Meet the Board

Ms Karen Blanchfield, Chair
The nominee of the Association of NT School Educational Leaders

Ms Blanchfield has worked in a variety of schools and office positions overseas and in the Northern Territory. She has taught at Alice Springs since 1981 and is Principal of Ross Park Primary School. She recently completed her Master of International Management and is an executive member of the Association of Northern Territory School Educational Leaders (ANTSEL). Ms Blanchfield was Deputy Chairperson prior to becoming Chairperson of the Teacher Registration Board.

Mr Steve Carter, Deputy Chair
The nominee of the NT Council of Government School Organisations

Mr Carter is an electronic systems coordinator employed by the Power and Water Corporation. Prior to this he has been associated with the oil and gas industry working in Europe and the Middle East as well as Australia. Mr Carter is a long-serving executive member of the Council of Government School Organisations (COGSO), President from 1996 to 1998 and a Life Member. He has a long-standing interest in education and is well informed about educational issues at the local and national level and currently represents COGSO in the Australian Council of State School Organisations (ACSSO).

Ms Elsabe Bott
The nominee of the Independent Education Union of the NT (IEU)

Elsabe Bott has been teaching in the Northern Territory since 1988, when she began teaching English at Kormilda College. During that time she completed work on a Master of Educational Studies (Aboriginal Education). After eight years, Ms Bott moved to St John’s College where she worked firstly as Coordinator of Indigenous Education and then as Curriculum Coordinator. In 2002 she returned to Kormilda College to take up a position as the Director of Studies. In this role she takes a keen interest in professional development activities and professional standards for staff, a role that complements her work on the Teacher Registration Board. Elsabe is currently a member of the Independent Education Union NT Executive and previously was Secretary of the IEU–NT Branch.

Peter Clisby
The nominee of the Australian Education Union

Peter Clisby is a classroom teacher at Darwin High School and has been teaching in the Northern Territory since 2003. His teaching career spans thirty years in government schools and he previously taught in South Australia. Peter has taught at Years 8-12 High schools in rural and urban locations, an Adult Re-Entry College and in a specialist school for students with extreme behaviours which had primary and a secondary campuses. As a member of the Australian Education Union (AEU) throughout his teaching career Peter has accepted representative positions at the school level and within the AEU which reflect his commitment to teaching and teachers. Peter has a Graduate Diploma in Education and a Bachelor of Economics from the University of Adelaide.

Professor Alison Elliot
The nominee of Charles Darwin University

Professor Alison Elliot, Head of School, School of Education is the Charles Darwin University (CDU) representative. Professor Elliott holds a Doctor of Philosophy, University of New England 1990 and a Master of Educational Studies, University of Newcastle 1980. Before joining CDU, Professor Elliott held the positions of Research Director, Early Childhood Education, Australian Council of Educational Research and Adjunct Professor of Education, University of Canberra.

Ms Robyn Ober
The nominee of the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education (BIITE)

Ms Ober has had a total of 21 years teaching in a variety of educational contexts, including early childhood, primary and tertiary education. Her teaching experience includes seven years teaching in Northern Territory remote and rural schools as well as an inner-city Indigenous school in Brisbane. She is currently employed by the Batchelor Institute of Indigenous Tertiary Education (BIITE) as an Indigenous Research Officer, but prior to this, has taught for 14 years in the teacher education (primary/early childhood, adult Education) program at BIITE.

Mr Greg O'Mullane
The nominee of the Catholic Education Office

Greg O'Mullane is the Deputy Director of School Services for the Catholic Education Office in the Northern Territory. In this position he oversees resourcing for all Catholic schools in the areas of Finance, Infrastructure, Planning, Enterprise Bargaining, ICT, VET in Schools and the Block Grant Authority. Greg has been in this position for eight years.

Prior to taking this position he was Principal of O'Loughlin Catholic College for six years and Deputy Principal for eight years at St John’s College.

Greg has been a member of the NT Board of Studies, Senior Course Curriculum Committee for the NT and Chair of the NT Catholic Principals Association. As well as the Teacher Registration Board, Greg is on the Ministerial Non-Government Schools Committee and Catholic Education Council’s School Personnel and School Resources Standing Committees. He is also a member of the NCEC Employment Relations Working Group.

Greg is a member of the Australian College of Education Leaders and a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators and currently, President of the Australian College of Education, NT Branch.

Ms Karen Piening
The nominee of the Chief Executive

Ms Piening has been teaching in the NT since 1987. She has taught in a variety of educational contexts including Homeland Schools, Community Education Centres, Primary and Secondary Schools. Karen has been an ESL advisor in NE Arnhem Schools and the manager of the NT ESL, Literacy and Numeracy Program based in Darwin. Currently Karen is enjoying her fourth year of classroom teaching at Ludmilla Primary School.

Ms Yalmay Yunupingu
An Indigenous registered teacher at a government school nominated by the Chief Executive of DET

Ms Yunupingu was the Principal in 2007, and is a Senior Pre-school teacher at Yirrkala CEC. Ms Yunupingu is committed to Two-Way Education and has been a bicultural role model for students and staff for over three decades. Ms Yunupingu is a Yolngu woman and while Rirratjingu is her first language, she speaks another 16 languages. In 2005, Ms Yunupingu was awarded the Northern Territory Teaching Excellence Award for Remote Primary Teachers. Ms Yunupingu also is a recognised painter/artist.

Ms Yunupingu is the Yambirrpa School Council Vice Chairman and a leader in her community, running the Cultural Induction Program in conjunction with Yothu Yindi Foundation for G3 Alcan Gove; organising the internationally acclaimed annual Garma Festival; and sitting on the steering Committee for Dilthan Yolngunha: The Healing Place, a traditional practice healing place operating at Gulkula in northeast Arnhem Land.

Qualifications - Diploma in Teaching

Mr Chris Tudor
The nominee of the Association of Independent Schools NT (AISNT)

Ms Lorraine Hodgson
The nominee of the NT Joint Council of Professional Teaching Associations (NTJCPTA)

Mrs Susan Stanaway
The nominee of the Australian Education Union based at a remote school

Sue is the Special Education teacher at Nhulunbuy High School in East Arnhem Land. She has been teaching in the Territory since 2003, coming from New Zealand where she was a Resource Teacher of Learning and Behaviour. Sue has been teaching for 36 years, specialising in music, performing arts and special education, working across primary, middle school and secondary contexts. She has been working in the Territory as the Special Education advisor for East Arnhem Land. Sue is filling the Remote Teacher position on the Teacher Registration Board as a representative from the Australian Education Union, NT branch. She is the Women's Officer for the AEU/NT.