UniServices Board Members

Professor Frank Bloomfield
Chairperson, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Research)

Professor Frank Bloomfield is the Deputy Vice Chancellor (Research) for the University of Auckland, taking up the role in March 2023. Prior to this, he was Director of the Liggins Institute from 2015, one of the university's Large Scale Research Institutes. He is a Professor in Neonatology, having worked clinically for many years as a Consultant Neonatologist at Auckland City Hospital. Frank previously has been President of the Perinatal Society of Australia and New Zealand and the Perinatal Society of New Zealand. Frank took a BSc (first class honours) in Experimental Immunology and Oncology at the University of Manchester and then MBChB, also at Manchester. He trained in paediatrics in the north-west of England, obtaining MRCP before moving to New Zealand where he specialised in neonatal paediatrics, obtaining FRACP. He took a PhD in paediatrics at the University of Auckland and spent two years in Toronto as a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Toronto and a neonatal transport fellow at the Hospital for Sick Children. He was appointed as a Senior Lecturer in Neonatology at the University of Auckland and a specialist neonatologist at Auckland City Hospital in 2002. In 2013 he was promoted to Professor.

Professor Dawn Freshwater
Vice-Chancellor, University of Auckland

Professor Dawn Freshwater has been globally recognised as a leader in world-class universities for more than a decade, whilst remaining committed to her academic discipline. 

She became the University of Auckland’s first female Vice-Chancellor in March 2020, after serving as the University of Western Australia's Vice-Chancellor and Senior Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Registrar for six years (2014-2020). In her role as Vice-Chancellor of The University of Western Australia (UWA), she led the development of UWA's ambitious 2030 Vision and 2025 Strategic Plan, and a significant transformation agenda. She was instrumental in leading the development of the UWA Public Policy Institute, creating a bridge between academic research and government, public and business needs, and delivering real-world policy impact and solutions to local and global challenges for the Indian Ocean Rim and the broader Indo-Pacific region.

Professor John Fraser
Dean of Medical and Health Sciences, the University of Auckland

Dean of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Auckland and deputy director of the University’s Maurice Wilkins Centre for Molecular Biodiscovery . Professor Fraser’s groundbreaking research in molecular aspects of the immune response resulted in the now widely accepted model of how superantigens work. Professor Fraser has earned an enviable reputation as a world class scientist, researcher and teacher, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

Dr John Villiger
Chairman of Proacta and board member of Pharmaxis.

PhD Pharmacology Otago. John Villiger has spent the 25 years in the pharmaceutical industry working predominantly in drug development. Between 1987-1996 he was employed by Hoffman La Roche in New Zealand and Switzerland in a global drug development. John was the co-founder of the Medicines Company in the USA and between 1996-2006 played a major role in it becoming a Nasdaq listed specialist pharmaceutical company. He is currently Chairman of Proacta and on the board of Pharmaxis.

Tony McNaught
Ex National Managing Partner, Corporate Finance, KPMG New Zealand

BCom (Otago).Tony McNaught has over 35 years' experience in local and international mergers and acquisitions and led the national corporate finance division for KPMG until 2014. He now delivers advice to medium to large, privately-owned companies on matters such as acquisitions, divestments, management buyouts, capital raisings, valuations, executive share schemes as well as a broad range of other commercial issues.  He has worked with high growth companies including EROAD, Navman, Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and Virgin

Adrienne Cleland
Adrienne Cleland, Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Operations) and Registrar, the University of Auckland

Adrienne Cleland is Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Operations) and Registrar, responsible for Finance, IT, Property, Communications & Marketing, Academic & Shared Services, Organisational Performance, Planning & Information, Campus Life, Legal and Risk functions.