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Western Australia's association for gifted support, advocacy and resources

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Our Committee

Below you’ll find some information relating to our team. We work together to ensure that the organisation runs according to its goals. Many of us have qualifications specialising in giftedness, and as a team, our expertise spans all areas relating to gifted young people and their academic and psychosocial needs.

The organisation has at least one representative who has extensive knowledge in the following areas: gifted education in public schools (including PEAC and GATE programs), private schools, and/or the Catholic sector; the role of gifted education in independent schools; gifted students with special needs; academic research; and childhood and adolescent mental health in relation to gifted and twice-exceptional children and adolescents.

We are incredibly grateful to our many other volunteers who help to form sub-committees focusing on areas such as advocacy and event planning. We would not be able to function without the support of these wonderful individuals.

If you are interested in joining us and think you might be able to help, we’d love to hear from you!



Dean Tollis Chairperson

Dean Tollis -

Chairperson  / Treasurer

Dean Tollis is Organisational Change Manager at Dale Alcock's ABN Group, he has an interest in Gifted Education and the needs of children, parents and educators. He joined Gifted WA to provide leadership and advocacy for the needs fo gifted children in WA. Dean holds a Bachelor of Business with a Double Major in Finance and Economics.

Dean is involved in Advocacy and getting corporation to support and understand Neuro-Diversity and what that mean and can offer a workplace. Introducing companies to gifted and bright minds early to create connections for young people with companies beyond school and university.

















Brooke Siegmann - 

Vice ChairPerson

Events Coordimnator

Brooke is Primary School Teacher at Christ Church Grammar School. She has a background in Science and has taught in both the government and non-government systems. Brooke's passion for differentiating for gifted children began when a child was accelerated into her class for the first time. She then went on to study COGE (Graduate Certificate in Gifted Education) through the University of New South Wales and a Masters in Education with a particular interest in gifted children in Early Childhood at Notre Dame.












Lucy Birts - Member

Lucy is currently the Gifted and Talented Coordinator for Pre Kindergarten to Year 12 at Perth College in Western Australia. Prior to this she was the Gifted and Talented Coordinator K-6 at St Andrew’s Cathedral School in Sydney. She holds a Masters with Excellence in Gifted Education from UNSW and she is passionate about educating and inspiring our brightest minds! Lucy was awarded the ACEL Mary Armstrong Early Career Leadership Award 2020 for her work in the field of gifted education.



  


Amanda Larkin (Rogers)

Amanda is an educator specialising in gifted and twice-exceptional (2E) learners. With over 20 years of teaching experience in Australia and England, she is passionate about fostering critical thinking, executive functioning, and metacognitive skills. Guided by “Maslow before Bloom,” she prioritises student wellbeing as the foundation for learning.

Her career spans English, HASS, and Philosophy teaching, leadership roles, and specialist positions in gifted education. She is a Certified LEGO® SERIOUS PLAY® facilitator, Trained Growth Coach, and holds qualifications in counselling, disability support, and executive functioning.

As the creator of PHILOSO-BRICK® and Camp Curiosity®, Amanda develops programs that enhance critical thinking, creativity, and social-emotional growth. She volunteers with Mensa Australia and Gifted WA and is a member of APIS, ACEL, Gifted WA, Australian Mensa, and the ATA.



















Dr Eileen Slater/ AAEGT Representative

Dr Eileen Slater is a passionate advocate for inclusive education and gifted identification. As a parent of three neurodiverse children, her journey in gifted education began with navigating the system for her profoundly gifted eldest child. With a background spanning science teaching (K–Tertiary), gifted education, school leadership, and consultancy for the WA Department of Education, Eileen has dedicated her career to supporting educationally vulnerable students.

Her PhD research (2016) validated a cost-effective, teacher-deliverable process for identifying gifted Year 1 students. Now leading Allegiance Educational Assessments, she specialises in learning assessments, twice-exceptional support, and optimising data analysis for schools to measure what truly matters.


Ivan Lucic-Jozak

Ivan Lucic-Jozak is a passionate educator with a decade of experience fostering inclusive and student-centred learning environments. With expertise in history, politics, and the humanities, he is committed to inspiring young minds and nurturing critical thinking.

Holding degrees in English, History, and Politics, along with a Graduate Diploma in Secondary Education, Ivan is currently completing a Master of Education (Gifted Education) at UNSW.

His leadership roles as Academic Extension Coordinator and committee member of HTAWA and HTANSW reflect his dedication to curriculum development and gifted education. Ivan champions personalised learning, inquiry-based teaching, and innovative ICT integration to empower students to reach their full potential.




