Dr Olayide Ogunsiji
Dr Olayide Ogunsiji has been a member of the Board of Community Migrant Resource Centre since 2010. She was the Secretary of the Board from 2015 to 2018. Dr Ogunsiji is a Registered Nurse by profession and a Senior Lecturer at the School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University. Originally from Nigeria, Dr Ogunsiji completed her Bachelor of Science (Sociology) and Master of Science (Sociology) and was a lecturer in one of the Nigerian Universities prior her migration to Australia in 1999. She joined the academic staff of Western Sydney University in 2008, and is currently the Director of Academic Workforce, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Liverpool Campus, Sydney.
Dr Ogunsiji’s research and community work focuses on women’s health with specific focus on violence against women, migrant and refugee women’s health and health of people of African descent. Her research topics are female genital mutilation, intimate partner violence, breast and cervical cancer screening and parenting practices. Olayide conducts her research in partnership with industry partners, community organisations and local, national and international collaborators. She was the 2020 Blacktown Woman of the Year at the New South Wales Women of the Year Award; won the 2021 Salvos Multicultural Social Advocacy Award and the Dorothy Garrigus Adams 2021 Award for Excellence in Service at the Sigma Theta Tau International Honor Society International Awards.
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representing a major international airline. In his 34 year career, he served in a number of senior and general management positions covering Africa, UK, Europe, Australia NZ and India. In September 1994 he obtained a scholarship from Pratt and Whitney to study at MIT in Boston. Thevan left the airline industry in 2012. In 2013 Thevan joined a new startup as a partner and in 2017 he was elected to join the Board of CMRC. In 2019 he was voted into the position of Chairperson.
Keith Hamilton
Reverend Keith Hamilton is the Uniting Church Minister in Bathurst. Previously he was the Senior Minister / CEO of Parramatta Mission, based in Western Sydney. Keith has been a member of the CMRC board since 2014. He brings more than 30 years of experience and expertise in governance, strategic planning, human resources, and financial management. He has considerable experience in engagement with local, state and federal governments, the business community, community service organisations and religious bodies across Sydney and beyond. He has a long history of working with people in cross-cultural settings, with migrants making Australia home in Western Sydney. Keith holds a Master and Bachelor of Theology, Sydney College of Divinity, a Master of Arts (Communication and Cultural Studies), UWS, and a Master of Management (in Community Services and Not-For-Profits), UTS, and is a PhD Candidate through CSU.
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Umaru Binneh Conteh
Binneh has been the Executive Director of the El-Bethel Crusades Weyata Peter Ministries since 2007. He is also the organising Secretary for the Friends of Sierra Leone.
Binneh holds a Bachelor of Economics (Honours) Degree from the University of Western Sydney and has published research papers on Australia’s Bond / Equity Home Bias. He is currently an employee of Fuji Xerox Australia – Global Services Commercial. Binneh has been a Board member of CMRC since 2010 and currently the Treasurer of the CMRC Board – a position he has held for two years
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Nola M-Randall
Nola Randall worked for TAFE NSW as an Outreach Coordinator and Teacher for 31 years. In that role she worked with a number of community organisations and ethnic management committees during the past 38 years. Involved with the Migrant Resource Centre since 1997 and has held various positions on the Management and Executive including Secretary, Treasurer. Staff Relations, Deputy Chairperson and Chairperson. Currently Secretary and also serves as public officer for MRC. Committed to access and equity in a multicultural society with equity of access and justice for all. Detests racism in any form. Currently also involved in three other Ethnic specific organisations.
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Dr Geoff Lee
Dr Geoff Lee MP is the Member for Parramatta and the Minister for Corrections. Dr Lee was elected in 2011 and re-elected in 2015 and 2019. He is the first Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly with Chinese heritage.
For the past 12 years, Dr Lee has been committed to serving the people of Parramatta. During this time, he has been instrumental in Parramatta’s transformation including delivering new community facilities such as the State’s first vertical school Arthur Phillip High School, major upgrades to Westmead Hospital and Westmead Children’s Hospital, the new CommBank Stadium, Powerhouse Parramatta and the construction of important transport links such as the Parramatta Light Rail.
Since 2019 Dr Lee has held a number of Ministerial roles including as Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education, and as Minister for Sports, Multiculturalism, Seniors and Veterans.
Dr Lee has held the position of Minister for Corrections since December 2021. Since that time, he is proud to have supported Corrective Services NSW in its efforts to reduce reoffending and provide additional resourcing to recruit more staff.
Prior to entering politics, Dr Lee was an award winning business owner, then TAFE teacher, lecturer and later the Associate Dean at the Western Sydney University.
Dr Lee holds a Bachelor of Applied Science (Horticulture) from Hawkesbury Agricultural College, a Master of Business Administration, and a Doctor of Business Administration from the Macquarie Graduate School of Management.
