In the late 1980s, under the leadership of Queensland Premier Joh Bjelke-Petersen, Australia’s first private university, Bond University, was established. Inspired by this milestone, a group of Christian leaders and entrepreneurs, including former board member Roland Heazlewood, worked with Bjelke-Petersen to secure parliamentary approval for the incorporation of "Queensland Christian University Ltd."
Despite successfully registering the name in November 1987, plans to authorize the university to issue degrees stalled when Bjelke-Petersen was ousted as Premier. The subsequent government did not advance the initiative and introduced new office to oversee the advancement of higher education institutions in Australia. This left the group unable to establish the University and grant degrees immediately upon opening.
Today, while the name remains registered, establishing a fully accredited Christian university in Australia now faces more rigorous regulatory hurdles. In November of 2016, the QCU board unanimously agreed to make Universal Education and Training (UNET) the ultimate holding company of Queensland Christian University Ltd (not yet accredited), to carry the vision into reality. These visionary business leaders stewarded not just the QCU company registration and kept it current, but the seed of a dream for a Christian university so that we can now make it a reality. There will be a progression in licensing before being approved to become a fully accredited University. Now has never been a better time to makes strides to fulfil this vision.
This transformative educational experience will cultivate leaders who are not only professionally competent but also ethically grounded and spiritually mature, ready to make a positive impact in their chosen fields and communities.