Dr Betty Exintaris: New educational heights with dual appointment
Senior Lecturer Dr Betty Exintaris.
Highly awarded Senior Lecturer Dr Betty Exintaris has recently been appointed to two new leadership positions for the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences: Associate Dean, Learning and Teaching, and Associate Dean, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
A passion for teaching
A Senior Lecturer in the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Dr Betty Exintaris has taught thousands of students over her 23-year career at Monash.
“It would be an understatement to say I’ve always enjoyed teaching,” Betty says. “From the age of 15, I was tutoring my brother’s friends in maths, and I enjoyed it so much I considered becoming a secondary school teacher.”
However, after completing a Science degree in Physiology and Pharmacology at Monash, Betty chose to continue on to honours, then a PhD. While completing her PhD, Betty taught as much as she could, ranging from medicine and science students to nursing students, while also completing obtaining some teaching certificates.
“I loved research and being in the lab,” Betty says. “But I also enjoyed teaching undergraduate students while completing my PhD.”
In 2000, Betty joined the academic teaching staff in the Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences.
“I knew I wanted to be an academic because teaching was my passion,” she explains.
Growing a career at Monash
Betty says her career at Monash has been facilitated by a supportive environment and taking opportunities when they arose.
“I always say yes, rather than overthink it,” she says. “Any opportunity I’ve taken has resulted in growth in development.”
She also says she has three main interests when it comes to student education.
“Firstly, I’m interested in easing the transition burden for incoming first-year students,” Betty explains.
This drove her to make significant contributions to new students, from simply being available in O-week to creating student resources on Biology for those who didn’t study it in high school.
“Secondly, I’m also passionate about supporting and engaging our international student cohort,” Betty says.
Betty was awarded the ASCEPT Elizabeth Davis Teaching Excellence Award in 2022.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, Betty became one of the founders of PIES (Parkville International and Exchange Students program), along with Dr Nilushi Karunaratne and Dr Suzanne Caliph.
“There was an extra layer of isolation for international students, and we wanted to make them feel part of the Monash Community through weekly events,” Betty explains. “We focused on three pillars: communication, networking and social skills, and helping with wellbeing and connection to academic staff.”
The program was so successful it received an Inter-Faculty Transformation Grant of $49,000 and was expanded to other faculties at Monash, including to the Monash Malaysia campus.
Her third interest is in skill-based training for students, and she has worked hard to embed teamwork and resilience training and skills into the curriculum for students and early career pharmacists.
Betty’s contributions to education have been recognised nationally and internationally through many awards, including the recent ASCEPT Elizabeth Davis Teaching Excellence Award (2022) and the Monash Vice Chancellor's Citation for Outstanding Contribution to Student Learning (2022).
Alongside her teaching, Betty has also received many research grants for her lab work into prostate physiology and disease, which have resulted in ground-breaking papers.
New horizons
While continuing to teach, Betty is now taking her wealth of experience and interest in education into two completely new roles: Associate Dean, Learning and Teaching, and Associate Dean, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion.
I’m a passionate and dedicated educator, and I’m very excited about these two appointments and what I can achieve in these roles,” she says. “I've got so many ideas.”
Some aspects of these roles are natural extensions of work Betty has already been doing.
Her role as Associate Dean Learning and Teaching replaces the previous Director of Learning and Teaching role.
“I truly love the teaching and learning side, and I’m always thinking about the next thing we can do,” Betty explains.
“We’re always thinking about how we can do things better, improve the student experience, and better engage students. One of the big questions is how do we get the on-campus/online learning mix right?”
“We’re also looking at generative AI and what that means for assessments, teachers and students.”
The Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Science is known for its diverse student cohort, both local and international.
“We were very lucky we have had Marian Costelloe chair the Diversity and Inclusion committee (now Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) committee) for several years, even before it was part of the normal conversation,” Betty says.
“I’m passionate about giving different groups a seat at the table, from MOSAIC (Multicultural Outreach and Support for Advancement, Inclusion and Community), to the Central Indigenous Working Group, and representation from low-SES and disability groups.”
“I want academics to be thinking of EDI,” she explains. “I also want to consider ways of embedding more Indigenous content into our curriculum, alongside other things like wider mental health first aid training.”
“My CALD (Culturally and Linguistically Diverse) background makes me a different type of leader, and I’m excited to bring that into both roles,” Betty says.
A profound impact
Betty has a knack for leveraging the more relaxed social environment and engaging with people socially and personally before working with them to get things done.
Associate Professor Dan Malone, Course Director for the Bachelor of Pharmacy (Hons) / Master of Pharmacy, met Betty in 2000 when they both started in lecturer roles for the Faculty.
“Betty is a caring, sincere person and has an excellent track record of mentoring students, as well as designing programs that support students and the student experience,” Dan says.
“She has also had a profound impact by designing parts of the degree”.
“These qualities make her ideal for these roles.”
Well-known for her “second office” in the cafeteria, Dan says Betty has a knack for leveraging the more relaxed social environment and engaging with people socially and personally before working with them to get things done.
“Betty’s leadership style is inclusive; she leads by example,” Dan says. “She exemplifies the fact that diverse teams make for better team outcomes, and she’s always willing to put her hand up.”
“She’s also fun to be around and has been a very good sounding board for me over the years.”
A friend and mentor
Betty was one of Dr Anupa Dey’s lecturers in the first year of her Bachelor of Pharmaceutical Sciences degree in 2001. Anupa chose Betty’s lab when she completed honours in Pharmacology in 2005 and stayed on to do a PhD with her from 2006-2011.
“Betty has had an enormous impact on me,” Anupa says. “Professionally and personally, she’s been both a mentor and a really good friend.”
“In my current role at St Vincent's Hospital, I manage a big team, and I still draw on what she’s taught me, both directly and indirectly when mentoring my own team,” Anupa says.
Anupa describes Betty as a strong female role model at the top of her industry who will bring both expertise and humility to her new appointments.
“She’s approachable, breaks down the wall between staff and students, and is an excellent lecturer,” Anupa says.
“She has the ability to build relationships by engaging and bringing people together and always looks at different ways she can improve or impact things in a positive way.”
A fresh energy
Betty is "one of those lectures who students gravitate to."
Dr Nilushi Karunaratne, who is currently a Lecturer in the Faculty and co-creator of the PIES project, originally met Betty in 2012 when she began her PhD, and also credits her with having a huge impact on her career.
“She’s one of those lecturers who students gravitate to,” Nilushi explains. “She remains true to herself and creates a positive space where students and staff feel comfortable, which ties into class engagement.”
Nilushi says Betty has already created a huge impact in the Faculty, which she will build on through her new roles.
“Betty brings fresh energy and a different perspective into these new leadership roles,” Nilushi says.
“She has navigated many challenges in her career, and that plays a big role in why she’s so invested in supporting others,” Nilushi says. “A large part of her mentoring has been for junior and female academics, and she’s a big supporter of individuals from diverse backgrounds.”
Nilushi counts herself among them.
“Betty mentored and sponsored me, steering my journey from being a PhD student to where I am today,” Nilushi says.
“She was the one who suggested I try teaching because she could see I might like it - and I did,” Nilushi explains. “If it weren’t for her nudging me, seeing something in me and giving me that opportunity to teach, I never would have become a teaching academic.”
