Congratulations to the 22 successful recipients of this scholarship, supporting leaders with disability to increase their governance knowledge and access to board positions. 

1 in 5 people in Australia have a disability, however, this number is far from represented at executive and board-level positions.

Low awareness, confidence, and capability of Directors to welcome and include people with disability on Boards; along with less opportunities for leaders with disability to access learning and networking; are the main cause of this discrepancy.

Australian Network on Disability and Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) offered full-fee scholarships in 2022 to undertake the Foundations of Directorship program or the Company Directors Course at AICD.  Plus 8 months of mentoring with an Australian business leader to help participants maximise their board career opportunities.

There was such a strong response from leaders with disability that the cohort was expanded from 15 to 22 successful applicants.

Congratulations to the recipients

Congratulations to all of the winners of the Directing Change scholarship. This program is a fantastic opportunity to increase the representation of people with disability on Australian boards. The Australian Scholarships Foundation is incredibly proud to work with the Australian Institute of Company Directors and Australian Network on Disability to administer these scholarships.

Recipients included:

  • Alice Anderson,
  • Ben Aldridge,
  • Christopher Burrows,
  • Dominique Evele,
  • Fifi Rashando,
  • Dr George Taleporos,
  • Justin Lokhorst,
  • Megan Spindler-Smith,
  • Meryl Zweck,
  • Priscilla Brice,
  • Ross Chaplin MAICD LREA,
  • Sarah Fowler,
  • Sarah Stewart,
  • Yhana Lucas.

We are delighted that 15 of the winners are currently working in the not-for-profit sector.

Mentoring

In addition to undertaking the AICD’s Foundations of Directorship program or the Company Directors Course recipients also benefit from mentoring and leadership workshops as part of the Directing Change Scholarship.

An experienced Australian company director to act as mentor and coach to recipients.  Mentoring topics may vary depending on recipients’ career stage and interests, but may include: guidance on where to find board roles, how to apply for board roles, building professional connections, and general governance insight.

All mentors will undertake Australian Network on Disability’s Disability Confidence and Awareness training.    

Leadership workshops

Recipients are invited to various leadership workshops to support learnings.

  • Workshop 1 – My Leadership, My Story, My Brand – Building confidence and comfort in developing your individual brand and sharing your story
  • Workshop 2 – Practical session on tips and tools for applying for board roles
  • Workshop 3 – Networking with industry leaders to expand your professional connections

Read full details on the Directing Change Scholarship 2022.



Yellow and blue balloons, blue sky

Congrats to the WA Leaders Scholarship winners in 2022.

Bankwest and Curtin University awarded 21 scholarships to support those living in Western Australia working for not-for-profit organisations, to help build capacity in the Western Australian NFP sector. Read the article.