Barney Glover is confirmed as Chief Commissioner of the Australian Tertiary Education Commission.
His job, says Jason Clare is to help double the size of the higher education system.
Education Minister Clare’s universally anticipated announcement ensures a continuation of Professor Glover’s long underway work to restructure HE and training. He was a member of the Universities Accord panel that created the architecture of ATEC, Mr Clare says “he helped write the Accord and he is going to bring it to life.”
As head of national workforce intel agency, Jobs and Skills Australia, he has already been overseeing an ambitious plan for a national skills taxonomy, essential to the government’s plan for a joined-up tertiary ed system. (He exits JSA on June 30).
Mr Clare put “break-down the barriers between university and VET” at the top of his list of Glover’s tasks yesterday.
He has a five-year term to do it.
Stephen Duckett is also appointed, as a commissioner at ATEC (three-year term). He is already there, leading work there on a national costing model for student places since October. Dr Duckett is a former state and federal health system head and an expert on activity-based funding. He set out how that system could apply in his submission the University Accord interim report, ““a system of price incentives could be incorporated into a new funding model – principally applying on providers rather than consumers – and in this way the commission–university relationship would become more market – like rather than hierarchy,”
Glover’s colleague on the Accord and as an ATEC interim commissioner, Fiona Nash is also confirmed. Ms Nash is a former (National Party) cabinet minister and inaugural (in 2021) Regional Education Commissioner.
They are joined by David Coltman, a former DVC VET at Swinburne and chief of TAFE SA 2019-25.
Tom Calma continues as Interim First Nations Commissioner for a month, during recruitment for the statutory post.
Mr Clare described their briefs as to: “help us build a system that’s bigger than the one we have today, double the size, a system that’s built around the know-how of each university and the needs of the nation … A system that’s more seamless and more connected.”
“Where it’s easier to move between TAFE and uni and get the skills you need quicker and cheaper.”