Dr. Rena MacLeod
Lecturer / Access Coordinator | GenAI ALC LeadSchool of Access Education
Centre for Research in Equity & Advancement of Teaching & Education (CREATE)
Building 1 - G.18
As a member of the School of Access Education, I work closely with undergraduate and postgraduate students to develop academic communication, critical thinking, and self-leadership skills essential for success in higher education and beyond. My teaching is grounded in inclusive, research-informed pedagogy and focuses on supporting students to engage confidently with complex ideas, texts, and forms of expression.
With a strong interest in generative artificial intelligence, my practice and scholarship explore the ethical and pedagogical integration of AI technologies into the curriculum. I approach AI not simply as a tool, but as a cultural and narrative technology, supporting students to develop critical awareness, creativity, and reflective judgement in digitally mediated learning environments.
Underpinning this teaching is my work as a humanities scholar with interdisciplinary expertise spanning narrative studies, gender studies, biblical and religious studies, Western philosophy, and classical literature. My research examines how narratives shape responsibility, violence, and social imagination across historical and contemporary contexts, informing my teaching through a sustained engagement with narrative ethics, interpretation, and cultural meaning-making.
Universities Studied At
Australian Catholic University (PhD, Masters of Theology, BA Theology, Grad. Dip. Education)
Boston University, Massachusetts: School of Philosophy and Theology (Visiting Scholar)
Universities Worked At
University of Southern Queensland - Higher Degree by Research Supervisor
Awards
Vice-Chancellor’s 2025 Award for Best Practice in Learning and Teaching in the Higher Education: Cognitive Learning and GenAI for Empowered Futures
First Place: The Marianne Talbot Essay Prize (2024 Michaelmas Term) - awarded by The Philosophical Society, Oxford University.
Finalist: Australian Regional University Network [RUN] Learning and Teaching Award - Bridging the Digital Divide: Enhancing Education and Equity with GenAI and Cognitive Learning Strategies
Professional Memberships
National Association of Enabling Educators of Australia (NAEEA)
Queensland College of Teachers
The Law, Religion, and Heritage Research Program Team (USQ)
Australasian Association of Philosophy
The Philosophical Society - Oxford University
Society of Biblical Literature
ASCILITE
Editor
2021-2023: Journal Coordinator and Editor of 'Coolamon', The Journal of the Australian Network for Spiritual Direction.
Accreditation
I am currently accredited for supervision in the following:
- 5003 Philosophy
- 4405 Gender studies
- 5004 Religious studies
- 5005 Theology
- 4705 Literary Studies
- 3902 Education policy, sociology and philosophy
- 4602 Artificial intelligence
Current Capacity
Creative and professional writing - Creative and professional writing not elsewhere classified
Education policy, sociology and philosophy - Education policy, sociology and philosophy not elsewhere classified
Gender studies - Feminist methodologies
Feminist theory
Artificial intelligence - Artificial intelligence not elsewhere classified
Philosophy and ethics
Other language, communication and culture - Other language, communication and culture not elsewhere classified
Law in context - Law, gender and sexuality (incl. feminist legal scholarship)
Law and religion
Philosophy - Philosophy of Religion
Hermeneutics
Religious studies - Religion, society and culture
Theology
