About us

John is an Adjunct Professor of Psychology at the School of Psychological Science at the University of Western Australia and at the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide. Previously, he has been the Chair of APAC, Chair of HODSPA and Head of the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide.

He is a Fellow of the Psychonomic Society and a member of the Association for Psychological Science, the International Association of Applied Psychology, the Cognitive Science Society, Society for Mathematical Psychology and the Australasian Mathematical Psychology Society.

John obtained his PhD in 1984 from the University of Western Australia. He has since worked at the University of Western Australia, the University of Queensland, the University of Adelaide, Murdoch University and Edith Cowan University.

His research is focused on cognitive psychology, human memory, reasoning, decision-making, cognitive modelling, mathematical psychology and methodological issues in human experimental psychology. He has published more than 80 peer-reviewed scientific papers and one book.

Professor Mary Katsikitis is the Dean People and Resources for the College of Education, Psychology, and Social Work at Flinders University, South Australia. Mary has worked for many years in academia, primarily at the University of Adelaide and the University of the Sunshine Coast. She also spent several years as the inaugural Manager of Science and Education at the Australian Psychological Society in Melbourne.

Mary is a previous member of both the Board and the Accreditation Assessment Committee (AAC) for the Australian Psychology Accreditation Council. With a background in psychology, Mary is also endorsed in clinical and health psychology. Her research interests and funding received focus on improving the mental health of adults and promoting well-being in the community.

Robert Schweitzer PhD is Professor of Psychology in the School of Psychology and Counselling at Queensland University of Technology, where he established the training program in clinical psychology. Robert has authored numerous papers relating to psychological aspects of refugee mental health, has contributed to the development of innovative interventions for patients with serious mental health issues, and has published on phenomenology.

His contribution to the profession includes leadership roles on the Queensland Board of the Psychology Board of Australia. He continues to be involved in the profession as clinician, teacher and researcher.

Romola is Professor and Pro Vice-Chancellor (Health and Medical Research) at the University of Western Australia. Before undertaking a PhD in the late 1990s, Romola trained and practised as a Clinical Psychologist and Neuropsychologist in the National Health Service in the United Kingdom and is an endorsed Clinical Psychologist in Australia.

She has been involved in clinical psychology training for more than 25 years, having taught and supervised clinical psychology trainees in the UK, then worked as a Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology (2001–05) at the University of Southampton, UK. Following her move to Perth in 2007, Romola continued to teach clinical psychology and clinical neuropsychology MPsych trainees.

From 2012 to 2014, she was Director of the Master of Clinical Psychology Program at UWA. From 2017-2019, she was Head of the School of Psychological Science, and in 2020, was Deputy Dean, Faculty of Science, UWA. In 2020, Romola became Director of the Raine Study.

Roger is an endorsed Counselling and Clinical Psychologist and Family Therapist. He has worked at Swinburne University of Technology as Course Coordinator for the Masters in Counselling Psychology program and established and directed the University’s Psychology Clinic.

His research has been focused on issues relating to infertility and family processes. His professional practice is directed to working with families, couples and men’s issues.

He is a Fellow and Life Member of the Australian Psychological Society, past President and Life Member of the Fertility Society of Australia and New Zealand, inaugural President of the Australian and New Zealand Infertility Counsellors’ Association and current Chair of the APS College of Counselling Psychologists.

Mark is a recently retired Senior Finance Executive with expertise across a broad range of finance and commercial areas. He has extensive skills in accounting/finance, internal controls, strategy development, planning and systems development and implementation. Mark worked with Rio Tinto for over 30 years in various senior management roles, leading global finance teams.

Robert retired from the position of Deputy Executive Director (Academic) of the Hong Kong Council for Accreditation of Academic and Vocational Qualifications in 2019. Before going to Hong Kong in 2010 he was the Deputy Director of the Victorian Registration and Qualifications Authority (VRQA) with responsibility for registration of vocational and higher education providers and the accreditation of vocational, higher education and senior secondary qualifications.

Prior to working at the VRQA, Robert was the Director of the Victorian Qualifications Authority and a Director in the Victorian Auditor General’s Office (VAGO) with responsibility for performance audits of TAFE Institutes and universities. Before joining VAGO Robert was an Assistant General Manager with the Victorian Department of Education with responsibility for the triennial review program for Victorian government schools. Robert is also currently a member of the Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority Board.

Alison is Honorary Professor of Psychology at Edith Cowan University where she previously held the position of Professor of Psychology. Alison was Executive Director of the APS and held the position of inaugural Director of Training and Standards on the APS Board of Directors.

Alison was an Assessor for APAC and its predecessor from 2003 to 2017. She has worked in academia, policy and management in various universities and state and non-government organisations. She has authored one textbook, three monographs and three edited books, along with more than 100 refereed articles, chapters, reports and papers. Alison is a Senior Sessional Member of the WA State Administrative Tribunal and a Deputy Member of the WA Reproductive Technology Council.

Professor John Gleeson is Head of Discipline (Psychology) and Director of The Healthy Brain and Mind Research Centre at the Australian Catholic University.

He is a member of the Clinical College of the Australian Psychological Society and an occasional panel member, via a ministerial appointment, of the Victorian Civil and Administrative Appeals Tribunal.

Professor Gleeson is a registered psychologist with the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency with an area of practice endorsement in clinical psychology. He is an approved clinical supervisor with the Psychology Board of Australia.

