BOARD
The Carringbush Board consists of members who work together to oversee the operations of the organisation, to ensure it is working towards achieving its charitable purpose.
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BOARD

Ari Cassarchis

Ari Cassarchis

Ari has had an extensive career as a senior executive linking people and strategy in commercial and community contexts. His industry experience includes, professional services, tertiary education, emergency services, telecommunications, airlines, and travel. Ari was an executive at a university for more than five years and more recently had responsibility for an enterprise Registered Training Organisation in the emergency services sector. He has a Master of Commerce from UNSW, and is passionate about the role of building community capability, culture, mental health wellbeing, and inclusion.

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Ben Wong

Ben is a lawyer at ANZ, working in the area of dispute resolution and litigation.  He previously worked at leading law firms in resolving disputes in the financial services, energy and resources, government and property sectors.  Ben holds a Bachelor of Laws (Hons), Bachelor of Commerce and a Diploma of Modern Languages (German) from the University of Melbourne.  He has previously sat on committees of management for Not-For-Profit organisations.  Ben is a Richmond “local” and is proud to live in a thriving and diverse community.

Elizabeth-Wotherspoon

Elizabeth Wotherspoon

Elizabeth is an experienced  human resources professional and consultant with an extensive career across government, manufacturing, telecommunications and health sectors. She specialises in building strategies for enterprise risk mitigation, people and risk aware cultures and safety governance. Elizabeth holds a Bachelor Applied Science, Graduate Diploma Ergonomics and a Master of Public Health from Monash University. She is passionate about supporting community development, diversity and inclusion and health and wellbeing.  Elizabeth joined the Carringbush Adult Education Board in 2022.

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Dr. Maria Gindidis, Monash University

Maria is a Senior Lecturer and Course Leader for the Bachelor of Education/Honour degrees in Teacher Education in the Faculty of Education, Monash University. Her cross-disciplinary expertise involves leadership, second languages teaching and policy and refugee education. She has co-ordinated large scale state and national projects for a number of organisations, including the Department of Education and Community Languages Australia. Her current research involves investigating, Global School Leadership Paradigms, Neuroscience and Education, Languages and Cultural Maintenance. She supervises a number of PhD students in these fields.

Eleanora Luisetto

Eleonora Luisetto

Eleonora is a dedicated, resourceful, and goal-driven professional working as an educator, consultant, and presenter across Independent, Government and Catholic sectors. She is currently Faculty Head as well as being involved in senior executive roles and has vast experience within primary, secondary and tertiary education. Eleonora has a background in coaching and professional learning, innovative curriculum development and the integration of new learning technologies and pedagogy within the Languages and Visual Arts learning areas. She uses her experience, ideas and passion for teaching and learning to engage with current research and work with fellow educators and students. Eleonora fully embraces positive education, with a solid commitment to the social and academic growth and development of every student. Eleonora holds graduate and postgraduate qualifications including international Language studies. She holds a BA, Grad Dip Ed, Grad Dip Edu.Admin, Grad CERT, IV TAA, Grad Cert Management NFP.

Carmel

Carmel Speer

Carmel Speer is a highly experienced Human Resources executive, specialising in organisational capability, leadership, workplace learning, diversity & inclusion and adaptive change. Carmel’s career has spanned across a range of industries including Banking & Financial Services, Retail, Aviation and Education. Carmel is a lifelong learner with an undergraduate qualification in teaching, a Masters in Professional Education & Training (VET) as well as professional education from the Harvard Kennedy School.  Carmel is commercial, contemporary and creative and is known for executional excellence in complex environments. Carmel is passionate about the impact of capability building and inclusion in the context of her local community. 

Aman Chawla

Aman has extensive expertise in operations management, quality assurance, and compliance within Registered Training Organisations for both domestic and international students. He prioritises business excellence, adaptability and continuous improvement while actively participating in Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia committees. Additionally, he serves on the boards of Vermont South Learning Centre and Carringbush Adult Education, further enhancing his involvement in the educational community.s

Kon Hara

Kon has over 20 years of experience in audit, finance operations, capital markets, treasury management, and consulting for both profit and non-profit organizations across sectors such as banking, FinTechs, insurance, and asset management. His attention to detail and strategic perspective are among his key strengths.

Beyond his professional career, Kon is an active volunteer, with a strong passion for supporting youth and migrant services. He holds a Bachelor of Accounting and is both a Chartered Accountant (ACCA) and a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA).