Gowrie Victoria is delighted to welcome Karen Weston as our new Chief Executive Officer.
Karen is an accomplished leader in Australian education. She has held executive early childhood leadership roles in both the Victorian and South Australian Departments of Education. In her most recent role, Karen was the CEO of the Northern Territory Department of Education. Prior to her public service career, in the late 1990s Karen worked at Gowrie Victoria and we are thrilled to welcome her back.
“I acknowledge Gowrie Victoria’s proud history of advocating for children and its reputation for delivering high quality early learning, having been part of the team early in my career,” said Karen.
“The early childhood sector is undergoing significant reform and there is a growing understanding of the importance of early learning in the community. I’m excited to take on this new challenge, to be able to look at new ways for Gowrie to innovate and deliver better outcomes for children and families,” she continued.
Speaking about connecting with her roots in the early childhood sector, Karen emphasised the importance of recognising and appreciating the work that teachers and educators do for children, families and communities. “Gowrie strongly advocates for the recognition of teachers and educators by investing in their professional development to ensure that we remain committed to delivering high-quality education and care to children and families, and these are values I am proud to embody,” she said.
Chair of Gowrie Victoria, Mark Burke, also expressed his delight in welcome Karen back to Gowrie. “Karen brings a real depth of experience and credibility from her leadership roles across three public education systems in Australia. We are excited about Karen’s vision for and how she will lead Gowrie through our next exciting chapter” he added.
