Dear members, colleagues and friends,

On behalf of the ACEL Board, I am writing to you today to let you know that, after nearly nine years, ACEL’s Chief Executive Officer, Aasha Murthy will be finishing in the role on Wednesday, 19 August 2020.

Aasha has provided exceptional leadership of our organisation during her time as CEO. Her achievements in the role are impressive and she leaves ACEL in a strong and sustainable position as Australia’s preeminent educational leader professional organisation. During her time as CEO, Aasha has significantly expanded the professional learning offerings to members and other educators, diversified ACEL’s products and revenue streams, built a strong and dedicated National office team and provided a robust and sustainable financial basis including the purchasing of ACEL’s own head office in Surry Hills, Sydney.

As well as her achievements in the business of the organisation, Aasha has also contributed to ACEL’s focus on developing Australia’s educational leaders through her own leadership skills and credentials. This has included developing and running ACEL’s Executive Leadership Program with cohorts in New South Wales, Western Australia, Northern Territory, and ACT, and of course, the recent publication of her book co-authored with Dr. Vikram Murthy, ‘Being!: Five Ways Of Leading Authentically In An Interconnected World’. Aasha’s leadership and work with the National Office team and ACEL Board including our State and Territory Presidents has positioned our organisation to provide world class services to our members, weather the current challenges brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic and built a solid foundation on which we can continue to grow and deliver on ACEL’s objectives into the future.

I would also like to personally thank Aasha for her dedication, professionalism and support during my time as President and Board Chair.

We wish Aasha all the best in her next steps and thank her again for all that she has given to our wonderful organisation.

The ACEL Board will now begin a nationwide process to recruit and appoint a new Chief Executive Officer. This is an exciting opportunity for the organisation and for Australia’s educational leaders. As we begin this process, the Board has determined that I will assume the role of Interim CEO in a voluntary capacity to ensure continuity and leadership of ACEL.

This has been a very challenging year for many educators, I hope this message finds you all safe and well.

Kind Regards,

Stephen Gniel
President ACEL