Speakers

Mark McCrindle 

Mark McCrindle was trained as a Psychologist and his research into the emerging global generations is now recognised internationally. Mark is a Social Researcher and he is accredited with the Industry’s highest accreditation Qualified Practising Market Researcher.

He is the Director of McCrindle Research which counts amongst its clients over 50 multinational organisations and 100 of Australia’s largest corporations. His highly regarded research and reports into the changing times and emerging trends have developed his reputation as a futurist, demographer and a social commentator.

Judith M. Cole

Executive Vice President and CEO of MIT Alumni Association, Boston USA

Judith Cole commenced at MIT in August of 2009. Previously, she served as the Associate Vice President of University Advancement and Director of Alumni Relations at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh for five years. Prior to Carnegie Mellon, she had served in a wide variety of positions in the alumni association at Yale University in New Haven CT. In her last position at the Association of Yale Alumni (AYA) she was the Director of Education and Alumni Services. She earned her master’s of public and private management (MPPM) from the Yale School of Management and following her graduation, Judith was a strategy consultant for the Boston Consulting Group. Before attending graduate school, Ms. Cole was an oil and gas banker in Houston Texas. Ms. Cole serves as the Treasurer of the Association of Private College and University Alumni Directors, is a member of the Board of TPC Independent 529 Plan, a non-profit tuition prepayment consortium and was formerly a member of the Board of the Yale Club of Pittsburgh.

Tom Ahern

President, Ahern Communications

Tom Ahern is considered one of North America’s leading authorities on donor communications.

Each year, he delivers dozens of workshops on the techniques of (and psychology behind) effective fundraising communications. He is the author of four well-received books: on donor newsletters (2005); How to Write Fundraising Materials That Make More Money (2007); Keep Your Donors, a book about donor retention methods co-authored with Simone Joyaux (2007); and Seeing Through a Donor's Eyes (2009).

In 2009, CASE, the fundraising association for higher education, named him a "Faculty Star," acknowledging the unusually high ratings his workshops receive.

Tom works with a wide range of clients across USA every year. They include brand names like Save the Children and the Sierra Club, as well as hospitals, universities, foundations, and local charities. He specializes in bequest marketing; donor communications evaluations; direct mail; newsletter interventions (a Minnesota children's hospital increased donor income from $5,000 per issue to $50,000 per issue after training with Ahern); and case statements for big-ticket campaigns.

Tom is also an award-winning magazine journalist, for articles on health, women's rights and other social justice issues. He has his MA and BA in English from Brown University, and a Certificate in Advertising Art from the RI School of Design. His office is in Rhode Island. He writes his books at his second home in France.

Dr Catherine Raaflaub

Head of School, Morgan Park Academy, Chicago, USA

Catherine Raaflaub, Ph.D., has more than 25 years experience in independent schools throughout Canada and the United States. Dr. Raaflaub is currently serving as the 11^th Head of School for Morgan Park Academy, an independent co-ed school for students from preschool through 12^th grade. Morgan Park Academy is located in Chicago, Illinois, and was founded in 1873.

Throughout her career, Dr. Raaflaub has held senior administrative positions in four Canadian independent schools, including Housemaster, Dean of Students, Science Department Head, Director of Upper School (grades 9 and 10), Director of Senior School (grades 11 and 12), Dean of Women, Assistant Head, and Head of School.

She served as Head of Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School in Calgary, Alberta, an International Baccalaureate school with 750 students from grades 1-12. Strathcona-Tweedsmuir is the top-ranked school in Alberta. During her leadership there, she helped the school recover from the devastating loss of seven students in an avalanche. Her accomplishments included the establishment of a strong executive team, increased leadership capacity in financial and human resource management, and development of a comprehensive risk mitigation and management protocol for the school, among others.

As Assistant Head for Advancement and Community Relations of Appleby College, a coed boarding and day school for students in grades 7-12, she led a team to reinvigorate a capital campaign effort, ultimately exceeding the goal and raising $23 million for endowment, large and small infrastructure projects, and a new dining hall, library, and upgraded classrooms. 

