Ambassadors

Dianne Giblin

CEO of Australian Council of State School Organisations (ACSSO)

Dianne has worked in education in both paid and unpaid capacity for the past 32 years. Di has a passion for education, in particular public education, and the opportunities it affords young people. She has led the ACSSO secretariat since 2011 but has been a significant player in parent activism since 1984 when her eldest child commenced school. She is proud of her four children’s achievements – all successes of public education. She has held various volunteer roles in the parent movement finishing her P&C career as President of the Federation of Parents and Citizens Associations of NSW. Di was a founding Director of Public Education Foundation whose board position she held for six years; a founding Director of Primary Ethics Board and also a founding Director of The Parenthood board. She worked in a paid capacity for the NSW education department in a number of roles across a large area of Sydney. Her roles were all in the area of parent engagement and home-school partnerships including school based community officer, across district Community Development Officer and regional Partnership Officer – all through the Priority Schools Program. Recognition of her work saw her commended for Meritorious Service to Public Education and Training in 2010. In 2012 Dianne was admitted as a Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia for her service to public education and the community.

Andrew Smith

CEO EDUCATION SERVICES AUSTRALIA

Louise Rogers

BSc/BE (Hons), MTeach (Primary) — School Can't Australia

Tiffany Westphal

BSocWk, GradDMgt, BA — School Can't Australia

BSocWk, GradDMgt, BA School Can’t Australia Website A founding board member of School Can’t Australia, Tiffany has volunteered in the group for 5+ years. As a social worker, Tiffany supports neuro-divergent students experiencing school can’t and their families. She has supported a neurodivergent daughter for 10 years through on and off school can’t. The developer of Student Stress Investigation, Tiffany is passionate about sharing what she has learned in these varied roles with clinicians and educators so students and their families can be better supported in the community.

Dr. Paula Barrett

Director, Friends Resilience Pty Ltd — Author of the FRIENDS Programs

Doctor of Philosophy (UQ) Master of Clinical Psychology (UQ) Director Friends Resilience Pty Ltd Author of the FRIENDS Programs Dr Paula Barrett is a clinician, scholar and researcher in the field of child psychology. She has been recognised as being amongst the top 1 percent of publishers within the field of Psychology and Psychiatry at an international level. Dr Barrett received the Highly Commended Certificate in the Human Rights Medal of the Australian Human Rights Commission (2009) for her contribution to the wellbeing of children, youth and the wider community. Dr Barrett is the author of the globally acclaimed FRIENDS Programs, cognitive behaviour therapy (CBT) based programs, acknowledged by the World Health Organisation, as best practice for the prevention and treatment of anxiety and depression, promoting resilience in families, schools and communities. Training in the FRIENDS Programs is delivered worldwide to individuals, charities, organisations, schools and governments. Dr Barrett is the director of Friends Resilience Pty Ltd and is an Adjunct Professor in the School of Psychology at Edith Cowan University.

Dr. Rachel Baffsky

Postdoctoral Research Fellow — Black Dog Institute

Dr Baffsky is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow, funded by Suicide Prevention Australia, at the Black Dog Institute. Her research uses implementation science and co-design approaches to optimise youth mental health prevention in schools. Currently, she manages an MRFF-funded trial of a new, universal self-harm prevention intervention in NSW primary schools. She is also developing a complementary web-based resource for parents to support self-harm prevention in children.

Dr. Lauren McGillivray

Research Fellow & Clinical Psychologist — Black Dog Institute, UNSW

Dr McGillivray is a research fellow and clinical psychologist. After working in private and primary mental health care as a therapist, she joined Black Dog Institute, University of New South Wales, to work as a postdoctoral researcher in youth suicide prevention. Her work focuses on preventing suicide and self-injury in children, adolescents, and young adults using digital and school-based interventions.

Darryl Thompson

Teacher & Principal — Department of Education, NSW

Darryl is a passionate advocate for public education. He has been a teacher and principal for almost 40 years with the Department of Education in western New South Wales. A love of the dust versus a sea breeze has seen him dedicate his career to building an understanding of the unique nature of a education in a rural context and the need to ensure that ALL STUDENTS achieve to their own potential despite their postcode. He has led, in his own schools, an integrated approach to rural education where all levels of government, supported by local communities work together to achieve quality learning, cultural and social outcomes. In complex communities this integrated approach has seen school attendance of 90% achieved for a diverse student demographic. With students at school taking advantage of their great programs Wellington Public School is currently one of the Top 50 NSW Schools Making a Difference as measured by learning growth. Support to address generational trauma has seen the school focus on emotional literacy and self-regulation as crucial foundations in the development of young people in schools and their local communities. A wide range of evidence is showing that these programs are making a difference.

