SUNRAYSIA Mallee Ethnic Communities Council (SMECC) executive officer Dean Wickham has been appointed an adjunct research fellow by La Trobe University in recognition of his work with Sunraysia's Pacific Islander community.

Mr Wickham said he was surprised by the appointment.

"It's a huge honour," he said.

"When you go about your daily work, you don't think about these things, you're just gett...