Rami Abi Jomaa is an advancement professional with 14 years of experience in supporting education.  

As the former Chief Advancement Officer at King’s Academy, Jordan, Abi Jooma led the advancement office's fundraising, alumni relations, advancement services, events, and communications functions, as well as managed a multi-year capital campaign. Prior to King’s Academy, Abi Jooma was the Director of Advancement Services at American University of Beirut, where he led several advancement functions. Abi Jomaa has successfully completed complex projects related to building advancement systems, structures, processes, and capital campaigns infrastructure. He is experienced in annual giving, technology management, human resources, and business processes development.  
 
Abi Jomaa holds a bachelor’s degree in business management and information systems and a master’s degree in sociology.

Eric De Haan joined Seoul Foreign School as Director of Alumni Relations in August 2020 after 13 years in the United States working as the inaugural Senior Director of International Alumni Relations and then Associate Vice President for International Development at Indiana University (IU). Prior to his tenure at IU, he held administrative roles at international schools in Europe for 14 years, including Director of Resident Life at Black Forest Academy in Germany, High School Principal at Riverside School in Prague, and Principal at Colegio ECAS in Madrid, Spain.

De Haan is a graduate of Taylor University and Indiana State University.

Simone Garske is the CEO of Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital (RBWH) Foundation.

With expertise in major philanthropic campaign strategy and execution, and delivering impact in medical research and donor relations, Garske has been instrumental in leading RBWH Foundation through the most significant transformation in its 35-year history.

Garske is a Certified Fundraising Executive. She has served as director on the Asia-Pacific Board of the Council for Advancement & Support of Education and has a bachelor’s degree in business (communication) and a master’s degree in business administration from QUT.

Garske is inspired about truly excellent health research and advancement through partnerships and philanthropy.

Flora Grant is the University of Sydney’s Director of Principal Gifts, focussed on working with the University’s most generous supporters across the institution. Before this role, she had held a number of roles in the University of Sydney’s major gifts teams, leading major gifts teams including across the Faculties of Science and Arts, as well as supporting the University’s Indigenous Strategy, and the Chau Chak Wing Museum, in addition to leading the Donor Relations team. She has had the privilege of securing philanthropic support across a wide range of projects, from pure mathematics to mental health in Indigenous communities to support for the University’s new museum. 

The Hutchins School is a K-12 independent school in Hobart, Tasmania, and John Groom was approached in late 2017 to return to his alma mater in the capacity of Director of Advancement and Alumni Engagement. Groom has a professional services and corporate background and had previously served on the school council, and was well known throughout the school’s community, including as a member of The Hutchins Foundation.

Following an external review in 2019, the school’s foundation board recommended to its members that it be wound up. That recommendation was unanimously carried at a special meeting of members and The Hutchins Foundation formally ceased to exist in early 2020. Groom oversaw an extensive consultation process that led to this outcome.

While Groom is extremely dedicated to his work, he is also a husband, father to three busy children, an occasional golfer, and adventurous traveller.

Heather Hamilton oversees the Council for Advancement and Support of Education Asia-Pacific membership and the development of educational programmes for the region. Hamilton’s career spans 30 years in leadership roles, helping organisations in education and not-for-profit sectors drive cultural change, enhance their reputation, and pursue diversified funding. While working throughout Australia, Asia, and Canada, she developed expertise in stakeholder relations, fundraising, industry partnerships, volunteer management, marketing, and communications. Previously, Hamilton served as Director of External Relations at The University of Western Australia, Director of Advancement at The University of Queensland, and Executive Director of Community Relations at Brisbane Grammar School.

Hamilton also volunteers on the foundation of St Hilda's Anglican School for Girls in Perth, Australia. Previously, she served on the CASE Commission, and as host, track chair and speaker for APAC, as well as a judge for CASE Circle of Excellence Awards.

Tara Loty is passionate about creating transformative and strategic engagement opportunities for universities and the government. She has over 10 years of experience in senior management roles at universities in Australia and the United States. She received the 2020 Australian Catholic University Vice-Chancellor’s Staff Excellence Medal and Award for Mission Excellence.

Loty has policy development expertise with both state and federal government, including the Department of Premier and Cabinet, New South Wales and the Commonwealth Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry.

Lucy is the Senior Development Manager (Donor Engagement) at QUT leading the team responsible for growing the pipeline of donors.

Lucy is a seasoned fundraising professional with eighteen years experience working in university advancement in Australia at QUT, The University of Queensland and University of Melbourne.

In her current role, Lucy works strategically to build QUT’s pipeline of donors through major gifts, appeals, stewardship, bequests and prospect research. She has significant management experience in Donor Relations, Annual Giving, Staff and Student Giving programs and has worked on major fundraising campaigns at two Go8 universities.

