In February 2012, three Canberra mothers met in a suburban living room to celebrate their children’s recovery from long and frightening critical illness. They were also there to discuss their concerns about the impact of those illnesses on their children’s friendships and schooling. Each child’s illness had been different but they shared a common experience of deep anxiety, loneliness, and isolation after missing school for more than a year.
Cathy Nell, Gina Meyers and Megan Gilmour realised that there was no framework in place to support their children’s need for ongoing connection with their teachers, classmates and learning through their schools.
From that meeting, MissingSchool was born, a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to raising awareness of the educational and social needs of children who miss school because of serious illness or injury, and to exploring ways of supporting these kids, their families, their teachers and peers, and their learning through their toughest times.
Marcus focuses his activities on developing and supporting ventures that provide a global innovation edge. His board experience is diverse, including startup, non-profit, public and private sector business boards. Marcus is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and is passionate about health and education. He strongly supports the vision and objectives of MissingSchool believing that it will continue to disrupt the market and change lives.
Megan is a social innovator, tech entrepreneur and global champion for human-centred solutions to complex social problems. Her career started on a government minister’s staff, and she later spearheaded multi-million dollar social and economic development initiatives across 24 countries. She has authored national-interest reports and drives MissingSchool’s world-first systemic education innovation using robots. Her work is passionately driven by her experience as a mother to a young son who survived a life-threatening illness.
Scott is a Certified Practicing Accountant with over 25 years’ experience. Scott has worked with several not-for-profits and draws upon his knowledge and experience to ensure MissingSchool’s accounting and financial management is compliant, efficient and effective. He has children of his own and knows first-hand that a child’s education is important. Scott is working to ensure MissingSchool translates its resources into impact through opportunities to keep sick children connected to their friends and learning.
Lara is a highly motivated and organised professional with over sixteen years’ experience in professional roles that require a high degree of initiative, advocacy and responsibility. Her experience includes roles in tertiary education supporting heads of school with overall project management, advice and guidance for the effective planning, implementation, and delivery of key strategic projects. Lara strongly believes in the vision of MissingSchool having witnessed her young cousin’s journey through critical illness.
Hugh supported his child through a life-threatening illness, and with honours and postgraduate studies in law and governance he is well placed to serve MissingSchool’s governance objectives. Hugh understands the multiple burdens and stresses families and carers face when dealing with seriously ill children; including the things many people don’t consider. He sees a continuing relationship with the school community as critical to maintaining some kind of “normal” for seriously sick kids and their families.
Sarah is a highly accomplished systems thinker who firmly believes that human connection changes lives. She has honours and postgraduate studies in international development and change management and has worked on large government-funded aid projects, for non-profits, university institutions, and as a consultant and trainer. Her role at MissingSchool brings together her background in complex program management, her desire to see problems solved through systems change, and her wonder at the technological age we live in.
A behavioural clinician in the disability sector, Vira is experienced working with children, adolescents and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder in schools, homes and workplaces. She has held teaching, research and administrative roles within Behaviour Management, Counselling and Clinical Neuroscience disciplines. Vira assists MissingSchool in developing and expanding the systems that facilitate connection for seriously sick kids.
Kirsty is passionate about community engagement, and has led a multifaceted life helping to develop and connect people and communities. Following an early focus and success as a classical pianist in Australia and overseas, Kirsty has since branched out in the arts, education and not-for-profit sectors, working in project and event management, development and fundraising, partnerships and sponsorships, and cultural placemaking. Kirsty enjoys her work with MissingSchool, keeping children with health conditions connected with their school communities and engaging with and assisting teachers on the See-Be Teach Me Forum.
Doreen holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology and qualifications in psychometrics. She is enthusiastic about education and has a deep passion for connecting with young minds. Her professional experience includes teaching positions spanning K-12 and college levels, with a focus on mental health. Doreen wholeheartedly advocates for all aspect of young people’s wellbeing and mental health and is committed to supporting their journey, one step at a time.
Passionate about tech-powered efficiency and automation, Nakul loves turning complexity into simplicity. Armed with a solid background in computer engineering, he specialises in creating seamless solutions and integrations across multiple platforms. Nakul works on developing processes for daily routine tasks, building websites and managing the tech engine behind the scenes. Dedicated to keeping sick children connected to education, Nakul embraces the transformative potential of tech at MissingSchool.
Qing is a trained researcher with a background in sociology and holds a Masters of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development. She is passionate about the ways organisations can use Monitoring, Evaluation and Learning information to achieve systemic change. Qing processes and codes MissingSchool’s data to inform strategy and learning. She believes that all students should be able to access education, regardless of their physical conditions or backgrounds.
Elizabeth was diagnosed with a serious illness at a young age which kept her out of school for over a year. This had a profound impact on her life, and she is passionate about drawing from her lived experience to help share the stories of sick kids. Elizabeth holds a Bachelor of Politics, Philosophy, and Economics, and is studying a Masters of Artificial Intelligence, giving her a rich experience in both qualitative and quantitative data analysis. She firmly believes that both data and stories can combine to be powerful agents of change.
Nicole is a dynamic Executive Assistant and digital creative who excels in innovatively blending administration and customer support. With a degree in Accounting Technology, she brings a keen eye for detail and a strategic perspective to her role, effectively managing the CEO’s administrative and corporate needs. Additionally, her avid interest in psychology drives her advocacy for the rights of sick children, firmly believing that they deserve to be both seen and heard.
Amanda manages MissingSchool’s financial records, project accounts and bookkeeping. Her love for numbers began when she was a bookkeeping assistant for her family’s cafes. She holds a Diploma of Business Administration and Certificate IV Financial Services (Bookkeeping); she is a registered BAS Agent and Xero cloud-based accounting partner. Amanda strongly believes that life is all about learning and is passionate about supporting sick kids and their education through her work.
Gina’s son was diagnosed with a critical and life-threatening illness which kept him in and out of hospital – and out of school – for around 18 months. Gina is proud to be one of MissingSchool’s founding members but dreams of a day when all kids with serious health conditions receive full support from their schools as a matter of course. Gina is the co-author of Australian-first research, School Connection for Seriously Sick Kids : Who Are They, How Do We Know What Works, and Whose Job Is It?
Cathy became interested in learning issues resulting from cancer therapy after her son had two cord blood transplants as treatment for Acute Lymphoblastic Leukaemia. She recognised that there was no clear pathway or voice for parents advocating for their children’s needs for educational support and connection. Cathy continues her advocacy and is the co-author of Australian-first research, School Connection for Seriously Sick Kids : Who Are They, How Do We Know What Works, and Whose Job Is It?
We are committed to affirming the identity of the young people we work for and stand in proud solidarity with the LGBTQIA+ community.
©2023 Missing School Inc. All rights reserved.
