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Dr Lisa O'Brien shaping education for disadvantaged children

Media releases

29 November 2016

The Educator Magazine’s second annual Hot List has recognised the Chief Executive Officer of The Smith Family, Dr Lisa O’Brien, as one of the top 40 most influential figures in Australian education. Read here: www.educatoronline.com.au/rankings/hot-list-2016/

The list highlights the diversity of excellent work being undertaken across the country to enrich the educational experiences of all students.

During her five years as CEO, Lisa has driven the successful implementation of a strategic plan which has significantly increased the effectiveness and reach of The Smith Family’s programs. Each year these programs support over 100,000 disadvantaged Australian children and young people to improve their educational outcomes.

Central to Lisa’s leadership, have been the goals of enhancing the impact of The Smith Family’s programs, and using the organisation’s knowledge and experience to contribute to education policy.

The Smith Family’s flagship program Learning for Life provides long-term educational support for over 33,000 disadvantaged Australian children and young people.

Under Lisa’s leadership, the organisation has undertaken detailed data analysis of the students engaged in its Learning for Life program. This in-house research and evaluation informs its approach and practice across all aspects of its work.

It ensures that The Smith Family’s work remains relevant and effective, and continues to make a measurable difference to the children and young people it supports.

As a result, the organisation has reported year-on-year improvements across 2011 to 2014 in the rates of school attendance, Year 12 completion and post-school engagement in employment and study, of the students on the program. This year the organisation also received the Excellence in Social Impact Measurement award from the Social Impact Measurement Network of Australia.

Through her leadership The Smith Family is helping disadvantaged young Australians improve their educational outcomes and to have the chance to create better futures for themselves.

Media contacts:

Andrew Dickson | National Media Manager (National) - 0421 285 529 | andrew.dickson@thesmithfamily.com.au
Carla Horton | Senior Media Advisor (QLD & WA) - 0423 618 776 | carla.horton@thesmithfamily.com.au
Reid Jermyn | Media Advisor (VIC, SA & NT) - 0412 803 566 | reid.jermyn@thesmithfamily.com.au
Ben Chenoweth | Senior Media Advisor (NSW, ACT & TAS) - 0413 346 934 | ben.chenoweth@thesmithfamily.com.au

The Smith Family is a national children’s education charity that helps young Australians experiencing disadvantage to create better futures for themselves through harnessing the power of education. We partner with around 800 Australian schools and work with over 162,000 children and young people experiencing disadvantage access our education support programs to help them overcome . For more information, visit thesmithfamily.com.au