Lucy’s work has been recognised with three CASE Circle of Excellence Silver Awards in 2014, 2015 and 2017 in the ‘Short Fundraising Video’ category. In 2020, QUT’s Emergency Student Fund Appeal that Lucy led from concept to launch in just five days (in her first week in the job!) was awarded the Universities Australia Marketing Communications and Development (UAMCD) Award for best real-time response communications.

Shelagh Murray was appointed as Director of the University of Otago’s Development and Alumni Relations Office in February 2018. 

She has over 20 years of experience in philanthropy and engagement in the higher education and not-for-profit sectors.

Murray amassed extensive experience in implementing successful fundraising and alumni relations strategies at the University of Canterbury and at Victoria University of Wellington where she held leadership roles. In 2016/2017, she was a Senior Consultant at fundraising consultancy AskRIGHT. 

Her professional activities include membership of the Fundraising Institute of New Zealand (FINZ); Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), ex-President of the NZ chapter of Educate Plus and was made a Fellow of Educate Plus for services to the organisation and members of the profession.

Ruth O'Hanlon is a philanthropy professional with over 20 years of experience in the education and international charity sectors. 

O'Hanlon discovered the joys and sorrows of fundraising through planned giving at The University of Queensland, Australia, where she headed the programme for eight years, raising over AU$67.72 million and adding over AU$50 million into the legacy pipeline.

Now in the U.K., O'Hanlon has led advancement at SOAS University of London and served as the Director of Development at Sevenoaks School in Kent. She is currently helping a new London-based think tank lay the groundwork for international major gift fundraising.

In much earlier days, O'Hanlon spent five years living in China and Central Asia, and is a lifelong student of Mandarin Chinese, Uighur, and Russian languages. 

Benjamin Smith joined the Canadian International School of Hong Kong as the school’s first Director of Advancement in 2019.

Previously, Smith was Director of Development at Leysin American School in Switzerland, where he worked from 2011. During his tenure, Smith travelled extensively in North America, Europe, and Asia establishing the development programme and assisting with the school’s recruitment efforts. 

Smith began his advancement career in the United States in 2004 at a small liberal arts college in New Hampshire before joining the growing major gifts team at his alma mater, the University of New Hampshire. Smith has participated in CASE programming in District 1, Europe, and Asia-Pacific.  

Smith is a graduate of the University of New Hampshire and Suffolk University Law School in Boston, Massachusetts.

Colin Taylor trained as a physicist, studying at ANU and the University of Western Australia. His doctoral and postdoctoral studies took him to the University of Tokyo to work on gravitational wave detection. After a scientific career, he changed direction to non-profit management and leadership, and ultimately to fundraising and institutional advancement. Along the way, he studied Cross-Sector Partnership with the University of Cambridge’s Programme for Industry, and a master’s degree in business administration (executive) with UNSW.

Taylor is a Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) and is an active member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). He chaired the CASE Asia-Pacific Advancement Conference in 2015, was a member of CASE’s International Commission on Alumni Relations in 2017 and 2018 and has been recognised as a CASE Laureate.

Bernadette Tsui authored the book "The City with a Heart - Stories of Giving from Hong Kong and Hong Kong University", documenting the core values, traditions and challenges of philanthropy in this global city.

A leading professional in institutional advancement, Tsui also teaches master’s degree and executive programmes in NPO management and fundraising at The University of Hong Kong, the Hong Kong Academy for the Performing Arts, as well as institutions in Mainland China.

She is a veteran columnist and has worked in the theatre, arts and media. She holds a BA and MPhil in drama (HKU), and has studied theatre at New York University and Sophia University.

For her leadership, inspiration, and impact, Tsui was granted the “CASE 2018 Asia-Pacific Distinguished Service Award”.  

Karen Van Sacker joined the University of Melbourne’s Advancement leadership team with a brief to lead a change programme to attract high impact philanthropy and corporate citizenship. This session draws on her industry experience and expertise in Canada and Australia for a robust discussion about theory and practice of win-win engagement. 

Van Sacker has over 30 years of experience in fundraising, philanthropy and industry partnerships, as a consultant and as a fundraising executive. She has worked across the higher education and not-for-profit sectors in Australia, North America and Asia. Van Sacker has completed undergraduate and post graduate study at the University of British Columbia, Université Laval and Concordia University (Canada).

Chris Walker has worked in the advancement and community relations department at Brisbane Grammar School for seven years. He has managed communications for the school through a Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse and more recently, in response to COVID-19. Walker also manages marketing for the school. He is a graduate of The University of Queensland, where he completed a bachelor’s degree in journalism and bachelor’s degree in arts, majoring in media studies. He also completed journalism studies at City University in London. Walker worked as a journalist for almost six years in Sydney and Brisbane with his work appearing in major Australian publications. His work as a freelance journalist and photographer has been featured in several travel magazines.