Glenn Johnston has over 30 years’ executive leadership experience in procurement and commercial management across different industries, market leading companies and government.

He is a proud Burramatta (Parramatta) man of the Darug Nation and a respected Aboriginal leader and educator.

Boards he is serving include: Australian Literacy & Numeration Foundation ALNF (Chair), Yilabara Employment & Training (Chair), Playgroups NSW (Chair), NSW Aboriginal Housing Office. He is also a former Deputy Chair of Supply Nation and a Director of Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Institute of Studies (AIATSIS).

He is principal of Darug Consulting Pty Ltd, providing Aboriginal cultural advice, training, strategy development and Reconciliation Action Plans (RAP).

An advocate of life-long learning, Glenn is also a Professor at UNSW School of Business, AGSM.

Mary-Ruth Mendel is Co-founder of ALNF, and a speech and language pathologist.

She is passionate about championing strong oral language & literacy in the early years by bringing together foundational speech pathology strategies and quality education activities. She seeks to honour her commitments to Elders to support Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities to strengthen First Languages and English language and literacy. Ultimately, Mary-Ruth is dedicated to empowering community members to confidently and effectively support children in oral language & literacy development for their robust education and life opportunities.

“Illiteracy is the great divider: literacy is the great multiplier. The ability to read is the key to an education. Education breaks the cycle of poverty and marginalisation. An inability to read, write and comprehend fluently cripples educational prospects. ALNF’s ‘extra lessons’ are specifically designed to overcome this hidden handicap.”

Adam Goodes is a proud Adnyamathanha man and a former professional Australian rules footballer who played for the Sydney Swans team. He holds an elite place in AFL history as a dual Brownlow Medallist, dual premiership player, four-time All-Australian, member of the Indigenous Team of the Century and representative of Australia in the International Rules Series. In addition, he holds the record for the most AFL games played by an Indigenous player. Adam is actively involved with several Indigenous sport and community programs and was named Australian of the Year in 2014 for his community work through the GO Foundation and advocacy against racism.

“I have seen first-hand how the ALNF works and I am looking forward to empowering more community members to help educate their nieces, nephews and children, now and for future generations.”

Kim Kelly is Co-Founder & CEO of ALNF. With a background in business management, Kim has worked tirelessly for over 25 years to raise funds for innovative literacy programs with tangible results in some of Australia’s most vulnerable communities.

Kim’s accolades include: Consultant on NSW Minister of Aboriginal Affairs Task Force, Worldwide Who’s Who Professional of the Year in Nonprofit Operations Management 2012, and Madison Magazine’s “Australia’s Most Inspiring Women”. She was also nominated for the 2016 Australian of the Year Award and the 2018 Probono Australia Impact 25 Awards.

“I’d like to see all Australian children given the same opportunities to grow and thrive, as I truly believe that being able to read, write and count is a basic human right. Without these skills, no one can function competently in the world we live in today. I believe that having strong literacy skills helps grow self-confidence, self-esteem and the opportunity to make choices.”

Geoff Riordan is an Emeritus Professor of the University of Canberra, where he served for 9 years as Dean of both Education and a combined Faculty of Education, Science and Technology. Prior to that, he was at UTS where he served as Head of Teacher Education; Associate Dean, Education and Deputy Dean of Arts and Social Sciences, and at Macquarie University where he worked as an education academic.

Geoff was a high school teacher and Deputy Principal prior to completing his PhD in Educational Administration at the University of Alberta and commencing his university career. He is now serving as Chair of the University of Canberra College Board and undertaking consultancies in education.

Geoff brings his career-long experience as an educator and education leader to his role as a director of ALNF – an internationally renowned education charity.

Jane is a highly regarded intellectual property lawyer, with over 30 years experience in this field, most recently as partner and head of the intellectual property team at Bird & Bird, Sydney.

In this capacity, Jane has provided and facilitated the provision of extensive probono legal services to ALNF over the last two decades, for example in the legal framework of the commercialisation of ALNF’s flagship, world-leading innovative products, the ELLDI and the Living First Languages Platform.

Since retiring from Bird & Bird, Jane brings her passion for the work ALNF performs in the literacy space, social justice and protecting and commercialising intangible property to the Board of ALNF.

Stes Stengos is an experienced governance leader with CEO, CFO and Company Secretary background across both commercial and not-for-profit sectors.

He was previously CEO and CFO of ADA NSW, where he led governance renewal, strengthened financial oversight, and guided the organisation through a period of transition and growth. He has extensive experience working with Boards to embed accountability frameworks, improve reporting, and support strategic decision-making.

Stes is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and holds an MBA. He is known for strengthening governance, enhancing financial discipline, and building strong, collaborative relationships between Boards and executive teams.

Kevin Lindgren was a Judge of the Federal Court of Australia from July 1994 until he reached the mandatory retirement age for federal Judges in February 2010. At the time of his appointment to the Court he was practising as Queen’s Counsel at the Sydney Bar, mainly in the area of commercial law. He is a Conjoint Professor of Law at The University of Newcastle and an Adjunct Professor of Law at The University of Sydney and The University of Technology Sydney.

“How to read and write! What goal could be more worthy than to teach these skills to marginalised Australians! Please support the Australian Literacy and Numeracy Foundation.”