Meet our expert contributors
We’re pleased to offer you a wide variety of parenting and educational resources with contributions from renowned experts. You can find out more about our expert contributors below.
Michael Grose
Founder & Director, Parenting Ideas, Author, Award Winning Speaker
Michael Grose is a bestselling author of 12 parenting books and an award-winning speaker. He is a former primary school teacher with 15 years experience and a parenting educator with 30 years experience. Michael holds a Master of Educational Studies from Monash University specialising in parenting education, a Bachelor of Education and a Diploma of Primary Teaching from SCV Toorak (now Deakin). He is a member of the Professional Speakers Australia Hall of Fame, receiving their Educator of the Year award in 2013.
Dr Jodi Richardson
Wellbeing and Mental Health Speaker, Author
Dr. Jodi Richardson is a mental health speaker and author who is changing the way parents, teachers and schools think about and cultivate children’s mental health and wellbeing. Jodi has developed her expertise over two decades of professional work in teaching, wellbeing, clinical practice and elite sport, including working for beyondblue on the national schools-based initiative for the prevention of depression.
Sharon Witt
Author, Presenter, Secondary Teacher
Sharon Witt is an author, teacher and presenter who’s been immersed in the teen world for over two decades. She is one of Australia’s leading book authors for young people, having written 12 books including the bestselling Teen Talk and the Girlwise and Wiseguys series. Sharon runs regular workshops within schools and youth events around Australia. She is a regular media commentator on issues impacting young people, parenting and educational issues.
Kate Johnson
Advocate for children on the autism spectrum
Kate is the Founder and Director of Spectrum Journeys Inc, a not for profit autism service that equips and empowers educators, support workers and families as they support children on the autism spectrum to flourish. Kate has worked in advocacy and the community sector for more than 14 years.
Martine Oglethorpe
Parent Educator, Speaker, Counsellor, Cyber Safety Advisor
Martine is a parent educator, qualified youth and family counsellor, who speaks, writes and consults on the challenges faced by families in the modern world. Martine has a Masters in Counselling and a background in secondary education. Through her personal and professional work with families raising children, she recognises the important role technology plays in the social and emotional wellbeing of young people. Martine is an accredited speaker with the Office of the eSafety Commissioner.
Nikki Bush
Award-winning speaker and best-selling author
Nikki Bush, helps individuals and teams to win at life and work. Inducted into the Professional Speakers’ Association of South Africa Speaker Hall of Fame in 2019 Nikki is the first woman to receive this lifetime achievement award. She is a best-selling author of several books including Easy Answers to Awkward Questions, Tech-Savvy Parenting, and Future-proof Your Child for the 2020s and beyond.
Dr Kristy Goodwin
Digital wellbeing and performance speaker, author and researcher
Kristy Goodwin is the author of Raising Your Child in a Digital World, and a media commentator who doesn’t suggest that we ban the iPhone, or unplug the gaming console (digital abstinence isn’t the solution). Kristy worked as an educator for fourteen years before becoming an academic and speaker who’s on a mission to help children, teens and adults tame their technology habits so they’re not a slave to the screen.
Collett Smart
Psychologist, qualified teacher and author
Collett Smart the author of ‘They’ll be ok: 15 Conversations To Help Your Child Through Troubled Times’. Collett has more than 20 years’ experience working in private and public schools, as well as in private practice. She appears regularly on national television and radio, as an expert in teen and family issues. Collett has taught and delivered psychology workshops and seminars around the world.
Marc Brackett, Ph.D.
Marc Brackett is founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and professor at Yale University. His research focuses on the role of emotions and emotional intelligence in learning, decision making, creativity, relationships, health, and performance. Marc is the lead developer of RULER, a systemic approach to social and emotional learning that has been adopted by over 2,000 preschool to high schools. He is also on the board of directors for the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning. Marc has published 125 scholarly articles and received numerous awards.
Karen Tui Boyes
Karen Tui Boyes is a champion for Life Long Learning across nations, industries and organisations. An expert in effective teaching, learning and living, Karen turns research into practical and simple to use techniques that create success. As the founder of Spectrum Education, a speaker, author and the publisher of the Teachers Matter Magazine, Karen gets rave reviews from all over the world. She was awarded the NZ Educator of the Year title in 2017 & 2014.
