COUNCIL
The Council is the Governing Board of AIHE that comprises a large proportion of independent members who are experienced in governance roles in either Australian Universities or public and private business sectors. AIHE Council is accountable for the direction setting and oversight of the provider as a whole.
For further details about the Terms of Reference of AIHE Council, see HERE
For the Terms of Reference of the AIHE Council Nominations Committee, see HERE
Members of the AIHE Council
Mr. Nigel Smalls - AIHE Council Chair, BA (JntHons) (Leeds), MBA (UniSA), GAICD
Member
Nigel Smalls is a business owner with over 35 years of experience in the public and private corporate world. His background includes roles as Chief Executive Officer both in Australia and overseas. Nigel holds a BA (Joint Hons) in Economics and History, an MBA and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Nigel has had an interest in education, training and self-development since being part of a team that worked on management behavioural competencies in the early 1990s. He has been advising the AEG Group since 2013 and offers practical business insights as well as skills in governance and strategic thinking to the AIHE Council.
Mr. Don Chen, B Sc (VicU)
Don Chen is the founder of Adelaide Education Group. Coming to Australia as a young overseas student in the early 1990s, Don started his career working as an IT consultant but as a son of a teacher, he always had the passion to work in education. In 2000, Don set up an international education agency and in 2009, he successfully launched the Adelaide Institute of Business and Technology, subsequently establishing Adelaide International School in 2016 and Adelaide Institute of Higher Education in 2019.
Don’s strength lies in business development having forged countless transnational partnerships between institutions from around the world and his work has seen tens of thousands of international students come to study in Australia.
Mr Scott Edwards,BAcc (UniSA), CPP (CA ANZ)
Mr Scott Edwards is a Partner and Director of Y Partners Business Services. He has 30 years of experience providing accounting services, assisting businesses, and providing advice to clients on a range of strategic, general business, and taxation matters. Mr Edwards sits on various committees, boards and councils, across a range of industries, including media companies, education providers, sporting clubs, and agricultural organisations.
Mr. Sebastian Raneskold, BSSc (Lund), MSSc (Stockholm), Dip Spanish (UPV/EHU), MAICD
Sebastian Raneskold is a dynamic executive leader with 25 years’ experience in public and private higher education and proven success in expanding global markets, increasing revenue, and leading high-performing teams.
Sebastian is the former Vice-President and Pro-Vice-Chancellor (International) at Flinders University, a senior executive role he held for 9 years. At Flinders, Sebastian drove business growth through strategic partnerships and commercial ventures, delivering strong financial outcomes and long-term institutional growth. He founded Flinders University Academy, the University’s own wholly owned but independently operated pathway provider, and served as its first Chair of the Board.
Earlier leadership positions include various Director of Marketing roles with the Navitas group, Country Director at IDP Education Australia, Regional Manager at the UniSA and Coordinator International Programs at Örebro University, Sweden.
Dr. Vicki Feast, B Ec, Grad Dip Ed, EdD (Flinders), Grad Dip Ec (Uni of Adelaide), M Comm (UniSA)
Dr Vicki Feast is currently the Chair of AIHE Academic Board. Prior to this AIHE role Vicki worked as a consultant at the University of South Australia (UniSA) for six years. However, for most of her working life (23 years) prior to this Vicki worked at the UniSA in a range of different roles including as Associate Professor and Dean: Teaching and Learning and Dean: International. Vicki’s discipline expertise is in Economics. Vicki taught Economics in a range of onshore and transnational programs in Malaysia, Singapore and Hong Hong throughout her career at UniSA.
