Autism Association 2025 Annual Report

Professor Stephanie Fryer-Smith

Clinical Professor Harvey Coates AO

Mrs Bobby Brownhill

Mr Mark Altus

Mrs Brownhill has been actively involved in the field of disability over many years, both in Australia and overseas. Prior to returning to Western Australia from Melbourne, where she and her family had been living, Mrs Brownhill represented Mansfield Autistic Services on the Victorian State Council for Autism. As the mother of a son with Autism, she is involved with parent support groups and accommodation projects. She is also involved in advocacy for people living with a disability, and their parents.

Mr Altus has held a number of senior positions in his career. He is a former chair of the Curtin Business School Advisory Board for the School of Economics and Finance. He was a Director of LLL Australia Ltd, an APRA-regulated Authorised Deposit Taking Institution. As a former Public Servant, he has held a number of positions in the WA Department of Treasury, including Director of Revenue and Intergovernmental Relations. He also undertook a secondment to the University of Western Australia as its Chief Financial Officer. He was also a member of the University’s Senate Strategic Resources Committee. Mr Altus is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and currently chairs Lutheran Homes Foundation (WA) Inc.

Clinical Professor Coates AO is a former Paediatric Otolaryngologist and Clinical Professor at the University of Western Australia, specialising in the medical treatment and research in ear disease in remote Aboriginal children. After training at the Mayo Clinic, he worked for 38 years as a Consultant at Princess Margaret Hospital for Children. He co founded the first Paediatric Otolaryngology Society in Australia and was a Board member of the Telethon Kids Institute. He worked with the Commonwealth to develop the ear health roadmap; and worked with the World Health Organisation. Professor Coates was honoured with appointment to the Officer in the Order of Australia in 2005.

Professor Fryer-Smith holds both Bachelor and Master degrees in Law from the University of Western Australia. She was admitted to the Supreme Court of Western Australia as a barrister and solicitor and accredited by LEADR as a mediator. She has worked in private legal practice as a Registrar and Native Title Coordinator at the Federal Court of Australia in Perth, and for six years was Registrar and Chief Executive of the National Native Title Tribunal. Professor Fryer-Smith has extensive experience in the higher education sector and international education. She has lectured in native title law and has published articles on a range of indigenous land rights issues. In 2021, Professor Fryer-Smith joined Federation University Australia as Director, Governance and Strategy, most recently holding the position of Vice-Chancellor’s Fellow.

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