Our Structure

Madeline Brennan KC became Chair of the Queensland Catholic Education Commission on 1 July 2024.

Ms Brennan holds a Bachelor of Arts, History Honours from the University of Queensland and Diploma of Education from the now Canberra University. She began her career teaching in the Queensland Catholic sector. Ms Brennan later served on the All Hallows’ School Council, including as Deputy Chair.

Ms Brennan studied law at the Queensland University of Technology and was admitted as a barrister in 1996. She was appointed Senior Counsel in 2015. Her areas of practice included administrative law, taxation, family law, consumer and revenue law.

Ms Brennan’s contributions to the legal profession include as a member of the Professional Conduct Committee (Bar Association of Queensland), Master Ethics Examiner (Bar Association of Queensland) and professional member of the Australian Institute of Judicial Administration.

Ms Brennan has served as a member of the “Appointed members’ council” to the Mater Misericordiae Health Services Brisbane Limited Board, and a professional member of the Human Research Ethics Committee of the Queensland Institute of Medical Research. She is currently Deputy Chair of the Queensland Competition Authority.

Ms Alner brings over 30 years of executive experience in finance, strategy, performance, and technology, primarily within the education sector. A Certified Practising Accountant and graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, she has held C-level equivalent roles and is known for her expertise in finance and asset management, strategy and performance, and governance. 

She has served as Independent Chair of the QCEC Audit and Risk Management Committee since 2016 and was appointed an Independent Commissioner with the Queensland Catholic Education Commission in 2022. In 2025, she was appointed as one of three Interim Directors to oversee the transition to Catholic Education Queensland Limited. Ms Alner also serves on several boards and committees across sectors including education, screen, and the arts. 

With a long-standing commitment to Catholic education and a strong grasp of the regulatory, financial, and strategic challenges facing the sector, Ms Alner brings deep sectoral insight and a passion for using her expertise to improve outcomes and create lasting community value. 

Ms Atkinson is a registered architect with 30 years of experience, specialising in education and affordable housing. She spent nearly three decades with cross-disciplinary firm Deicke Richards, including 11 years as Managing Director, leading a team of 25 through significant organisational growth and change. 

She has led more than 20 school master planning projects across Queensland, working with State, Independent, and Catholic sectors—including several funded through QCEC. This breadth of experience has given her deep insight into diverse school communities, pedagogical approaches, and governance structures. 

Ms Atkinson is currently the Independent Chair of Brisbane Housing Company and has served on its board for 17 years, contributing to tenancy, property, and finance committees. Since stepping back from full-time work, she has continued supporting not-for-profit housing initiatives and maintains a strong commitment to quality education, grounded in her own Catholic schooling. 

Mr Chapman is an experienced leader in Catholic education, with a distinguished career spanning several key roles across Queensland. He has served as Principal of both St Patrick’s College, Shorncliffe and St Joseph’s College, Gregory Terrace, and held the position of Director of Schools for the Northern Region with Edmund Rice Education Australia (EREA). His contribution to Catholic education governance includes serving on the Brisbane Archdiocese Education Council and the Board of St Rita’s College. 

Mr Chapman holds a Master of Education (Leadership), a Bachelor of Education, and a Diploma of Teaching. He is a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators and completed the Australian Institute of Company Directors course. His expertise spans school leadership, governance, and strategic planning. 

Since transitioning from full-time educational leadership, Mr Chapman has remained actively engaged across various sectors. He is a Director of Edmund Rice Community Services, provides consultancy to a family owned vertically integrated pastoral company focused on next-generation leadership, and contributes part-time to leadership development across both the education and business sectors. 

Mr Gooda’s people are the Ghungalu from the Dawson Valley in Central Queensland. Mr Gooda has spent the last 30 years advocating for the rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. He was appointed the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Social Justice Commissioner in February 2010 and held that position until September 2016 when he was appointed Co-Commissioner on the Royal Commission into the Protection and Detention of Children in the Northern Territory. 

Mr Gooda has undertaken a wide range of roles such as the CEO of the Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health, Native Title Consultant with the Western Australian Aboriginal Legal Service and the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, ATSIC. 

He chaired the Queensland Stolen Wages Reparation Taskforce and the National Centre of Indigenous Genomics and has been a member of the Expert Panel and the Referendum Council which were convened to advise the Federal Government on the Recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples in the Australian Constitution. 

