UNE Foundation

UNE Foundation logo

The UNE Foundation maintains the vision of the University's founders by ensuring that donations by community members are used according to their wishes.

The UNE Foundation receives donations from individuals, corporations and public entities to fund scholarships and contribute to the University's teaching and research priorities. While it is administratively supported by the University, the Foundation is managed by an independent Board of Directors — a group of dedicated professionals who volunteer their time and expertise for the benefit of UNE and its students.

Audited financial statements of the trust are publicly available.


Current Directors of the Foundation

The Board of Directors includes prominent UNE alumni, the Vice-Chancellor (ex-officio), and a nominee of the UNE Council:

Mr Ross Beaney (Chair)

Mr Ross Beaney

Mr Ross Beaney is a finance executive specialising in option-based derivatives and markets. He grew up at Macksville on the Mid North Coast of NSW.  He attended UNE by distance education while living interstate, attaining the award of Bachelor of Economics in 1996. In 1999 he was awarded a Master in Business (Finance) from the University of Technology Sydney.  In 2007, he completed the International Executive Program at INSEAD.

Mr Beaney spent the first half of his career managing portfolios of derivatives in interest rates, foreign exchange, and other asset-classes. He extended his reach into management roles, working in a variety of senior positions in Australian and foreign owned financials and rising to General Manager level. His various teams were focused on bank portfolio risk in fixed-income, currencies and commodities.

Between 2012 and 2016 Mr Beaney was a portfolio manager of a leading Asian investment management firm based in Singapore. He returned to Australia in 2016, joining a domestic major in a portfolio-management role and has more recently worked as an industry consultant.

Ross was appointed as a Director of the Company in March 2019 and appointed as Chair on 17 May 2023.

Ms Audrey Bower

Photo of Audrey BowerAudrey is the Chief Legal and Risk Officer at Catholic Schools NSW where she leads the Legal, Risk and Company secretariat function. Audrey provides legal and risk advice to the Board, Chief Executive Officer and Catholic School Agencies. The legal, risk and company secretariat team provides advice on all aspect of the company and develops policies and procedures, including online training modules, to assist schools to meet their compliance obligations.

Currently, Audrey is the Catholic sector’s representative on the Non-Government Schools Not-for-Profit Advisory Committee.

Prior to joining Catholic Schools NSW Audrey worked in financial services for over 20 years providing advice and legal support to Boards and businesses on life insurance, superannuation and financial advice. Audrey has extensive experience in providing governance and legal advice to Boards for the past 25 years.

Audrey was appointed as Director of the Company in September 2023.

Mr Martin Dolan

Mr Martin DolanMr Martin Dolan was born in Scotland in 1957 and raised in Armidale, where his parents both taught at the University of New England (UNE).  He was educated at Armidale High School and UNE, completing a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours in French.

Mr Dolan subsequently had a thirty-six year career with the Australian Government, starting in 1980 with AusAid, managing aid projects in developing countries, including a two-year posting to Bangladesh. He then undertook various corporate management roles in the Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, including as Chief Finance Officer and Head of Corporate Management.

From 2001 to 2005 he was Executive Director, Aviation and Airports at the Department of Transport and Regional Services, with responsibility for airport sales and regulation, aviation security, aviation safety policy and international aviation negotiations.  He had charge of aviation security for two years in the aftermath of the events of 11 September 2001.

In 2006, Mr Dolan was appointed as the first Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Energy Markets Commission.  Following that, he was Deputy Chief Executive Officer and then CEO of Comcare, with responsibility for the occupational health and safety and workers’ compensation of Commonwealth employees.

In July 2009, Mr Dolan was appointed as the first Chief Commissioner of the Australian Transport Safety Bureau for a term of five years, which was later extended for a further two years.  He retired from the Australian Public Service in 2016.

Mr Dolan was appointed as Director of the UNE Foundation in February 2017 and appointed as Chair in 28 May 2019 which he held for four years. Mr Dolan is also the Chair of Australian Poetry, the national poetry body for Australia and has published four collections of poetry.

Mr Charles Johnston

Photo of Charles JohnstonBorn and raised in Armidale, Charles attended The Armidale School and the University of New England, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Financial Administration in 1993.

After completing his studies, Charles embarked on a career that has spanned key financial institutions.  He has cultivated a deep understanding of financial markets through his roles as an investment adviser at firms such as JBWere Goldman Sachs and Morgans (formerly ABN AMRO Morgans). Notably, his professional journey commenced at KPMG, adding depth to his expertise in the financial sector.

