minister the Hon Dr Kevin Rudd AC, Distinguished Professor Brian Schmidt AC FAA FRS FTSE, Distinguished Professor Asmi Wood, Professor Aunty Anne Martin AM and Professor Brenda L Croft whose photographic portrait of Aunty Matilda is proudly included in the College’s art collection. Burgmann College congratulates Dr Aunty Matilda House-Williams OAM and Dr Thérèse Rein on this richly deserved recognition, and thanks all who joined us to celebrate this special day.
This was a day best captured in pictures. Browse our full photo gallery below for more of the warmth, joy and heart that filled Burgmann on Friday 11 September.
A Day That Began with Another Celebration
Before the Conferral Ceremony began, Burgmann paused to mark another milestone: fifty years since Dr Thérèse Rein and the Hon Dr Kevin Rudd AC first met as residents of Burgmann College, in 1976. Guests gathered in the College Chapel for a High Tea in their honour, followed by the planting of a tree to mark the occasion.
Among the highlights was a speech from Amelia Wallis-Hughes, Burgmann's 2026 Ian Darling Scholar. Raised in Perth by a single mother who taught her to leave things in a better state than she found them, Amelia reflected on how completely Kevin and Thérèse have embodied that value throughout their lives and careers. In a lovely touch inspired by Kevin's own well-known fluency in Mandarin, she delivered part of her reflection in Mandarin before repeating it in English.
My mum always taught me that whatever you touch — the kitchen, a borrowed book, even a park bench — you should leave it in a better state than you found it. Throughout their careers, both Kevin and Thérèse have embodied this.
Amelia also spoke movingly of her own journey to Burgmann — a goal she set for herself at fifteen and worked a gap year to fund — and of what the Ian Darling Scholarship has meant for her own future.
I hope that in the future, maybe even fifty years from now, I can look back on my hopefully impactful career as a diplomat and know that I have left the world a better place than I had found it.
The day's formalities drew to a close with a special Honorary Fellows Lunch in the Grenfell Price Room, bringing together our newest Honorary Fellows with fellow Fellows and distinguished guests to reflect on a truly memorable occasion.
(Click on a photograph to view the photo gallery)
