Harlene Hayne

Vada Harlene Hayne (born ) is an American-born academic administrator who was the vice-chancellor and a professor of psychology at the University of Otago in New Zealand.
She was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand in 2002, and is also a fellow of the Association for Psychological Science. She was recipient of the Robert L. Fantz Memorial Award from the American Psychological Foundation in 1997.
She was the first female vice-chancellor of the University of Otago, and assumed the role in 2011.
Early life and education.
Born in Oklahoma and raised in Colorado, Hayne attended Colorado College, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. She continued her education at Rutgers University, completing a MS and PhD while working under the supervision of Carolyn Rovee-Collier. She spent three years as a post-doctoral fellow at Princeton University, and moved to New Zealand in 1992 to join the University of Otago as a lecturer in the psychology department. 
Career.
She served on the Academic Council of the Royal Society of New Zealand, the Marsden Fund Council, and the New Zealand National Science Panel. She is an associate editor of "Psychological Review" and of the "New Zealand Journal of Psychology".
Hayne is a leading researcher in memory development in infants, children, adolescents and adults and her work has been cited in legal proceedings both nationally and internationally.
Hayne's tenure as vice-chancellor has been marred by controversy, especially regarding cuts to the university's humanities department. In 2017, she was accused of intimidating behavior surrounding the 16 full-time equivalent jobs which were cut in the department and was once again at the center of controversy more recently when the decision was made to cut the Art History program in 2018, where she was the deciding vote.
In early October, it was reported that Hayne would be finishing her term as Vice-Chancellor at the University of Otago in 2021 to assume the position of Vice Chancellor at Curtin University in Perth; having completed two five-year terms at Otago University.
Recognition.
In the 2009 New Year Honours, she was appointed an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit for services to scientific and medical research.
In 2017, Hayne was selected as one of the Royal Society Te Apārangi's "150 women in 150 words", celebrating the contributions of women to knowledge in New Zealand.