Inquiry Commissioner and Assistants Biographies
INQUIRY COMMISSIONER
Human Rights Commissioner & Acting Disability Discrimination
Commissioner - Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM
Until his appointment as Human Rights Commissioner
and Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner, Dr Sev Ozdowski OAM
was Chief Executive of South Australia's Office of Multicultural and International
Affairs.
Dr Ozdowski has a long-term commitment to human rights
and his relationship with the Human Rights Commission dates back to the
original Commission of the early 1980s. He is the author of many papers
on sociology of law, human rights, immigration and multiculturalism.
His five-year term as Human Rights Commissioner and
Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner began on 8 December 2000.
Born in Poland in 1949, Dr Ozdowski migrated to Australia
in 1975. He has held senior positions in the Federal portfolios of the
Prime Minister and Cabinet, Attorney-General's and Foreign Affairs and
Trade. He has also worked as Secretary of the Human Rights Commission
inquiry into the Migration Act 1958 and for the Joint Parliamentary
Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade.
Dr Ozdowski has a Master of Laws and Master of Arts
in Sociology from Poznan University, Poland, and a PhD in Sociology of
Law from the University of New England, Armidale, NSW. He was awarded
a Harkness Fellowship in 1984 for post-doctoral work on race relations,
international human rights and immigration law and public administration
- studies that took him from Harvard University (Cambridge, Massachusetts)
to Georgetown University (Washington DC) and the University of California
(Berkeley, California).
Dr Ozdowski's work for the Polish community, including
refugees, and his commitment to enhancing Australia-Poland relations was
rewarded with an OAM in 1995 and with the Chevalier of the Order of Merit
of the Republic of Poland in 2000.
ASSISTANT COMMISSIONERS
Two Assistant Commissioners were appointed to assist the
Inquiry. Prof Trang Thomas and Dr Robin Sullivan assisted the Inquiry
in providing advice in their respective fields of expertise (as set out
below) and assisted with public hearings.
Commissioner for Children and Young People, Queensland - Dr
Robin Sullivan
(CertTch (KGTC), HA, H.Ed(Qld), M.Ed (JCU), D.Univ (QUT), FACE, FQIEA)
Dr Sullivan was appointed Children's Commissioner in
April 1999 after a distinguished career in the Queensland Department of
Education. Her contribution to the education system includes a wealth
of practical experience and theoretical research. She was trained as a
teacher of History and English, and advanced through the school based
administrative hierarchy to become a secondary school principal.
Dr Sullivan was promoted to a number of senior positions
in the Queensland State Education Department culminating in her appointment
as the first female Deputy-Director General of Education in 1997. Many
of these positions had a focus on curriculum, learning and teaching, including
a specific interest in disadvantaged children.
As the Queensland Commissioner for Children and Young
People, Dr Sullivan is a member of various groups including the Child
Protection Council, the Queensland Crime and Misconduct Commission Reference
Group, and the Queensland Child Care Forum. In 2001, she was appointed
by the Premier of Queensland as Honorary Mediator for the Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM). She was awarded the Qld Chapter Medal
of the Australian College of Education for 2001.
Dr Sullivan contributes to a range of children's issues
and policy agendas at the state and national levels.
Professor of Psychology at the Royal Melbourne Institute
of Technology - Professor Trang Thomas AM
Trang Thomas graduated with Bachelor of Arts with First
class Honours (University of NSW), Master with Honours (Macquarie University)
and Ph.D in Psychology (La Trobe University). She was former Director
of the Centre for Applied Social Research at RMIT and is currently Director
of Science of the Australian Psychological Society.
She has conducted numerous research projects in Developmental
Psychology and has produced over 100 research papers, keynote addresses
and conference presentations; as well as many feature articles in the
print and television media.
Professor Thomas chaired a major inquiry into the adequacy
of State government services in Victoria for non-English speaking people
in 1996. The Inquiry's five-volume report included 160 recommendations
of which many have been implemented. Her dedication to research with applied
social impact has brought her several awards, including the Alumni Achievement
award from the University of New South Wales, the Inaugural Distinguished
Alumni award from La Trobe University, and the Order of Australia (AM).
Her past appointments include Chair of the Victorian
Multicultural Commission, Board of SBS, Board of the Council for Adult
Education, Advisory Board of the International Conflict Resolution Centre
and the Victorian Casino and Gambling Authority. She was also a delegate
to the 1998 Constitutional Convention in Canberra. Current appointments
include member of the National Council for Multicultural Australia, the
National Council for the Centenary of Federation, and National Health
and Medical Research Council.
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