In addition to the capital campaign, Dr. Raaflaub’s portfolio included parent and alumni relations, marketing communications, admissions, and community outreach. During her tenure, Appleby College was recognised as the leading independent school in Canada and one of the Top 100 Employers in Canada. Her team’s other accomplishments include implementation of a new communications strategy, including new website, print, and electronic communications, and new admissions initiatives that increased the school’s reach into new markets.

Dr. Raaflaub earned her B.S. degree from the University of Waterloo in Ontario; her M.S. in Education from Niagara University in New York; and her Ph.D. in Science Education from Curtin University of Technology in Perth, Australia.

Dr Rod Carr

Vice-Chancellor, University of Canterbury

Dr Carr was appointed Vice-Chancellor at the University of Canterbury on 1 February 2009.

Previously Dr Carr had been Managing Director of Jade Software Corporation Ltd. Dr Carr joined Jade in July 2003 after a distinguished career in the banking sector, most recently as Acting Governor of New Zealand’s central bank, the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. During a five year career at the Reserve Bank he played a key management role as a director and Deputy Governor, including five months as Acting Governor. Prior to this Dr Carr was a senior executive at the National Australia Bank (NAB) in Melbourne, Australia. During his 11 year career in commercial banking, Dr Carr worked in senior executive and management roles spanning many aspects of the business.

Dr Carr holds a PhD in Insurance and Risk Management from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, an MBA in Finance, MSc in Applied Economics and undergraduate degrees in law and in economics. In 2005 Dr Carr accepted an invitation to become a Fellow of the New Zealand Institute of Management and in 2006 Dr Carr was named NZ Hi-Tech Company Leader of the Year.

He is involved in several private and public companies as a director including Lyttelton Port Company Ltd and Taranaki Investment Management Ltd. Dr Carr is a Vice-President of the Canterbury Employers’ Chamber of Commerce and a member of the Board of the New Zealand International Business Forum.

Founder and Director, The School of St Jude, Tanzania

In 2002 Gemma Sisia (nee Rice), an Australian woman, opened a small school in northern Tanzania with the help of her family, friends and her local Rotary Club. Starting with only a handful of children, it now has 1151 students, 130 teachers and 200 staff. In January 2008 another free primary school with an initial enrollment of over 550 children opened.

The School of St Jude is an English-language school in Arusha in northern Tanzania. It provides free education for children from the poorest local families. The aim of the school is to "fight poverty through education", By providing the students with a quality education, which will assist them to find well-paid jobs and help break the cycle of poverty. In a larger sense, it is hoped that the students will go on to be agents for positive change in Tanzanian society.

Over 90% of the children at the school receive a totally free education. Local and international sponsors cover the costs of not only the educational fees but also the uniform, stationery, transport, hot meals, snacks and drinks of each child.

By 2015, the school plans to serve 2,000 students from kindergarten through to High School graduation. Watch ABC's Australian Story featuring Gemma Sisia (15 Aug 2009)http://www.abc.net.au/austory/specials/africacalling/default.htm

Ian McLean

Director of Development, Leysin American School, Switzerland

Ian was educated at Prince Alfred College and the University of South Australia. His career began in the airline and travel industry in Adelaide before joining PAC as Development Director in 1989 and later, St Peter’s College. He has subsequently been a leading Development practitioner in both Australian and UK independent schools over the past 20 years. In 1999 he moved to the UK and established successful programs at leading boarding schools, Uppingham, Loretto School in Edinburgh where he developed the highly acclaimed Golf Academy and Lancing College. 

As a previous President of ADAPE, recent Chairman of the IDPE in the UK and a member of the CASE Europe board, he is a leader in educating others about development best practice. An international outlook and his broad experience in dealing with different nationalities inspired his move last year to the Leysin American School in Switzerland. 

His early business career was paralleled by a semi professional cricket career, representing South Australia and playing and coaching at international level.

Larry Lauer

Vice-Chancellor for government affairs, and distinguished professor of strategic communication in the graduate program at the Schieffer School of Journalism, at TCU (Texas Christian University) in Fort Worth, Texas. He is also an adjunct fellow of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington, DC.