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Dr Annabelle Bennett
The Honourable Dr Annabelle Bennett AC SC is a retired Judge of the Federal Court of Australia having previously practised as a barrister (Senior Counsel) specialising in intellectual property. She is currently Chancellor of Bond University; the Chair of the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), an Arbitrator of the Court of Arbitration for Sport; Member of the Board of Directors of the Garvan Institute; Chair of Gardior Pty Limited; Member and past President of Chief Executive Women and Member of the Advisory Board of the Faculty of Law at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. She has also served as President of the Anti-Discrimination Board of NSW, as a Commissioner with the NSW Law Reform Commission and as a Royal Commissioner into National Natural Disaster Arrangements. Dr Bennett is a Fellow of both the Australian Academy of Science and Australian Academy of Law. In addition, she practises as a Barrister, in an advisory role, and as a mediator and arbitrator.
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representing a major international airline. In his 34 year career, he served in a number of senior and general management positions covering Africa, UK, Europe, Australia NZ and India. In September 1994 he obtained a scholarship from Pratt and Whitney to study at MIT in Boston. Thevan left the airline industry in 2012. In 2013 Thevan joined a new startup as a partner and in 2017 he was elected to join the Board of CMRC. In 2019 he was voted into the position of Chairperson.
Reena Jethi
Reena Jethi has been with CMRC for over 5 years. A teacher by background and an entrepreneur by profession, Reena was the first Indian-born councillor elected to The Hills Shire Council in 2017. In 2019, Reena was elected Deputy Mayor of The Hills Shire Council. She is also the recipient of NSW Minister’s Awards for Women in Local Government.
A vocal supporter of small businesses, Reena is a strong advocate of women’s empowerment. She believes education is the key to independence and self-reliance. Public amenities and facilities such as parks and playgrounds for children are high on Reena’s priority list and she works tirelessly to address the needs of the community.
Apart from her public role, Reena is also the CEO of Kuber Vaults – a safe deposit box facility located in Castle Hill which provides secure storage for valuables such as jewellery and family heirlooms.
Reena is committed to her duties in both her roles as a councillor and a local business owner. Having taught at Westfield Sports High School, she understands the hopes and aspirations of today’s youth and their role in Australian society in years to come. Reena applies her experience in liaising and working with people from diverse social and cultural backgrounds to develop well-informed conventional solutions with empathy, strength, and a vision for success.
Reena Jethi believes in CMRC as a pivotal organisation to make a difference in the lives of migrants wanting to make Australia home. It is important for them to have a positive experience and opportunity to grow and succeed. Over time CMRC has established itself as a brand and Reena is dedicated to its vision and purpose.
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Dr Renu Narchal
Dr Renu Narchal (PhD, MAPS) is a Registered Psychologist (Endorsed area of practice, Educational and Developmental Psychology) at the School of Psychology, Western Sydney University. Her work focuses on cultural diversity and the health and wellbeing of Culturally and Linguistically Diverse ethnic groups. Renu’s community engaged research revolves around the impact of life events on development, more so from the migration and settlement perspectives like loneliness, general ethnic discrimination, psychological distress, help seeking, language barriers and job-seeking challenges to mention a few. She is currently conducting research in a much-neglected area in migrant settlement, language brokering, where in children and young people assist their parents and significant others in navigating the new cultural context post-migration. Her research revolves around the retrospective recall of their experiences as language brokers whilst interpreting and translating information for their parents and significant others during the course of migration and settlement in a new cultural context. Renu is the winner of the Western Sydney University’s Vice Chancellor’s Excellence award for University Engagement and Sustainability in 2014 and also the winner of the prestigious Zest award for Outstanding Partnership in a LGA with the CMRC for her very innovative community engaged project, Each one Assist One.
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Peter Prants
Peter is a NSW Justice of the Peace and has a Bachelor of Social Science from the University of New England.
He is a results-driven and skilled person with 39 years of diverse experience in both the commissioning and planning for the provision of services in meeting community and client needs.
Peter started his working career in the Disability Sector and Aged Services for seven years, before becoming a Community Development Worker. Community development is his true calling, and he has worked in Western Sydney for 32 years at the former Auburn Council, former Holroyd City Council and the NSW Department of Communities and Justice (DCJ). Peter at DCJ was the Western Sydney Area Assistance Scheme Co-ordinator and Manager for Commissioning and Planning in the Western Sydney District.
Peter is very passionate about child protection and is a strong advocate for migrants and refugees in having equal access to services. He has skills in problem and conflict resolution, contract negotiations, performance monitoring and evaluation, and in relationship building with non – government organisations and other government departments including local government. He is adept in assessing operational needs and fostering the capability of organisations and individuals to meet business requirements
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