Rani Suppiah is Director of Student Experience and Support & Staff Professional Development, with over 20 years’ experience designing and leading student support and staff capability initiatives in higher education. Her practice focuses on building coherent, system-level approaches to student engagement, belonging, and retention, particularly within complex and diverse learning environments. Rani has led the development of early-intervention, advising, and capability-building frameworks that translate research into practical, scalable systems. She is especially interested in belonging as a structural condition shaped by institutional design, workforce practice, and service coherence, rather than as an individual student attribute. Her work is grounded in applied practice and cross-institutional collaboration to improve equity, consistency, and student experience outcomes.

Dr Bianca Viljoen, PhD MHlthMgmt, BN RN is a Senior Lecturer in the School of Nursing. Her teaching profile spans a wide array of courses and units across the clinical and academic undergraduate and postgraduate spaces. Bianca is affiliated with the Higher Education Research and Development Society of Australia (HERDSA), The Australiasian Nursing and Midwifery Clinical Trials Network (ANMCTN) and the Clinical Oncology Society of Australia (COSA). Her research has focused primarily on cancer survivorship, early detection and screening. She works as a researcher within the Viertal Cancer Research Centre at Cancer Council Queensland and has previously collaborated with the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) and the Australian and New Zealand Urogenital and Prostate Cancer Trials Group (ANZUP). Bianca's academic career clearly reflects her passion for public health and nursing education.

Dr. Sidrah Asif is an early career researcher and academic with over a decade of teaching and professional experience across Australia and Asia. Her research focuses on Artificial Intelligence, Human Resource Management, leadership, and gender equity, with a strong emphasis on women’s workplace experiences. At the University of Canberra, she has taught undergraduate and postgraduate Management and HRM units on the Bruce campus and in offshore programs in China and Hong Kong, integrating theory with practical, experiential learning. She is involved in interdisciplinary research projects, including a study on mindfulness training for working couples and an ACT Government funded initiative supporting immigrant women entrepreneurs to scale their businesses. Before moving to Australia, Dr. Asif worked in HR roles in Pakistan’s public and private sectors, including the SECP, and began her career as a counsellor supporting victims of domestic abuse. She holds a PhD in Management from the University of Canberra.

Dr Dewa Wardak is a Senior Lecturer in Business Educational Development at the University of Sydney Business School. With a background in Learning Sciences and Technologies, her research explores digital and postdigital education, networked learning, pattern languages, object-based learning, and the experiences of international students in higher education. She is passionate about advancing sustainable leadership in business education by integrating SDG-driven pedagogical approaches to foster responsible leadership. She is a Senior Fellow of Advance HE and serves as an Associate Editor for the journal Australian Educational Researcher (AER).

Dr Kate Tregloan is Associate Professor (Higher Education) in the Centre for the Study of Higher Education at the University of Melbourne. She focuses on the intersections of design and higher education - including the design of contemporary curriculum, as well as the development of design skillsets by students of all disciplines. Kate is most interested in the decisions and values that impact creative engagement as well as quality assessment across higher education. She has long-standing research interests in the design and evaluation of environments that support people with disability, and the development of digital tools that enable interdisciplinary learning and making.

Dr Patrick O'Doherty is an interdisciplinary academic across biological sciences and mathematics with two decades of broad teaching experience at Western Sydney University, primarily in biochemistry, cell biology, and mathematics and statistics. With interests in transition to university and the intersections between physical, virtual, relational and affective spaces which come together to create supportive learning environments. Patrick actively engages with the higher education community through community of practice and involvement in on-going high level research. He is a multi-Learning and Teaching award recipient and AFHEA.

Katerina Schmitt, HERDSA Fellow and PhD Candidate at the University of South Australia, is investigating the experiences and perspectives of students and educators engaged in teaching and learning trauma-related content. Born in the Czech Republic and now based in Australia, her research is grounded in both lived refugee experience and over fourteen years of professional practice in trauma-informed social work and higher education teaching. Katerina’s interdisciplinary expertise spans from direct social work practice with adults and adolescents affected by trauma, research, and teaching within the social work program. She is an emerging scholar in the field of trauma-informed pedagogy, with a particular interest in co-constructing knowledge with students and educators to enhance learning outcomes and promote student success. Her work contributes to the growing scholarship of teaching and learning, offering critical insights into how trauma-informed approaches can shape equity in higher education.

Darren is an education-focused academic at Deakin University, Australia, where he teaches in the Bachelor of Marine Science. He has a strong interest in student learning, assessment design, and inclusive teaching practices, with a particular focus on supporting diverse cohorts in blended and online learning environments. As an early career researcher, Darren is developing his pedagogical expertise and seeks to bridge disciplinary research with evidence-based educational practice to enhance student engagement, confidence, and learning outcomes in marine and environmental sciences.

Dr Chantal Bostock is currently Associate Professor at UNSW Faculty of Law and Justice and a hearing member of the Medical Council of NSW. She has previously worked as a senior lawyer at the Asylum and Immigration Tribunal and the Law Commission in the UK, and as a senior lawyer and Tribunal member at the Administrative Appeals Tribunal, Sydney.  

Associate Professor Anna Rowe SFHEA is the Academic Development Lead, Pro Vice-Chancellor Education Portfolio at UNSW. She leads various institution wide capability building initiatives in areas such as Advance HE Fellowships and the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL). Anna has published widely in higher education learning and teaching with specific areas of interest including the role of emotions in learning, work-integrated learning, pedagogy, feedback and peer review of teaching.  

