Mark Grant appointed AITSL CEO

The Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) has accounced the appointment of Mark Grant as its new CEO, following a comprehensive national and international search. He will join AITSL from mid-April.

Grant succeeds Lisa Rodgers, who left AITSL in January 2019 to take up the position of Secretary at the Department of Education and Training in Western Australia.

He was previously Executive Director, Leadership and High Performance at the Department of Education, NSW. His career has included significant direct experience in schools as both a teacher and leader. During his tenure as principal at three NSW schools, he drove improvement initiatives to benefit student growth and outcomes.

Most recently, Grant has led complex, integrated strategic work for the NSW public school system. This has included school improvement measures; teacher quality, induction, professional development and leadership support for all school-based staff; and needs-based funding budgets to all schools.

AITSL Board Chair, Laureate Professor John Hattie said the skills and experience Grant brings to the role will greatly benefit AITSL, the teaching profession and, ultimately, the students of Australia.

“The recruitment process for a new AITSL CEO attracted many excellent candidates and we are delighted to have secured a CEO of Mark’s calibre,” said Hattie.

“We are confident Mark will build on AITSL’s excellent reputation and relationships as we continue working with the federal government, as well as all state and territory governments, education systems and sectors, and others, to empower teachers and school leaders to have the maximum impact on the learning of students nationally.

Grant said he is looking forward to working closely with the AITSL Board and executive, and the AITSL team, to lead, initiate and build on AITSL’s achievements, driving national education reform to secure a high-quality education system on par with international standards.