to make the final decision. On 18 December 2018 the Minister for Education, Chris Hipkins, announced that he had rejected the University Council's recommendation, stating that the proposed change did not have sufficient support from Victoria's staff, students or alumni, and that such a change would not be in keeping with institution accountability or be in the national interest. On 6 May 2019 Victoria University's Council announced that it would not contest the Education Minister's decision to reject its name-change proposal. The name change had received exceptionally strong opposition from faculty, alumni, students, and the Wellington City Council. The university has, in recent years, distanced itself from the word 'Victoria', with many promotional materials referring solely to 'Wellington's University'. Many departments and initiatives have also been rebranded, for example Victoria Professional and Executive Development becoming Wellington Uni-Professional. In January 2021, the university spent $69,000 on a new sign highlighting the word 'Wellington', which drew criticism from students and staff who said the funds could have been better spent elsewhere. Governance and administration From 1938 to 1957, the head of administration was the principal. Since 1957, the head of administration has been the vice-chancellor. The following people held the role of principal and/or vice-chancellor: Tommy Hunter, 1938–1951 Jim Williams, 1951–1968 Danny Taylor, 1968–1982 Ian Axford, 1982–1985 Les Holborow, 1986–1998 Michael Irving, 1998–2000 Stuart McCutcheon, 2000–2004 Pat Walsh, 2005–2014 Grant Guilford, 2014–2022 Nic Smith, 2023–Present Guilford retired on 4 March 2022. Professor Jennifer Windsor was named Acting Vice-Chancellor. On 22 June 2022 Victoria University of Wellington announced that Guilford’s replacement as Vice-Chancellor will be Professor Nic Smith, the current Provost at the Queensland University of Technology (QUT). Nic Smith’s tenure as VUW Vice-Chancellor is due to start in January 2023. Campuses and facilities Victoria University of Wellington has three campuses spread out over Wellington city. It also has premises in Auckland. Wellington The main campus is in the suburb of Kelburn, New Zealand, overlooking the Wellington Central business district, where the Faculties of Humanities and Social Sciences, Science, Engineering, Education and Health are based. Additionally, it is the location of the university's Central Library and the site of its administrative offices. The campus has a range of amenities including cafes, the university book store VicBooks, a pharmacy and health services, childcare facilities, and a sports and recreation centre. The Victoria University of Wellington Students' Association is based here. The Pipitea campus consists