Staff

Russ Hawkins - Chief Executive Officer

Commencing as CCA CEO in July 2023, Russ Hawkins brings three decades of public and private sector educational leadership and deep policy networks as a teacher, CEO, school principal, project manager, executive principal and policy advisor to government and non-government sectors. Russ grew up in Western Sydney and started his educational leadership journey as a school principal in Bathurst district, leading to primary and high school principal roles across NSW and QLD.

Russ comes to CCA most recently as CEO at AIIC Murri School Brisbane, the largest community controlled First Nations school in the country under the inspirational leadership of Chair Mick Gooda; and as Executive Principal of eight YMCA Schools in QLD where Russ expanded VET pathways with the Australian Retail Association for student access to training and employment opportunities across 100,000 shop fronts.

Russ is an awarded Fellow of the Australian Council for Educational Leaders and NSW Parents and Citizen Principal of the Year for his community leadership model connecting young parents to adult and community education. In addition to his Bachelor of Education, he earned a Masters of Educational Leadership focussed on education law.

Russ cites his most important and cherished role as a husband to Amanda (a Reading Recovery teacher); together with their two children Laura (a solicitor) and Jack (a real estate agent) they will soon celebrate their 30th wedding anniversary. Russ is deeply committed to social justice, social equity, inclusion and CCA member advocacy in adult education with a focus on emotionally intelligent leadership for federal, state and local government policy influence.

Evelyn Goodwin - Manager, VET Policy and Projects

Evelyn Goodwin joined CCA in May 2015 as Manager, VET Policy & Projects, responsible for professional development activities and policy development. She has extensive experience in Australian vocational education and training, across a broad range of industry sectors and client groups, in both strategic policy and VET capability areas. She has conducted research, managed professional development initiatives, liaised with industry and provided policy advice at Industry Skill Council, state government and RTO levels.

Most recently Evelyn managed sustainability and RTO Quality Assurance projects at Sydney Institute of TAFE. She has also coordinated professional development activities for RTOs in the Skills Development section of the NSW Department of Education and Training, and worked for the Manufacturing, Engineering & Related Services Industry Training Advisory Body.

Evelyn holds a Masters in Technology and Social Change (Wollongong), a Bachelor of Science (Macquarie), a Graduate Certificate in Sustainability for VET (Swinburne), a TAE (Cert IV in Assessment & Workplace Training) and a Graduate Certificate in Environmental Planning.

Clare Harris - Member Services Manager

As Member Services Manager with CCA, Clare Harris has responsibility for business administration, finance, event planning and other operational matters. Prior to joining CCA in November 2019, she worked in key operational roles within a range of small to medium-size enterprises in Sydney.

Clare has a genuine passion for learning and personal development. She holds a Cert IV Bookkeeping and a BA from Western Sydney University, and most recently completed a Diploma in Life Coaching. Clare brings with her experience and skills in business operations, marketing, project management and business development.