Featured Speakers
Ian Aird
CEO English Australia
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Ian Aird
Ian has more than 25 years’ experience in the international education industry. He has experience in every aspect of ELICOS where he started as a teacher, a CELTA trainer, and a DoS before working across sales and marketing, admissions, IT, and then executive management. Ian also ran a consulting firm for five years. The firm offered services ranging across strategy development, mergers and acquisitions, financial performance improvement, research (market analysis and economic impact studies), regulatory reform and compliance, as well as executive and sales coaching. The firm’s clients included federal, state, and local government bodies, industry peak bodies, and education providers from universities to multi-nationals to small family operations. Ian’s corporate governance experience includes previously sitting on the English Australia Board for 6 years, the advisory board of StudyNSW, and serving as non-executive Chair of a not for profit for 5 years.
Ian has a Graduate Diploma in Law and graduated the AICD Company Directors Course with an Order of Merit, an MBA with Distinction, and a Masters in Professional Education. He also completed the CELTA and DELTA.
Jen Bahen
Executive Director, Regulatory Operations TEQSA
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Jen Bahen
Jen is the Executive Director, Regulatory Operations for the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, a role she commenced in January 2025. Most recently, Jen was the Counsellor (Education and Research) to the Australian Embassy, Hanoi, Vietnam, with responsibility to Vietnam and Thailand. Jen has also worked in the sector as the Director for International Education at TAFE Directors Australia, and has a detailed knowledge of Australia’s tertiary education system in domestic and international settings. Jen has previously worked in several positions within the Australian Government, leading policy and program initiatives spanning schools, vocational education and youth engagement. Jen was posted with the Department of Education, Skills and Employment to the Australian Embassies in Beijing and Bangkok, managing the broad bilateral relationship between China and Australia and Thailand and Australia. Jen has also worked in the education sector privately supporting both school and university engagement in China. Jen has lived in Hanoi, Beijing, Shanghai and Bangkok, and is passionate about enabling global engagement and exchange in education. Jen completed a Bachelor of Arts and a Bachelor of Science (Honours) at the University of Melbourne.
Caroline Hartnett
Director, Study Melbourne and International Education, State Government of Victoria
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Caroline Hartnett
Caroline is Director, Study Melbourne and International Education, in the State Government of Victoria. The team provides a suite of innovative student programs and supports to Victoria’s international student community, supports Victorian education providers to access and expand their global partnerships, and maintains Victoria’s position as a study destination and partner of choice.
Caroline has worked in policy and analytic roles in the Australian and Victorian public service in relation to the education sector for almost two decades. Caroline is passionate about working with stakeholders to ensure that the Victorian education sector is positioned to maximise opportunities, and international students have an outstanding experience studying with Victoria.
Phil Honeywood
CEO IEAA
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Phil Honeywood
Phil has been IEAA’s Chief Executive Officer since November 2011. Previously, he was a Member of the Victorian State Parliament (1988–2006), Minister for Tertiary Education, Training and Multicultural Affairs (1996–1999) and Deputy Leader of the Opposition (2002–2006). Since leaving politics, Phil worked at Stott’s Business College and Cambridge International College. Phil is the Co-Convener of the Federal Government’s National Council for International Education, Chairman of the Roundtable of International Education Peak Body CEOs, Deputy Chair of the Tuition Protection Services Board and a member of the Education Visa Consultative Committee. He also sits on the New South Wales and StudyPerth International Education Advisory Boards.
Professor Claire Macken
Senior Academic Director Student Success at Monash University
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Claire Macken
Professor Claire Macken is the Senior Academic Director Student Success at Monash University, overseeing student academic success, disability support, equity, and inclusion within the Student Experience portfolio, as well as interim leadership of Student Services. With a distinguished career spanning higher education and industry, she has held senior roles at RMIT, Deakin, and La Trobe Universities, KPMG, and Apple, as well as international leadership positions including Provost of Minerva University in San Francisco and Pro-Vice-Chancellor at RMIT Vietnam. A nationally award-winning educator recognised for excellence in teaching and student engagement, she is also the author of 14 books and numerous articles on higher education and law, and holds seven degrees, including a PhD in Law, an MBA, and further qualifications in higher education, international relations, and artificial intelligence.
Mike Mayor
Senior Director, Global Scale of English at Pearson
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Mike Mayor
Mike Mayor is Senior Director, Global Scale of English at Pearson. On leaving university, Mike worked as a teacher of English in France before entering the world of publishing as a lexicographer. Mike joined Pearson in 2003 and headed up the Longman dictionaries list until his move to the Global Scale of English in 2013. In this role, Mike works with coursebook and assessment teams to ensure that the Global Scale of English underpins all elements of the Pearson English Journey. Mike has a BA in French Language and Literature and a Masters in English and Applied Linguistics from Cambridge University.
Jarrad Merlo
Product Manager in Pearson’s ELL Accelerator
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Jarrad Merlo
Jarrad Merlo is a Product Manager in Pearson’s ELL Accelerator, focused on assessment innovation. He taught English for ten years before founding a test prep company that he grew to more than two million users and three million YouTube subscribers. Jarrad later joined the Cambridge-owned OET, where he worked as a Product Specialist on domain-specific test design. He moved to Pearson two years ago, where he now works on next-generation approaches to language testing, combining advances in AI with contemporary assessment theory.
Sandra Pitronaci
Global Director of Academic Affairs, ILSC Education Group
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Sandra Pitronaci
Sandra has served in the international education sector for 20 years as a teacher, teacher trainer, academic manager and director across private colleges and university-based language centres. She has been with ILSC Education Group for the last 6 years, and is currently leading the Global Academic Affairs Team and supporting academic strategy across ILSC Language Schools, ELS Language Services, and Greystone Colleges.
Sandra has also served in the English Australia Journal Editorial Team since 2019, is a former Convenor of English Australia’s AMSIG, and a current committee member of IATEFL’s LAMSIG.
She holds a BA (Hons), Dip Ed (LOTE/ESL), Grad Cert Higher Ed, Master in Applied Linguistics TESOL, and the IDLTM, and has presented at English Australia, NEAS, UECA, IATEFL, CamTESOL and CLESOL conferences.
Saxon Rice
CEO ASQA
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Saxon Rice
CEO Saxon Rice has extensive experience across the VET and employment services sectors as well as the public policy process. Ms Rice previously held a range of senior government, VET and management positions. She was Assistant Minister for Technical and Further Education in the former Queensland Government from 2012 to 2015, and Chair of the then Ministerial Industry Commission responsible for industry engagement.
Ms Rice is a former Director of Global Business Development for an Australian employment services company and was responsible for significant growth into new countries in the European and Asian markets. Ms Rice has also served in a range of Senate Committee Secretariats, including as Acting Secretary and Principal Research Officer to the Senate Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade Committee. More recently, she was a Member of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal from 2016 to 2018 and is a Member and Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors.
Ms Rice commenced as a Commissioner of ASQA on 16 April 2018, before being appointed as Chief Commissioner and CEO (initially Acting) on 7 October 2019. With effect from 1 January 2021. Ms Rice is appointed until 30 June 2027.
