Board and Governance

Archbishop Philip Freier

Archbishop of Melbourne
BAppSc, DipEd, BD, MEdSt, PhD, FAICD

Archbishop Freier came to Melbourne in December 2006. He was previously Bishop of the Northern Territory and had also worked in ministry in Queensland. He has lived and worked in indigenous communities and is strongly committed to social justice issues and to engaging the church with the wider community. From August 2014 to April 2020, Archbishop Freier was the Primate of the Anglican Church of Australia

Mr Tom Craven

Chair of the Board
BCom (Ec), LLB (Ec, Law)

Tom is a senior executive in the Victorian Government's Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, where he leads strategy, governance and investment policy in relation to social and community services. His career includes management consulting roles advising government and not-for-profit boards, executives and organisations in organisational strategy and performance improvement. He has served on a number of church and not-for-profit boards, including as Chair of Mustard, a ministry supporting young Christians to live out their faith in school. God’s special concern for the poor and our joyous duty to share in his love and generosity for others is central to Tom’s faith journey.

Other duties: Chair of Governance and Nominations Committee

Right Revd Dr Paul Barker

Deputy Chair of the Board
BA, ThL, BTh (Hons), Dip Min, PhD

Bishop Paul has served as Vicar of Holy Trinity Doncaster, as an Examining Chaplain, Archdeacon of Box Hill and Visiting Lecturer at Ridley College. He has worked in Malaysia with the Church Missionary Society and was a Visiting Lecturer in various seminaries in India, Pakistan, Myanmar and Thailand. Bishop Paul was also the Asian Regional Coordinator for Langham Preaching and Langham Scholar Care. He was consecrated in 2016 as Assistant Bishop for Jumbunna, part of the diocese of Melbourne comprising the outer-southern and Eastern suburbs. 

Other duties: Member of Governance and Nominations Committee

Ms Carolyn Sandiford

BA (Hons)

Carolyn is a professional marketer with more than 20 years’ experience gained in the banking, telecommunications, insurance, motoring and hospitality sectors. She has most recently served as Head of Marketing, Brand and Communications at ESSSuper.

Carolyn also sits on the Deakin University Marketing Advisory Board.

Other duties: Communications Advisor

Mr Grant Dawson 

B Comm, MBA, GAICD, CA

Grant is an experienced CFO and General Manager of Corporate Services, with extensive finance, strategic and management experience. He worked in commercial companies, including HJ Heinz in Asia, before moving to the not-for-profit sector, working mostly with Christian organisations including World Vision. Grant’s final permanent role was as Specialist Consultant to not-for-profit clients of a chartered accounting firm. He now serves on the boards and finance committees of AOA and International Justice Mission. He has a heart for justice, especially for children and the poor, and has recently moved into sports chaplaincy.

Other duties: Chair of Finance, Risk and Audit Committee

Ms Seak-King Huang 

LLB (Hons), BA, GAICD

Seak-King is a partner at Milner + Huang, a legal practice she established in 2021. She has also been partner at Prolegis Lawyers, General Counsel and Company Secretary of World Vision Australia, and partner at Clayton Utz. Seak-King is Chair of the Charities and Not-for-profits Committee of the Law Council of Australia’s Legal Practice section, a Board member of the Charity Lawyers’ Association of Australia and NZ, and a member of the Synod of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne and of the General Synod of the Anglican Church of Australia.

Other duties: Member of Governance and Nominations Committee

Mr Andrew Newmarch 

MA (IntlDev and Environmental Analysis)

Andrew has a long history of engagement with faith-based international development agencies, spending almost 30 years with World Vision Australia managing programs in Asia and Africa. He has represented the international development sector on DFAT’s Committee for Development Cooperation and convened the Measuring Effectiveness conferences. He is currently the International Programs Manager for Leprosy Mission Australia. 

Other duties: Chair of Development Committee

Dr Andrew Smith

MBBS (Hons), FRACS

Andrew is a Consultant Upper GI surgeon who worked at Alfred Health for 30 years. He has been Chair of Upper GI specialty group at Cabrini Health, was instrumental in the establishment of a day hospital in Melbourne, and currently directs a multi-disciplinary surgical practice in Glen Iris. With his wife Janice, Andrew was on the Board of Wise Choices for Life, a subsidiary of AOA. He has a passion for international aid, visiting DR Congo and Uganda on several occasions.

Other duties: Member of Finance, Risk and Audit Committee

Ms Nicole Butera

Company Secretary

B.Acc, CA

Nicole is a chartered accountant with over 20 years experience having worked in Melbourne, Sydney and London.   After spending most of her career at KPMG she started her own business specialising in providing services for Not for Profit organisations across Australia.  In addition, Nicole sits on the board of two Not For Profit organisations and is a Trustee of a Melbourne based Charitable Trust.

Ven Dr Tim Johnson

PhD (Psych), MDiv, GradDipDiv, BSc (Hons)

Tim is the Senior Minister of St John’s Diamond Creek (a church that has supported AOA for some 30 years) and the Archdeacon of the Yarra. He has served on the board of Ridley Theological College and is an Adjunct Lecturer in Practical Ministry there. Tim regularly visits Papua New Guinea to work with pastors and church leaders in his role as international facilitator for Langham Preaching.

Other duties: Chair of Governance and Nominations Committee

Ms Holly Crocket

BA (Hons), MA (International Crisis Management)

Holly is a strategic communications and advocacy specialist with more than 15 years’ experience in the international development, not-for-profit and government sectors. In addition to advocacy and communications roles with Plan International and Oxfam, she has worked extensively with local women’s health organisations in India and Ethiopia. Holly has most recently served as the Communications Manager of the Yoorrook Justice Commission, Australia’s first Indigenous-led Royal Commission into injustice against First Peoples. She is a former board member of The Wellington Collingwood.

The AOA Board has established standing committees to improve board effectiveness and efficiency where activities require more concentrated effort and specialist skills.

• Development Committee is responsible for ensuring AOA’s development programs are of the highest quality and comply with the agency’s strategic direction. Members of the committee also provide expert technical resources and support to our staff in relation to programs
• Finance, Risk and Audit Committee is responsible for statutory compliance, accounting, risk management and finance. Members of the committee also offer an expert resource for supporting AOA staff when dealing with such matters 
• Governance and Nominations Committee supports the CEO to ensure that the governance of AOA meets the highest standards. This includes overseeing appointments to the Board of Directors and committees, education and development of board and committee members and the CEO, and to assist the CEO to identify candidates for senior management positions