Academic Board

Chair of Academic Board

Appointed Member

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.

Appointed Member

Associate Professor Rhodora Abadia is Dean, Academic in the College of Engineering and IT at Adelaide University, where she leads teaching and learning strategy, curriculum quality, and academic governance across engineering and IT disciplines. In this role, she drives pedagogical innovation, including the responsible integration of AI in learning and teaching, and oversees the College's program development and quality assurance frameworks. Her work spans academic strategy, accreditation, work integrated learning, and the establishment of governance structures that support teaching excellence at scale within Australia's newest Group of Eight university.

Rhodora's research focuses on AI in persuasive educational technologies, and she is a recognised leader at the intersection of artificial intelligence, technology, and higher education. Her contributions to higher education have been recognised through the 2024 University of South Australia’s Unstoppable Senior Career Award and the international David A. Wilson Award for Academic Excellence.

Appointed Member

Dr Valerie Kupke was employed as a senior academic and researcher at the University of South Australia (UniSA) for almost 30 years. She published primarily in the area of housing and land economics and upon retirement continued as an Adjunct for some years. She is an ongoing member of the Australian Property Institute (API) and continues to provide research services to institutions such as the Australian Lutheran College which is affiliated to the University of Divinity Melbourne. While employed at UniSA she taught on a regular basis at Thammasat University, Bangkok, Hong Kong Baptist University and in Singapore. She is an invited Board Member of the Governing Council of the Adelaide College of Divinity.

Appointed Member

Shaun is the founder and principal of training consultancy Cool Rules [for writers]. Cool Rules works with government, education and business clients across Australia to improve workplace writing. His background in public and private sector higher education management includes periods as Director/CEO of the South Australian Institute of Business and Technology (SAIBT), the Centre for English Language at the University of South Australia (CELUSA), Education Adelaide (now Study Adelaide), and the South Australian Tertiary Admissions Centre (SATAC).

Appointed Member

Dr Joanne Barker is an international education consultant and global mobility researcher.

Joanne previously worked for a total of 18 years as Director International at two Australian universities. She served on the Academic Board of the South Australian Institute of Business & Technology (SAIBT) from 2011 to 2016. She was twice elected to the Board of the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA) and was an invited member (representing Australasia) of the US-based TOEFL Board from 2014 to 2018.

Joanne’s PhD focused on evaluation in a government international scholarship program. Since 2018, she has undertaken regular consulting for DFAT’s Australia Awards international scholarship program, and since 2022, she has been engaged in research on professional global mobility for the Australian APEC Study Centre at RMIT.

Ex Officio Member

Dr. Wasana Jayawickramarathna is a senior academic with almost 20 years of progressive experience in higher education, spanning teaching, research, quality assurance, and academic governance. She provides strategic leadership across academic operations, with expertise in program delivery, curriculum development, academic quality frameworks, and institutional risk management.

Wasana holds a PhD in Marketing, with research focused on Social Marketing, as well as a Master of Business Administration and a Bachelor of Business Management (Marketing). Her career reflects a strong commitment to academic excellence and institutional growth. She has led curriculum design, student success initiatives, and quality improvement, while developing systems that promote inclusive and high-performing learning environments.

Her scholarly interests include consumer behaviour, social marketing, corporate social responsibility, and marketing research, and she continues to advocate for evidence-informed teaching practice and high academic standards.

Student Representative

Jill Dominique Nuñez is currently an MBA student at Adelaide Institute of Higher Education, specialising in Management Information Systems. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Psychology, graduating Cum Laude.

Jill works in IT Recruitment and Talent Consulting in Adelaide, partnering with organisations to deliver talent solutions across Project Services and IT, including Cybersecurity, Infrastructure, Data, Software Development, and Business Development. She brings international experience across Australia, Singapore, the United States, and the Philippines, with a background spanning recruitment, HR, and digital operations. She is particularly interested in the intersection of technology and psychology and is a strong advocate for mental health awareness.