Larry was vice chancellor for marketing and communication from 1999 to 2009, and was executive director of The Commission on the Future of TCU, the University’s major strategic planning project in 2000-2001. He was the founding chairman of The Council for the Advancement and Support of Education’s (CASE) Advanced Seminar on Integrated Marketing in Higher Education, and currently is on the advisory board of the American Council on Education’s (ACE) Solutions for America project. He has been a faculty member and past chair of the CASE Summer Institutes on Communications and Marketing at Duke and Vanderbilt Universities, has spoken at international conferences, has counseled with associations, and has worked with more than 40 campuses on integrated marketing initiatives in the USA, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Columbia, South Africa, the Caribbean, the UK, Poland, France, Italy, Germany, Spain, Australia, Denmark, The Netherlands, and Singapore.

Lauer is the author of three books: Communication Power (Jones & Bartlett, 1997), which is a strategy and tactics guide for nonprofit executives, Competing for Students, Money and Reputation: Marketing the Academy in the 21^st Century (CASE Books, 2002), which has become a CASE bestseller and reviews of it have dubbed him an “integrated marketing guru” and “simply the best in his field,” and Advancing Higher Education in Uncertain Times, released by CASE Books in early spring 2006, and is also a CASE Books bestseller. 

He has written more than 30 journal articles and book chapters on institutional marketing and communications. His articles on integrated marketing and planning appear in Nonprofit World, CASE Currents, Trusteeship, Public Purpose, Journal of Marketing for Higher Education and International Journal of Advancement. He edited the first ever section on marketing in the third edition of the CASE Handbook of Institutional Advancement, where he is referred to as “pioneer of integrated marketing for our profession.”  

Lauer is the only person ever to receive CASE’s Alice L. Beeman Award for Research in Communication twice, first in 2003 at the International Assembly and again in 2007 at the Annual Summit for Advancement Leaders. It was given to honor both of his books on marketing the academy, and is named for CASE’s first president. He also received the ICUT President’s Award in 2003 from Independent Colleges and Universities of Texas. 

He was founding chair of the redesigned international CASE assembly, now named the Summit for Advancement Leaders, which annually examines the impact of the dramatic changes in higher education on the advancement professions. 

In addition to CASE USA, CASE Europe, and CASE Asia Pacific, Lauer has presented for the American Marketing Association (AMA), the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (ASSCU), the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), the American Association of Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB), the American Council on Education (ACE).  

Elizabeth Scarborough

CEO of Simpson Scarborough

Simpson Scarborough is a higher-education marketing research firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., is an internationally recognized expert in the use of research to drive marketing, branding, recruitment, retention, development and alumni relations. She is an expert in attitudinal-research methods, survey-instrument design, sampling, data analysis, and the compilation and presentation of marketing intelligence. She currently chairs the American Marketing Association’s Symposium for the Marketing of Higher Education

Ron Fairchild

Vice-President, Advancement Monash University, Victoria

In August 2005 Ron was recruited from his own business in Canada to head up Monash University’s Advancement portfolio. As Vice-President, Advancement at Monash, his current responsibilities include co-ordinating the Monash University Fundraising campaign, donor and alumni relations, as well as overseeing the University's performing and visual arts programs.  

Ron has an outstanding international record in advancement activities, particularly in the field of fundraising. He began his fundraising career in 1983 and has since directed and supervised fundraising programs for a number of organisations that have collectively raised close to $800million.

A certified fundraising executive, Ron is a member of the Association of Fundraising Professionals. In 2000 he was honoured as the Fundraising Executive of the Year for the Toronto chapter of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, the largest fundraising chapter of the world.

Tim Dolan

Director of Development, University of Sydney

Tim Dolan commenced his role as the Director of Development at the University of Sydney in January 2009. He has spent his entire professional career as a fundraiser. For the six years prior to his coming to Australia, Tim was responsible for Leadership Gifts at UCLA and before that he led the development effort for the Medical School and Comprehensive Cancer Centre at the University of Hawaii.