More recently, Mr Gooda was a Co-Chair of the Queensland First Children and Families Board which is tasked with the overseeing reforms to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children in the child protection and youth detention systems.  

Ms Jacoby brings more than 37 years of experience in Catholic education and healthcare, grounded in a strong commitment to the mission of the Catholic Church. As Chief of Mission at Mater Queensland, she leads areas including mission integration, ethics, community benefit, pastoral services, volunteers, and heritage, ensuring Gospel values are embedded across the organisation. 

Her career includes senior leadership roles in Catholic schools within the Townsville Diocese, where she led strategic initiatives and fostered collaborative, values-driven cultures. She holds two postgraduate degrees and has completed the Ministerial Leadership Program (ACU), as well as certifications in Catholic and research ethics. 

Ms Jacoby has served on several boards and committees, including as Chair of the Townsville Catholic Education Audit and Risk Committee and Director on the Mater Education and Mater Research Boards. She brings strong governance and stakeholder engagement skills and is committed to supporting the long-term mission and sustainability of Catholic education in Queensland. 

Mr McGrath is a Queensland lawyer with over 35 years’ experience in private practice. He also holds a master’s degree in law.  He is presently managing partner of Cairnsbased law firm, Miller Harris Lawyers, and has been a legal advisor to the Cairns Diocese and Catholic Education Cairns for over 25 years. 

Mr McGrath practises primarily in the areas of corporate compliance and dispute resolution.  His professional experience includes acting as advisor to national insurance companies, local governments, state government corporations, and federal government departments. He  has held, or holds, positions as panel lawyer for Suncorp Insurance, Australian Associated Motor Insurers, The Australian Taxation Office, Cairns Regional Council and the Cairns port authority, Ports North.  

Mr McGrath’s standing in the field has been recognised though professional membership of the Australian Restructuring, Insolvency and Turnaround Association and membership of the Insolvency and Restructuring Committee of the Law Council of Australia.  

He has served the Diocese of Cairns as Chair of the Catholic Development Fund (2008 – 2013) and Chair of the Board of Governance for Education (2014 – 2022).  He is presently a member of the Diocesan Finance Committee.  Outside of the Diocese of Cairns, Mr McGrath serves as a member of the Provincial Remuneration Governance Committee. 

Mr McGrath has held various volunteer, honorary and board positions in the not-for-profit sector, and he is a past president of the Far North Queensland Law Association.  He is driven by the Catholic ideals of social justice and personal service, and he views education as one of the most important means of realising those ideals. 

Mr Mula’s Catholic education career spans 40 years as an educator and leader across four states and seven dioceses in various educational settings, from Preschool to Year 12 schools, encompassing both day and boarding, city and country environments. Over the previous decade, he served as Diocesan Director of Schools for the Diocese of Armidale and later as Executive Director for Catholic Education Tasmania. 

His contributions extend beyond individual institutions; John has held roles on the National Catholic Education Commission from 2015-2019 and Deputy Director of Catholic Education South Australia from 2020 till 2022 before establishing Mula Consulting in January 2023. 

In recent years Mr Mula has sat on the boards of Education Services Australia (ESA), Asia Education Foundation (AEF), Australian College of Educators (ACE), South Australian Education Standards Board (ESB), Aquinas University Residential College, Adelaide as the Archbishop of Adelaide’s nominee, and chaired the boards of two Adelaide schools, Nazareth Catholic College with over 2300 students and Compass Catholic Community, a new learning community for 17- to 24-year-olds. Currently he is a non-Executive director of CatholicCare Central Queensland Limited. 

Mr Mula is a Fellow of the Australian College of Educators and the Australian College of Educational Leaders. In 2021, he was honoured with the Order of Australia Medal for his significant contributions to Australian Catholic Education. 

Throughout his career, Mr Mula has been a champion of Catholic education, embodying leadership in mission and learning. He has fostered collaboration with Church leaders and parents’ organisations to advance the educational mission of the Church. 

With a wealth of experience, Mr Mula’s professional career is characterised by his ability to navigate diverse interests and organisational complexities with discernment and purpose. 

Mrs Nash OAM is the Executive Director of Catholic School Parents Queensland and has more than 30 years of experience in Catholic education, with a particular focus on parent engagement and advocacy. She has held senior roles in banking, education, and commercial sectors, and has led CSPQ since 2010 following her appointment to the organisation in 2003. 

