Rate My Professor Lesley Neale

Dr. Lesley Neale serves as an Adjunct Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Creative Writing and an ITAS (Indigenous Tertiary Assistance Scheme) tutor at Curtin University's Centre for Aboriginal Studies, within the School of Humanities. She has dedicated over 25 years to tutoring Indigenous students, conducting interviews with participants in the ITAS program, and observing their academic progress and success in navigating university life. Her long-term commitment has contributed to discussions on strategies for reducing Indigenous student drop-out rates, emphasizing the vital role of personalized tutoring support. Neale holds a PhD in Creative Writing from Curtin University, completed in 2015, a Diploma in Education from Murdoch University in Western Australia, and a B.A. (Hons) in English Literature and History from the University of Winchester in the United Kingdom. Her creative scholarship explores the ethics of family storytelling and life writing, blending factual archival research with fictional elements to illuminate personal and familial histories.

Neale's creative work includes the memoir Kate Annie, which examines the partial life story of her ancestor Kate, who lived in South London from 1893 to 1965 and gave birth to an illegitimate daughter in 1919. This project, developed during her doctoral studies, addresses ethical challenges in memoir writing, such as representing absent or shadowy family figures, and draws on historical context, anecdotal evidence, and moral inquiries into life writing, referencing authors like Doris Lessing and Drusilla Modjeska. She has presented on this work at academic conferences, including Turning Points in 2013 with the paper Discovering Kate Annie and the Ethics of Storytelling conference in 2015 with Kate Annie – the Ethics of Family Storytelling. Additionally, Neale has authored articles for The Conversation, including Tutors are key to reducing Indigenous student drop out rates (November 2017), highlighting the increase in Indigenous university enrollments and the need for tutoring, and Baby boomer women make up for lost study time and head back to university (September 2017), advocating for older women's access to higher education. She participates in Curtin University's diversity initiatives, such as the Panel Pledge in Humanities.