After attaining his Masters in Clinical Psychology from La Trobe University in 1991, he has practised in public and private mental health settings. Professor Gleeson obtained his PhD from the University of Melbourne in 2001 and his research encompasses digital innovations for mental health.

A Registered Psychologist with Endorsement in Clinical Psychology, Jillian works in private practice and is a long-standing employer and board-approved supervisor of psychologists, across the career span. Jillian’s areas of clinical interest include perinatal and infant mental health, developmental trauma and neglect, traumatic brain injury, emergency services and veteran mental health.

An experienced Company Director and Graduate of the AICD, Jillian has held corporate and clinical governance roles in primary care, including as a Director of a Primary Health Network. In 2018 Jillian was appointed to the Medicare Review Taskforce’s Mental Health Reference Group and continues to consult with government and other stakeholders in the mental health and primary care sector.

Jillian is currently the national health policy Chair of the APS College of Clinical Psychologists. She is a Director of the Blue Knot Foundation and President of the Applied Neuroscience Society of Australasia.

Michael joined APAC as CEO in September 2017. He is passionate about building strong stakeholder relationships and identifying opportunities to continually improve processes and services.

Prior to joining the team at APAC, he was the Director of Accreditation at the Australian Dental Council. He has also worked as the Director of Regulation and Review at the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency, the Federal Government’s Higher Education Regulator, the British Psychological Society, in international leadership development and as a management consultant.

Outside of work Michael spends most of his time trying to keep up with his two young daughters, playing soccer (despite being far too old), hacking around the occasional golf course and planning his next ill-advised attempt at Tough Mudder.

Rachel Portelli can be contacted by email at CoSec@apac.au.

Michelle has a diverse background in education, communications and regulation.

A qualified teacher with a PhD in German and Comparative Literature, she has worked as a higher education consultant in regulation and quality, an assessment and case manager at TEQSA, a media spokesperson and communications manager for the Victorian Ombudsman, a broadcaster with SBS, and a lecturer at RMIT University and Swinburne University.

In her spare time, Michelle enjoys fine dining and great bottles of wine, or simply curling up with her cat and streaming top-quality entertainment.

Stephanie joined APAC in May 2020 as our Senior Accreditation Officer and was promoted to Assistant Accreditation Manager in October 2022. From facilitating and coordinating assessments, through to looking at ways to improve the quality and efficiency of APAC’s accreditation activities, Stephanie brings a wealth of experience from the education sector to her role here at APAC.

Stephanie’s previous experience includes leadership positions at higher education providers in the areas of student experience, administration, welfare and operations. With a focus on the improvement of student engagement and satisfaction scores, Stephanie achieved great results and contributed significantly towards the improvement of student support services.

Stephanie is adaptable and compassionate, committed and values integrity and responsibility. In her spare time, Stephanie enjoys painting, keeping fit through boxing, travelling, hiking and photography.

Olga joined APAC in December 2022 as our Senior Accreditation Officer. Olga completed legal, pedagogical and economics higher education study courses in Australia and overseas.

Before joining APAC Olga was providing a high level of administrative support at the nation’s largest not-for-profit health, aged care and education services providers. She also worked for immigration services firms specialising in student, family, humanitarian and professional migration visa services.

Olga’s work background and legal training has given her a strong eye for detail and a customer-focused empathetic approach to her work.

Olga enjoys travelling both locally and internationally and loves her Tonkinese cat Chai. When time permits, she loves to do dance classes, take long walks and is a regular at the gym.

Alana started at APAC as our Accreditation Administrator after working at the Australian Dental Council for five years. As the Assessments Coordinator, Alana’s duties were to manage the initial stage of the assessment process for candidates seeking registration as a dentist in Australia.

Alana previously enjoyed roles within education, working at Evocca College and Tintern Schools in administration. Alana holds a Diploma in Business Administration and enjoys progressing her skills in this field, particularly around communication.

Outside of work, Alana loves spending time with her family, watching sport, particularly AFL (Go Saints) and the NBL – thankfully Melbourne United make ups for her ‘not so successful’ football team.

Annette joined APAC in January 2017 as the Office Manager, she has extensive experience in providing executive support across many industries and brings that knowledge to her role.

Annette’s position encompasses a number of different areas within the organisation. Not only is she responsible for all aspects relating to the APAC office functionality which includes processing of office accounts and payroll, but she also provides assistance to the CEO and the Board of Directors. Annette has completed her Certificate IV in HR and has taken on the role of HR Representative at APAC also.

Annette enjoys amateur furniture restoration and socialising with friends and family.

David is an experienced communications specialist with a career grounded in newspaper journalism. As a senior communicator, roles have involved writing and editing, developing and diversifying a dynamic social media presence, and web publishing.

Before joining APAC in 2021, David held senior communications roles at RMIT University, the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, and the Australian Skills Quality Authority.

David enjoys relating to diverse audiences across genders, cultures and ages, while leading innovation in communications and influencing stakeholders.

He is a gold member of Melbourne Victory football club, aims for 10,000+ steps a day and is looking forward to travelling once again post-lockdown.

Kavitha is responsible for the coordination of database management, data integrity and analysis and production of statistical reports to support our business.

Kavitha also supports a range of business-wide quality improvement projects. She is customer-centric, focused, professional and has a growth mindset which enables her to make positive contributions to our team and her career. Kavitha likes to sketch and enjoys trying new recipes. She’s a huge cricket fan.