Nicki Wragg

Professor Nicki Wragg serves as the Acting Executive Dean of the School of Business, Law and Entrepreneurship at Swinburne University of Technology. With a background in Communication Design, she focuses on applying design principles to curriculum innovation, industry collaboration, and leadership. Her research emphasizes decolonizing design education, technology integration in learning, and fostering creativity through pedagogical reform. Notable projects include developing Australia’s first fully online design degree (2014-2018) and creating over 200 design video resources for blended learning environments.

Research Interests:

• Design Education Pedagogy
• Industry-Academia Collaboration
• Cultural Reclamation in Design
• Assessment Innovation
• Online Learning Strategies

Grants & Collaborations:

• "Graffiti - a review of offender motivations" (iMOVE Australia, 2024-2026)
• "Sa'ili le ala: 21st Century Career Discovery" (Australian Government, 2022-2025)
• "Road Empathy: Understanding Driver Behavior" (ACT Treasury, 2020-2021)

Awards:

• 2015 Distinguished Teaching Award (Australian Council of University Art & Design Schools)
• 2016 Citation Award (Office of Learning and Teaching)
• 2015 Highly Commended Teaching Excellence Award (Swinburne)

Her advisory work spans PhD supervision on topics like gender disparity in design industries and wayfinding system design. She leads strategic initiatives bridging design education with public policy and social impact projects.