Dr. Kate Aster   

Dr Kate Aster is the Director of a specialist clinic supporting gifted and twice-exceptional children, the founder of My Neurodivergent Child, and the co-founder of Gifted WA. With over two decades of experience working with neurodivergent families, Kate is known for her practical, compassionate approach and deep understanding of the complexities surrounding giftedness.

Her work has been featured in The Guardian, ABC, SBS and other national media, where she

regularly advocates for the needs of gifted learners, particularly in the area of social and emotional development. In this talk, Kate will explore how to foster a genuine sense of belonging and connection in gifted and twiceexceptional children. She’ll unpack why social connection can be so challenging for these students, and how identity development plays a key role. Parents will walk away with a deeper understanding of their child and practical strategies to support them in building meaningful relationships and strong sense of self.


Emily Green

Emily has a background in both Performing Arts and Education and values creativity and divergence. Following training and experience in stage performance, musical theatre, and singing, she went on to complete her Bachelor of Arts/Education and Diploma of Primary Education.

During her decade as a primary teacher - both as a Performing Arts specialist and a classroom teacher - she combined professional experience with personal research while advocating for her own family’s divergences. This led her to complete the Mini-COGE (UNSW) in 2021 and begin her Master’s in Gifted Education (UNSW) in 2024.

Relocating to regional Western Australia has further reinforced the urgent need for improved gifted education, professional learning and identification practices, leading to effective programming and outcomes for gifted students.



Retired Committee Members - we are very grateful for their voluntary service to Gifted WA


Jennifer Burton

Jennifer Burton is the Dean of Academic Excellence at Comet Bay College. During her long and distinguished career as a teacher, Jenny has taught a wide variety of subjects to early years, primary and secondary school students. Gifted and Talented education has been her passion for the past twenty years. In addition to her teaching duties, Jenny has extensive experience in delivering professional development to district, state and interstate audiences. A level 3 classroom teacher, Jenny has completed a Certificate of Gifted Education from the University of New South Wales, and in 2012 was recognised as the WA Premier’s Secondary Teacher of the Year.




Dr. Claire Molinari

Claire Molinari is the Director of the Centre for Excellence at Christ Church Grammar School and a teacher of Chemistry. She has a research background in Biochemistry and taught undergraduate courses at UWA prior to starting secondary teaching. She has a passion for gifted education and is currently studying a Certificate of Gifted Education from the University of New South Wales










Nina Thomas - 

AAEGT Representative

Nina began her career in the RAAF before entering the mining industry. She then studied to be an accountant, owning a business that allowed her to work from home with her twice-exceptional son. Later, she trained as a teacher becoming the gifted and talented co-ordinator at a primary school in Perth. Nina has completed both a Masters in Educational Psychology, a Masters in Gifted Education l, advanced diploma in psychotherapy and various other certificates in ADHD, ASD, and other neurological disorders. Nina is currently a psychotherapist, specialising in Gifted and 2E individuals.





 

Kylie Bice 

Kylie Bice is an experienced Education Consultant with Growing Up Greatness, specialising in gifted education, differentiation, thinking skills, and educating diverse student groups. Kylie is an award-winning teacher and scholar and was previously the Senior Inclusive and Gifted Education Consultant at the Association of Independent Schools of WA. Kylie has many years of experience working with gifted and talented students in government and non-government schools, and works with schools to examine and improve their practice, policies and processes in order to better support and challenge students of all abilities.



Trixi Oldfield -

Social Media Manager

Trixi Oldfield is a multinational award winning journalist with two gifted sons and a passion for the emotional wellbeing of gifted children. For 20 years she’s worked in newspapers and radio, predominantly the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. With both journalism and contemporary performance degrees under her belt, she’s also performed or worked in Perth’s arts scenes from PIAF, to the world puppetry festival, and taught design and performance in schools, as well as consistently volunteered in educational settings. Trixi now works freelance with various organisations. She aims to help Gifted WA promote awareness, understanding and connection in relation to giftedness.



Melissa Morisson 

Melissa is a mother of three twice-exceptional children, works as a home-school educator for gifted children and is an advocate for gifted education in Western Australia. She holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Gifted and Talented Education and a Masters of Education where she focussed on enrichment programs, mentoring the gifted, differentiation and identifying gifted underachievers in low SES schools.




Lara Ognenis

Lara has been working with gifted and talented students within a school setting since 2013. Most recently teaching and coordinating gifted and talented programs from K to Year 10. Lara is a specialist in both English and Media but her recent experience working with gifted students has provided her with many opportunities to expand her understanding of the unique characteristics of gifted students.

Currently, Lara is undertaking a Masters in Neuroscience and Education.


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