Our Speakers

Quyen Vu was born in Saigon, Vietnam. He is the eldest of six children. When he was 10 years old, his family fled Vietnam. Quyen and a younger brother then spent a year in a refugee camp by themselves before they were reunited with their family here in Australia. Their family then settled in Sydney. He joined the Jesuits in 1994 and was interested in working outside Australia.

During his third year of regency, he responded to the call from the Society of Jesus in the region of East Asia and Oceania for service in East Timor. As this small country struggles towards establishing itself as an independent nation, it confronts many social problems. Quyen was sent to East Timor in 2001 and worked and taught in a school in Timor. Quyen was ordained in July 2004 in Sydney. He worked for 2 years as School Chaplain at Loyola Senior High School, Mt Druitt. In 2007, he returned to work in East Timor until June 2009.

Quyen was part of a team that set up the first Jesuit High School in East Timor, Colegio Santo Inacio de Loiola in Kasait. After completing his education mission in East Timor in 2014 he was missioned to Cambodia to be part of another team in setting up Xavier Jesuit School in 2015.

Quyen worked on the Xavier Jesuit School project for six years and was appointed Provincial of the Australian Province in 2021.

Quyen entered the Society of Jesus in 1994, and undertook his novitiate at Pymble in Sydney. During his formation he spent time at Loyola Senior High School in Mount Druitt and St Aloysius’ College Milsons Point, and also did stints at the Jesuit-run school in Timor Leste.

He holds a Master’s in Education and Management from Boston College, and has spent the last decade building and establishing new Jesuit schools, first in Timor Leste and then in Cambodia.

Quyen began his term as Provincial in 2021. 

Fr Ross Jones SJ grew up in the Jesuit parish of St Mary's North Sydney.  Graduating with honours in biochemistry with CSIRO, he began his teaching career at St Aloysius' College in 1974, taking science in the senior years.  Amid the usual round of co-curricular engagement, he took a Master’s degree in Education and a Diploma in Theology.  After ten years, the last four of which as Year 11 Form Master, he left to join the Society of Jesus.

During studied for a Bachelor of Theology degree in Melbourne, he was for one year the Junior Boarding Master at Xavier College, and also tutored in medical physics at Newman College, Melbourne for a number of years.  Fr Jones was ordained at the end of 1990 at St Mary’s and celebrated his first mass in The Boys' Chapel at St Aloysius’ College.

The Province was then about to engage in a new school enterprise in the Parramatta Diocese and he was appointed Foundation Principal of Loyola College in Mount Druitt, a co-educational senior high school.  He was responsible for the building and development of the project and was Principal until 1997.

He was then appointed Socius to the Provincial, Assistant for Schools, and Australian Secretary to the Jesuit Education Conference of East Asia-Oceania.  He has been a member of a. number of school councils over the years and was the foundation Chair of the Loyola Institute, a body charged with maintaining the Ignatian ethos and culture of the Province’s schools.  He has a keen interest in the history of Jesuit education and the Society's particular charism and ethos as manifested in the educational apostolate.

The final phase of his Jesuit formation (Tertianship) was completed in the Philippines in 2003-04.  These experiences led him to develop the Philippines Immersion Programme for students, Old Boys and parents, firstly at St Aloysius’ and then at Saint Ignatius’ College, Riverview.

He is currently Rector of St Aloysius’ College (for a second term), having also served in that role at St Ignatius’ College, Riverview.

Danielle has had an extensive career in the Catholic education sector through her senior leadership roles at the diocesan, state and national levels. Danielle is currently the Director of Education Policy at Catholic Schools NSW.

In addition to the executive roles she holds, Danielle is also involved in the leadership of a number of Religious Institutes and Ministerial Public Juridic Persons, including as a Director of Jesuit Education Australia. She is also a member of the Australian Bishops Council for Pastoral Research.

Danielle has received a number of national awards including an Australian Churchill Fellowship which looked at the role of families and communities in school and system improvement.  She is currently leading a number of state-wide projects which examine the role of the Catholic school in the life of the Church and contemporary society more broadly.

Fr Chris Middleton SJ joined the Society of Jesus in 1976.  He completed a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) at the University of Melbourne and a Masters in Theology at the United Faculty of Theology, and was ordained in Orange, NSW, in 1989.

Fr Middleton taught at St Aloysius College in Sydney for his Regency, and after ordination served as Chaplain at Newman College, the Jesuit residential college within the University of Melbourne, and then as Vice-Rector at St Leo's College, within the University of Queensland. 

In 1996 Fr Middleton undertook post-graduate studies in the United States in Educational Administration through Fordham University, New York, completing a Masters in Science (Education). 

In 1998 Fr Middleton was appointed Rector and Deputy Headmaster at Saint Ignatius' College in South Australia. There he was involved in establishing the Kairos retreats in our Jesuit schools in Australia. In 2003 Fr Middleton was appointed Principal of St Aloysius' College. He taught History in Years 10-12 during his eleven years as Principal. Fr Middleton also founded the Benenson Society, a human rights advocacy group. He served as a Province Consultor from 2011-18. In 2012 he was the Province Procurator and attended the Congregator of Procurators in Nairobi, Kenya. He completed his term as Principal of St Aloysius in April 2014, and commenced as Rector of Xavier College in June 2014. He serves on the Board of Friday Night School.

Anna Salmic is currently employed at Loyola College Watsonia as Deputy Principal – Students. Over her time in Catholic Education she has worked in a number of schools, both in single sex and co-educational settings. She has a Masters in Educational Leadership and her areas of leadership have been predominantly in teaching and learning and most recently in student wellbeing. She is committed to providing an environment where students are heard, positive relationships are developed, and that each child is given the opportunity to thrive.

Jacqueline Salamon is currently employed at Loyola College Wastonia as a Pastoral Leader – Head of MacKillop House. Jacqueline has worked as a curriculum leader in the Languages domain and most recently in student wellbeing. She is committed to working with students and staff alike creating positive partnerships with families in order to provide a learning environment where students feel valued, safe and respected to ensure they can reach their full academic potential.

Vanessa is a Registered Psychologist and has been working in private practice, schools and education for the past 23 years.  She is passionate about working with children, young people and their families and supporting the development of their social and emotional learning, wellbeing and mental health.

Vanessa has worked in both Catholic systemic and independent school settings and has been fortunate to work in 3 Jesuit schools over her career.  The area of student wellbeing is of great interest to her, having been a part of numerous initiatives within school systems promoting holistic engagement of wellbeing for all within school communities.  She currently develops the Wellbeing Program in her role of College Psychologist at St Aloysius College Junior School in Sydney.