Mrs Nash has served on a wide range of boards and committees, including the National Catholic Education Commission, the Queensland Education Minister’s Taskforce for Senior Assessment and Tertiary Entrance, and the Queensland Years 7–12 Curriculum, Assessment and Moderation Committee. Her expertise spans governance, finance, stakeholder consultation, and strategic planning. 

A strong advocate for inclusive decision-making, Mrs Nash brings lived experience from metropolitan, regional, rural, and remote Queensland. Her career reflects a deep commitment to Catholic education and the belief that respectful collaboration and ongoing professional development are essential to effective board leadership. 

Allan Blagaich was appointed as Executive Director, Queensland Catholic Education Commission in June 2023 and commenced in the role in September 2023.

Prior to this appointment, Mr Blagaich was the Executive Director of the School Curriculum and Standards Authority, Western Australia (WA), (2011-2023). In this role he worked closely with the Association of Independent Schools Western Australia, Catholic Education Western Australia and the Department of Education Western Australia.

Prior to 2011, Allan held the roles of Executive Director, Statewide Planning and Delivery (2010-2011) and Executive Director Metropolitan Schools (2008-2009) at the Department of Education WA. Allan was a principal of a senior secondary school in WA (2002-2008) and Deputy Principal in three senior secondary rural, outer metropolitan and metropolitan schools.

Allan has served as chair of the Australasian Curriculum Assessment and Certification Authorities (ACACA) in 2012 and 2013 and as chair of the Australasian Curriculum Assessment and Certification Authorities Vocational Education and Training Committee (2011-2023). He was a board member of the Australian Curriculum, Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA) representing WA. Allan was a foundation director of the Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership (AITSL) and served as the West Australian jurisdictional nominee for three years. He was one of the three writers charged with developing the Australian Professional Standard for Principals.

In 2006, Allan was awarded Rotary Principal of the Year and was subsequently awarded a Churchill Fellowship to investigate how systems support schools facing challenging circumstances. He undertook his fellowship in 2008 studying education systems in Chicago, Boston, New York, Toronto, England and Scotland.

Allan is a council member of the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) Western Australia and is currently serving as Club President.

Peter Elmore was most recently Rector of Padua College, Kedron, an independent Catholic boys’ school for students from Year Five to Year Twelve.

He brings more than three decades of experience across Education Queensland, Brisbane Catholic Education, and Catholic independent education, having begun his teaching career in 1989.

Peter has served in principal and senior leadership roles for over twenty years, including as Principal of St Thomas More College from 2010 to 2016 and as a member of the senior leadership team at Clairvaux MacKillop College from 2001 to 2009. He has also contributed to sector governance and advocacy as a member of the Catholic Secondary Principals Association Queensland and as a former representative of Religious Institute and Ministerial PJP School Authorities on the Queensland Catholic Education Commission.

His leadership is characterised by a strong commitment to Catholic identity, inclusive practice, and collaborative engagement, and in his role as Deputy Chief Executive Officer he supports the strategic direction of CEQL and works closely with stakeholders across Queensland and nationally.

Emily has worked for the QCEC since July 2019 as a Senior Education Officer within the Education Team.

Emily is passionate about the delivery of education, considering a quality education the most essential service that contributes to the fabric of society and should be available to all individuals, regardless of their background or socio-economic status.

Prior to working at QCEC Emily spent the majority of her career working for the Queensland Department of Education working across a number of portfolio areas including strategic policy for state schooling, cabinet and legislative services and early childhood education. Emily is a strong advocate for investment in high quality early years programs because of the significant lifelong benefits that accrue for individuals, families, government and society from supporting children’s physical, social, emotional and cognitive growth in the early years of development.

Emily is a member of numerous state and national committees and working groups and chairs the QCEC Kindergarten Working Group, QCEC VET and Vocational Learning Network and the National Catholic Education Commission Early Childhood Education Network.

Mal has worked for the QCEC since March 2013 as the head of funding and data analytics and since May 2023 as the acting Chief Financial Officer.

Mal played a key role supporting federal funding negotiations during changes to the Australian Education Act in 2017 and 2019, working to ensure equitable and appropriate resourcing is provided to Catholic schools.  He is passionate about improving the financial stewardship of our schools.

Mal has a Master of Business, Graduate Diploma of Applied Finance and Diploma of Information Technology and is a member of numerous state and national committees and working groups.