Charles currently serves as the Principal and Director of Morgans Cronulla. His credentials include being a Chartered Accountant and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Australia and New Zealand.   Additionally, he is a Fellow of the Financial Services Institute of Australasia.

Appointed to the University of New England Foundation's Board in August 2023, Charles contributes his extensive financial knowledge, strategic insight, and dedication to the growth and prosperity of the University community. His background and accomplishments uniquely position him to contribute meaningfully to the Foundation's mission of advancing education, research, and innovation at the University of New England.

Charles was appointed as Director of the Company in August 2023.

Professor Chris Moran

Photo of Professor Chris MoranProfessor Chris Moran joined UNE on 17 July 2023 as the Vice-chancellor and CEO. Prior to his appointment he was Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research at Curtin University at Curtin University from 2016 to 2023.  From 2007 to 2016 Professor Moran was Professor and Director, Sustainable Minerals Institute (SMI) at The University of Queensland (UQ).  The Institute comprises seven discipline-based research centres and is one of the largest entities of its kind in the world.

Previously, Professor Moran was Founding Director, Centre for Coal Seam Gas (UQ) and Founding Director, Centre for Water in the Minerals Industry (UQ).  Across a 16 year career with CSIRO, he held a range of leadership roles, including heading the team that developed the Water for a Healthy Country Flagship Program.

Professor Moran has been a Board Member of five Cooperative Research Centres.  In the International domain, he was Director of the International Mining for Development Centre and established an International Centre of Excellence for the mining industry in Chile.

He holds a bachelor of Agricultural Sciences (with Honours) and a PhD from the University of Sydney and has a strong international and national reputation for his research and expertise in soil science (digital image processing), natural resources (spatial modelling and statistics) and water management. Professor Moran has published widely in scientific literature and the broader media.

Professor Moran joined the UNE Foundation Board on 13 August 2023.

Ms Nicole Patterson

Nicole Patterson commenced working with Westpac Banking Corporation in 1998. Since 2012, she has been the Head of Finance for the Westpac Group’s three charitable foundations with responsibility for the financial governance of these not for profit organisations. Prior to this current appointment, Nicole has held a number of senior finance and project management roles across Westpac Group, which has included BT, St George Bank and Westpac’s retail and business divisions.

Prior to joining Westpac, Nicole worked in the Audit & Assurance Practice of Price Waterhouse. Specialising in the financial services sector Nicole worked in the firm’s Sydney and London offices on a range of audit and transaction advisory assignments.

Nicole is a current director of Loreto Normanhurst School Board and Catholic Schools Parramatta Diocese Ltd.

Nicole was born and raised in Tamworth. Her family has deep ancestral roots to the New England region having first settled there in the 1860s.

Nicole holds a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting & Finance) from UNSW and a Graduate Diploma in Local & Applied History from the UNE. She is also an Associate member of the Institute Chartered Accountants.

Nicole was appointed as a Director of UNE Foundation Limited at the Annual General Meeting on 6 March 2019.

Mr David van Aanholt

David van Aanholt

David has close to 30 years' experience in the property and funds management industry. Prior to establishing his own boutique property group in 2007, he was the Chief Executive Officer (Asia Pacific) of the ASX listed Goodman Group. Before being appointed as CEO (Asia Pacific), David was Goodman Group's Chief Operating Officer.

David worked for Goodman for more than a decade and before joining them he was the Fund Manager of ASX listed Paladin Industrial Fund and an Associate Director of CDH Properties (acquired by KPMG).

David has a proven track record at both executive and Board levels in the development and implementation of effective business strategy. He also has extensive and practical experience in change management.

David is the Chairman and an Independent Director of the Kennards Self Storage Group. He is also the Chairman and an Independent Director of the ASX listed 360 Capital Group Limited. David is a Fellow of the Australian Property Institute.

David grew up in regional New South Wales and now lives in Sydney with his wife and three sons. He understands the challenges and rewards for rural based students studying an undergraduate degree at University. He completed his postgraduate studies in Management and Business at the University of New England (UNE) via correspondence. Studying at UNE allowed David to meet both the demands of a senior executive role and the responsibilities of helping to raise a young family.

David holds a Bachelor of Business (Land Economy) from the University of Western Sydney, as well as a Postgraduate Diploma in Management and a Masters in Business Administration from UNE.

David is the UNE Council-appointed member on the UNE Foundation Board.