New CEO & Board Directors appointed for Catholic Schools NSW

28 July 2017

Catholic Schools NSW (CSNSW) – the state’s new representative body for Catholic education – has appointed Dallas McInerney as its inaugural Chief Executive Officer.

Mr McInerney – currently General Manager of Government and Public Policy at National Australia Bank – is a senior executive with almost two decades experience in the public and private sectors.

“Dallas brings extensive experience in leading, managing and developing highly effective teams in corporate affairs and regulatory roles covering the insurance, funds management, superannuation and commercial banking sectors,” CSNSW chairman Steve Sedgwick said.

“He is the ideal person to lead the body that will soon be accountable for distributing more than $2 billion in public funding to the state’s Catholic schools.”

“Dallas has a track record representing some of Australia’s largest corporations on industry bodies, in discussions with consumer groups, on community forums and in high level government, departmental and parliamentary briefings,” Mr Sedgwick said.

CSNSW – a company limited by guarantee and owned by the NSW Bishops – is replacing Catholic Education Commission NSW as the state’s Catholic schools peak body.

It will represent 591 NSW Catholic schools, which educate some 258,000 students and employ 27,000 teaching and support staff.

Mr Sedgwick also announced the appointment of six new Directors to fill the remaining positions on CSNSW’s nine-person Board.

The new Directors – who will join Mr Sedgwick, Bishop Peter A Comensoli and Professor Anne Cummins – are:

  • Corporate lawyer Helen Conway
  • Public sector executive Vince Graham
  • Former federal minister Michael Lee
  • Senior educator Moira Najdecki
  • Chartered accountant David Robinson
  • Employment lawyer Justine Turnbull

“This distinguished group has an outstanding record of experience and achievement in their professional lives and are committed to Catholic education,” Mr Sedgwick said.

“They will bring dedication and expertise to their new roles as part-time directors of CSNSW.”

 

Brief biographies

 Dallas McInerney (Chief Executive Officer)

Dallas has degrees in Arts/Law and is a Master of Public Policy. He has been General Manager, Government and Public Policy at National Australia Bank since 2009. Previously, he was Manager, Regulatory Affairs at MLC (2005-2009), Senior Advisor, Economic & Regulatory Affairs at Insurance Australia Group (2001 – 2005) and Risk & Compliance Officer with regulator Australian Securities & Investments Commission (1999 to 2001).

Helen Conway (Board Director)

A lawyer and then a corporate executive over a period of 40 years, Helen is currently non-Executive Director of Endeavour Energy and insurance subsidiaries of Westpac. She has held a range of board memberships including AON Superannuation, Sydney Ferries, Caltex Superannuation and Catholic Healthcare. She was Chief Executive of Workplace Gender Equality Agency, Company Secretary and General Counsel of Caltex and NRMA, and General Counsel at Airservices Australia.

Vince Graham AM (Board Director)

A civil engineer, Vince is on the board of the Australian Rail Track Corporation, NSW Public Service Commission & the Safety Committee of University of Sydney Senate. For more than 20 years, he led several large government-owned enterprises undergoing substantial change management including Essential Energy, Endeavour Energy, Ausgrid and State Rail Authority. He has also served on many boards of Catholic organisations. Vince is a Knight Commander of the Order of St Gregory and a Member of the Order of Australia.

Michael Lee (Board Director)

Also an engineer, Michael is a director of Sydney Airport and chairman of industry body Communications Alliance. During a 17-year career as a Federal MP, he was Minister for Communications and shadow minister for education. Michael has previously chaired the NSW TAFE Commission board and Central Coast Campuses of University of Newcastle. He is a Director of the National Film & Sound Archive and Calvary Ministries.

Moira Najdecki (Board Director)

A distinguished educator and schools administrator, Moira recently retired as Director of Education in the Archdiocese of Canberra-Goulburn. She has served on many boards of educational institutions, including the Senate of Australian Catholic University. Moira is currently a member of the governing body of Good Samaritan Education and serves on the board of Mater Dei, a special school in Camden.

David Robinson (Board Director)

A chartered accountant for more than 40 years, David is currently a Partner with ESV Accounting and Business Advisors. His expertise is in advising SMEs, trade unions and not-for-profit organisations.  He is an experienced public company non-executive director and since 2009 a Trustee of Mary Aikenhead Ministries the responsible entity for the health, education and social care ministries formerly under the stewardship of the Sisters of Charity of Australia.

Justine Turnbull (Board Director)

Justine is an employment and discrimination lawyer and workplace investigator. Formerly a Partner of Seyfarth Shaw Australia and Herbert Smith Freehills, she is a member of the advisory board of NSW TAFE Commission and is also on the board of AccessEAP – a Sydney Archdiocese not-for-profit body promoting positive organisational behaviour, employee well-being and workplace productivity.

With thanks to NSWCEC.

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