Assoc Prof Choo-Soo Teo

Director, Office of Alumni Relations, National University of Singapore

Associate Professor Choo Soo Teo graduated in 1973 with the Bachelor of Dental Surgery (National University of Singapore) before achieving the M.Sc in 1977 from the University of London. He double specialised when he earned the DDPH from the Royal College of Surgeons in England. His career in the Faculty of Dentistry saw him appointed as Head of the Operative and Preventive Departments from 1983 – 1999. He was also Vice-Dean of the Faculty from 1986 – 89. Dr Teo was appointed as the Director of Alumni Relations in 2002.
Dr Teo is an active researcher with 77 Conference papers and 46 full papers locally and internationally.  He has been invited to deliver some 50 overseas lectures.
He currently serves as Director of the Alumni Relations Office, overseeing many radical changes in University alumni cultivation, and including the building of an iconic Alumni House. He has served as a CASE Commissioner and organized the inaugural CASE Asia-Pacific Conference in Singapore in 2006. He is currently the Chair Emeritus for the Advisory Committee of CASE KL Conference in 2010.

John Taylor 

Director of External Relations and Development at The University of Auckland 

After his secondary schooling at Naenae College in Lower Hutt, he studied at Victoria University of Wellington, gaining an MA in English, initially teaching and house-mastering at Christ’s College, Christchurch (1964-78) and Sutton Valence School, Kent, (1967-69). He was Headmaster of Rathkeale College, Masterton, from 1979 to 1987, and then of King’s College, Auckland, from 1988 to 2002.  

During his 24 years’ tenure as Headmaster, he has been respectively a committee member, secretary and chairman of the Association of Heads of Independent Schools of NZ, an overseas member of both HMC and AHISA, and has served on various Government committees, representing the interests of independent schools. 

His current educational activities include membership of the NZ Institute, an apolitical economic advisory group, and of the Education Forum, a conservative educational think-tank, of which he was the founding chair in 1991. He is a trustee of the NZ Education and Scholarship Trust, also of the King’s School Board, and chairs both the Myers and the Robertson Scholarship selection committees. 

Dr Stephen Holmes

Partner, The Knowledge Partnership

Stephen Holmes PhD is one of three founding partners of The Knowledge Partnership (TKP), a specialist strategy, market analysis, communications and reputation management research based consultancy for the education sector operating in Australia, New Zealand, the UK and Canada (www.theknowledgepartnership.com).  The Knowledge Partnership operates office in Southport and Melbourne Australia, in Auckland New Zealand, and Cambridge and Leeds in the UK.

With an extensive background in teaching and university senior management, Stephen’s expertise is in re-orientating education institutions toward a market informed culture to manage and build reputation. Stephen’s client list includes schools, colleges and universities in every Australian state, New Zealand, the UK and Canada.

Stephen has published, consulted and spoken around the world on education marketing and reputation management with universities internationally for over a decade. Stephen has keynoted at more than 30 major national and international education conferences during this time.

With a PhD in the specific field of marketing in education institutions, Stephen’s academic partnerships have included being visiting specialist in education marketing at The University of Queensland and the University of Southern Queensland in Australia, including development and delivery of higher degree courses in education marketing for students worldwide. He also has written widely for CREM, The Centre for Research in Education Marketing, based at The University of Southampton, UK.

He is a Director of the renowned MaXimizE (Marketing Excellence in Education) benchmarking and evaluation project adopted by numerous universities across Australia, NZ, and the UK internationally. Stephen is also author of The School Marketing Manual, the education marketing reference.

Ian Conway

Founder, Conways Kids

Ian Conway is a man determined to make a difference.

Ian Conway is a self-made man who grew up in Central Australia during the 1950s. A one-time ward of the state after his mother died, his early years were spent in bush camps outside Alice Springs. Against the odds, Ian Conway finished school and carved out a career running a big cattle station near Kings Canyon. But material success wasn’t enough, and when he saw poverty and deprivation on his own doorstep, he was determined to do something about it.

Twenty years ago he made a promise to an Aboriginal elder. It was a big promise and for years Ian was haunted by the fact that he hadn't delivered.

It was partly motivated by his own early years as a homeless child in the camps around Alice Springs. Despite the toughest of starts in life, Ian Conway went to school and even became a prefect.

Many years later, after carving a the famous King Creek Station out of of the bush in Central Australia and creating a successful tourist enterprise, he finally turned his mind to the 'unfinished business' of his promise to his friend. His commitment was to ensure ‘cultural’ Aboriginal children from remote homelands have the same educational opportunities as the children of wider Australia.