Dr. Neil Hawkes

D. Phil (Oxford), MEd, BA, FRSA — Values-based Education

Neil Hawkes is a doctoral graduate of Kellogg College, Oxford University. He is well known worldwide as an inspirational speaker, educator, broadcaster, author and social commentator. He is a popular TEDx presenter. Neil’s thinking is having a profound influence on education globally. Neil first gained international recognition when, after a successful career as a Chief Education Adviser, he returned to being a Headteacher in Oxfordshire, UK. Here he conducted research, with the support of Oxford University, to devise and implement a transformational model of education, which would give pupils an ethical vocabulary, based on universal human values such as respect, tolerance, humility and justice. The school community found that pupils were empowered to embody ethical intelligence, the ability to ethically self- regulate their thinking and behaviour. Pupils developed the capacity to be ethical leaders of themselves and others displaying excellent behaviour and good character. The quality of their schoolwork was enhanced too because they took responsibility for their learning and had time for inner reflection. School staff modelled the school’s values and reported that Values-based Education (VbE) had created a harmonious school community, which fostered wellbeing.

Gavin McCormack

Montessori Educator & Co-founder, Upschool.co

Gavin McCormack is a Montessori educator, author, and co-founder of Upschool.co – a platform delivering free, purposeful education to children worldwide. Recognised globally for his work in education reform, Gavin has built schools, trained teachers, and developed impactful courses rooted in values-based, real-world learning. His latest book, Raising Resilient Children: 7 Steps to Raising Lifelong Learners, is a powerful guide for parents and educators navigating the modern world of childhood, resilience, and education with purpose.

Daniel Payne

Assistant Principal — Shortland Public School

Assistant Principal, Shortland Public School I’m involved in National Check-In Week because I’m passionate about ensuring all students are known, and supported in schools. Emotional literacy and self-regulation are vital for young people—they help students understand themselves and others, manage challenges, and build healthy relationships. By giving students with these skills, we create safer and more connected learning environment. Supporting this cause gives me the opportunity to positively impact the lives of the staff and students I work with each and every day.

Dr Phil Lambert

Education Expert — Former General Manager, ACARA

Dr Phil Lambert is an internationally acclaimed education expert. He has extensive experience in education as a principal; inspector; Regional Director (Sydney) and General Manager of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority where he led the development of Australia’s first national curriculum. He has led major reviews and reforms, presented a number of papers and keynotes at national and international conferences, had a number of articles and occasional papers published in journals, and authored three books, the most recent being, ‘The Knowing and Caring Profession’. Phil has received a number of honours and awards. In the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours he was awarded the Public Service Medal for his outstanding contribution to education and leadership in programs aimed at eliminating violence against women and girls. In 2013 he was the recipient of the Australian College of Educators’ prestigious award, the Sir Harold Wyndham Medal and in 2020 he was the recipient of the NSW Teachers Guild’s Phyllis Evans Medal. He was recently appointed Patron of the Professional Teachers Council in Australia. Phil is Adjunct Professor at the University of Sydney. He supports education reform efforts globally as expert advisor and researcher. He is a Curriculum Expert to the OECD Education 2030 initiative and has been engaged by education ministries in several countries including Japan, The Netherlands, Qatar, Kazakhstan, the UAE, Brazil, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Lithuania and Vietnam to guide and support their respective reforms. Phil contributes to the community in various ways. He is Chair (previously CEO) of Together For Humanity, the Attorney General’s appointee on the NSW Children’s Court Advisory Committee and was recently appointed as a member of the NSW Parliament’s Education Advisory Group.

Sarah Garnett

Founder & CEO — The Footpath Library

Sarah Garnett has been working in the homelessness sector for more than 20 years as Founder and CEO of The Footpath Library, which operates Australia’s only giving mobile libraries for anyone at risk of, or experiencing homelessness, in New South Wales, Victoria and Western Australia.

Sally Webster

Head of K12 Schools Industry, ANZ — Amazon Web Services