Assoc Prof Chien Gooi is a Clinical Psychologist and an Education Focused Associate Professor in the UNSW School of Psychology. He is the Director of the Master of Psychology (Clinical) program and has strong interests in the development and assessment of psychology competencies, clinical supervision and deliberate practice. In addition, he collaborates with colleagues across disciplines on research around SoTL.

Lisa Beccaria is an experienced nursing academic with expertise in curriculum design, learning and teaching innovation, and student engagement strategies. She currently holds an educational leadership role as Associate Head (Learning, Teaching and Student Success) in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at the University of Southern Queensland (UniSQ). She has led major initiatives to enhance assessment practices, integrate technology-enabled learning, and improve first-year student transition. Her research focuses on the scholarship of learning and teaching, and technology integration in nursing education. Dr Beccaria is committed to evidence-based educational practice and fostering interprofessional learning to prepare graduates for contemporary healthcare environments.

Sabrina Syed is a Lecturer in Educational Psychology at the School of Education, Charles Sturt University. Her research focuses on educational equity, teacher identity development, and the experiences of women and minoritised groups in higher education. Sabrina has conducted qualitative and narrative inquiries exploring the intersection of identity, context, and learning, with a particular focus on doctoral student experiences. She has contributed to multiple academic journals and book chapters and is currently leading a global grant project investigating inclusive educational practices across international contexts. Bilingual and internationally experienced, Sabrina brings a multicultural perspective to her teaching and research. She is passionate about advancing equity in education, addressing systemic barriers, and supporting the professional development of educators, while advocating for feminist approaches to teaching and mentoring.

Zeena is a lecturer in digital business transformation and program director for the Business Informatics Program at the University of Canberra with over 6 years of teaching experience at the Faculty of Science and Technology and over 5 years in research administration. Zeena is passionate about teaching and empowering students with transferable knowledge and skills to enable them to tackle not only familiar situations, but also new ones as they progress into their professional careers. She teaches across several knowledge areas including information systems management, systems analysis and modelling, business process modelling, knowledge management, IT and business alignment, IT governance, project management, and ICT and Engineering research methodology. In addition to teaching, Zeena is also interested in research on the connections between ICT knowledge in theory and practice, digital workplace transformation, leadership in hybrid work and employee engagement, leading with algorithms, WIL and industry-based IT certification, as well as other research interests in education and has several publications across these areas.

Associate Professor HuiJun (Jun) Chih is a Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) instructor and Wellbeing Champion at Curtin University. As a course coordinator, biostatistician and clinical trialist, Jun designs curriculum, teaches research methods, supervises and mentors young academics, and provides statistical consultations to colleagues nationally and internationally. She delivers MHFA training to students and collaborates with colleagues across universities on student wellbeing projects. Jun has been awarded several teaching excellence awards and is a Fellow of the Curtin Academy and a Senior Fellow of the Advanced Higher Education (UK). She has published >90 peer-reviewed articles and awarded >$9million research funding.

Professor Margo Brewer is a speech pathologist, qualified life coach and internationally recognised leader of interprofessional education (IPE). As the Deputy Head of School and Director of Strategic Projects in the Curtin School of Allied Health, she specialises in IPE, clinical education, student resilience and wellbeing, academic leadership. Margo has led grants totalling >$5 million, > 40 peer reviewed publications and IPE guides, and won multiple teaching excellence awards. Margo’s research has been presented at conferences including international plenary addresses. She is an inaugural member of the Curtin Academy, the inaugural IPE Lead for ANZAHPE, and current Chair of the AIPEN.

Professor Natalie Gasson (MAPS, MAAPi) is a registered psychologist, Fellow of the Curtin Academy, and currently the Fourth Year Coordinator for UG Psychology. Under her leadership as the Courses/Majors coordinator, several new double major/degrees were developed; psychology was included as a teaching stream in the BEd (Secondary); offshore courses were launched, and online versions of psychology units were developed. She has been teaching in higher education for >30 years and held multiple leadership roles where student wellbeing has been at the forefront. She is currently developing a reliable and valid measure of psychological literacy to assess global citizenship (ToPL-R).

Dr Chris Campbell is the Nexus Fellow at UNSW Canberra working across the city and Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) campuses. Chris engages with staff in innovative learning and teaching and has projects on assessment best practice and staff and student wellbeing. Her research area is in digital technologies to improve student learning and engagement, particularly in online learning. As a mid-career researcher Chris has a substantive research track record and expertise in digital technologies and pedagogies as well as in evaluating new and emerging technologies in the online space. Chris was the President of ASCILITE from 2019-2023, on the Executive for nine years and became a Life Member in 2023. In 2025, Chris became a Principal Fellow of AdvanceHE (PFHEA).

Dr Cherie Lucas, PhD, BPharm, Grad Cert Edu Stud (Higher Educ), FPS, SFHEA is a Nexus Fellow and Lead in Student Professional Development at the School of Population Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of NSW, Sydney, Australia. Dr Lucas also holds an Adjunct Fellow position with the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) Faculty of Health, UTS. Dr Lucas is a licenced pharmacist for over 35 years and currently resides on the Pharmacy Council of NSW as the Deputy President, Australia. She is the recipient of several international SoTL research awards and Vice-Chancellor citation awards. She has also received an Australian Award for University Teaching (AAUT) Citation for the individual category: For motivating and inspiring student learning. Her educational research interests include curriculum design and instruction, developing reflective practice tools and assessment strategies to enhance student engagement, experience and learning and building artificial intelligence (AI) capability for educators and students. She has led teams in interprofessional education and reflective practice and collaborated with teams in AI utilisation and rubric design.