Ian and his wife Lyn are passionate about indigenous issues and regularly advocate for the local indigenous communities.  They founded Conway Kids and what began as a vision for the children from the “Ukaka” outstation, now encompasses all the communities residing in the locale. Ian, Lyn and their team are determined, resourceful and efficient

View Ian Conway on ABC's Australian Story here. For more details about Conway’s Kids, www.conwayskids.org.au

Dr Wendy Skaife

Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies, QUT

As a Senior Research Fellow at the Australian Centre for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Studies at QUT (CPNS) Wendy researches/lectures in various aspects of giving and development. Wendy was formerly a state CEO of a health nonprofit, and its national Deputy CEO. She was part of the Giving Australia project, has researched building a culture of philanthropy, bequests, major gift fundraising, benchmarking educational fundraising, best practices in arts, sport and medical research fundraising, grantmaking to Indigenous causes and also why Australians of high net worth do and do not give. Wendy’s professional service includes the Research Australia Philanthropy advisory board, the Expert Panel exploring a National Compact between the Australian Government and the community sector, the PRIA College of Fellows. 

Cecelia Haddad

Director, Marketing Elements

Cecelia Haddad is Director and owner of Sydney based marketing and public relations agency, Marketing Elements Pty Limited. She has over 17 years experience in public relations and marketing and has worked with a broad range of clients in both the corporate and consumer sectors.   Her key areas of expertise extend across public relations, publicity, media issues management, creative and strategic planning, event management, sponsorship, promotions and other areas of marketing. Cecelia has worked both in-house and at agency level with some of the most recognisable companies, brands and personalities in Australia, New Zealand and South East Asia.

Bob Burdenski

Bob Burdenski is an internationally-recognized annual giving program consultant for schools, colleges and universities. 

He is the author of two CASE books: Innovations in Annual Giving, which presents ten U.S. case histories of advanced annual giving strategies, and the new CASE book, More Innovations in Annual Giving, Ten Global Departures That Worked, which features case histories from institutions around the world.  His next book, Innovations in Annual Giving 3.0, The Online Annual Fund, will feature case histories of Internet fundraising strategies.

A recipient of the prestigious CASE “Crystal Apple” award or teaching excellence as ranked by his audiences, he has educated and entertained at presentations throughout the United States, Europe Asia, and Australia, including the 2008 ADAPE International Conference in Brisbane. He is back at 2010 Conference by popular demand.

David L Wheeler

Managing Editor, International, for The Chronicle of Higher Education and The Chronicle for Philanthropy

David is leading an effort to create a ‘global edition’ of The Chronicle of Higher Education. He has worked for The Chronicle for 24 years, covering biomedical research, writing news and features about many facets of academe, and serving as international editor.

Steve Brown

Acting Head and Senior Lecturer, Event Design and Management Programs, Tourism Department, Flinders University

Steve Brown is one of Australia’s most respected event designers, producers and marketers, with a wide range of events to his credit in most states of Australia. Steve is Acting Head of Flinders Tourism and is also responsible for the Event Design and Management programs at Flinders University. He recently worked as Creative Producer of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s Showcase series of concerts and frequently consults as the ‘event doctor’ to a wide range of organisations, festivals and events.

Robyn Brown

Director, Development and Alumni, The University of Adelaide, South Australia

Robyn has been in her current role since August 2006.  Robyn leads a committed team in the development and implementation of the University’s Philanthropic and Alumni Engagement program.  Robyn first joined the University of Adelaide in 2005 as Manager, Fundraising and Development and was set the task of establishing the office as the facilitator for all fundraising activities throughout the University and took the responsibility for identifying, developing, managing and maintaining beneficial and strategic relationships with potential and existing donors and corporate networks.

Anne Bartlett - Bragg

Managing Director, Headshift Australasia

Anne specialises in the creation of innovative communication networks and learning environments with social media. Her design for the first national mentoring program (MentorNet) for young women entrepreneurs in 2007, developed entirely in social media - was a finalist in the Forrester Groundswell awards in 2008. Anne is also a sessional academic at UTS in the Faculty of Arts & Social Sciences where she researches, develops and lectures in organisational learning and e-Learning subjects.