Home
»
About the AIC
»
Corporate information
»
Senior staff
Senior staff
Dr Tomison was appointed Director of the AIC in July 2009. He is internationally recognised as an expert in the field of child abuse, the prevention of child abuse and other family violence, and the development and operation of child protection and family support systems. An experienced public service executive, he has worked over the past two decades with a range of government, non-government organisations and advocacy groups focused on child protection and child abuse prevention in Australia and overseas. Prior to his appointment with the AIC he was Head of the Child Protection Program at the Menzies School of Health Research. From 2004 to 2008 he held various senior executive positions within the Northern Territory Department of Health and Families, including as Director of the Northern Territory's Family and Children's Services, and as the Department's inaugural Principal Child Protection Adviser in 2004. In 2006-07 Dr Tomison acted as the expert advisor (and Director of Policy and Research) for the 'Little Children are Sacred' NT Inquiry into the Protection of Aboriginal Children from Sexual Abuse. He became well-known for his work as a senior researcher with the Australian Institute of Family Studies, managing the National Child Protection Clearinghouse. Under his leadership, the Clearinghouse became a centre for excellence with a national and international reputation in the field of child abuse prevention and child protection. He subsequently developed a number of other national research and information units for the Institute, notably the Australian Centre for the Study of Sexual Assault. Dr Tomison has made significant academic contributions to scholarly and applied research in the areas of child protection and violence prevention, and was appointed as an Adjunct Professor at the Australian Catholic University in 2010. He is a frequent presenter at conferences and has regularly run educational and training seminars for professionals and the wider community.
Dr Rick Brown – Deputy Director, Research
Dr Rick Brown is Deputy Director (Research) with the Australian Institute of Criminology (AIC). He has worked extensively on issues associated with crime reduction, community safety and policing both in the UK and Republic of Ireland. For ten years prior to joining AIC, he ran a research and training consultancy (Evidence Led Solutions Limited) that specialised in community safety issues and worked with a wide range of organisations, including government departments, local authorities, police services and fire and rescue services, as well as working closely with many community safety partnerships in England and Wales. During this time, he was also appointed by the Home Office as an Advisor on crime reduction, working with three regional government offices in England.
Prior to establishing Evidence Led Solutions, Rick worked as a Research Manager for the Home Office Research Development and Statistics Directorate in London. During this time, he ran programs of research associated with vehicle crime and domestic burglary. This included managing a major evaluation of the Reducing Burglary Initiative, under the auspices of the UK government’s Crime Reduction Program.
His particular areas of interest are in the implementation of crime prevention and community safety initiatives and in policing. He has published on a variety of topics, from vehicle crime, arson and violence in the night time economy, to community justice and community clean up operations.
Mr Brian Russell – Senior Finance Officer
A Certified Practicing Accountant, Brian has more than 10 years experience in the public sector finance field and has been with the Institute since February 2006. Before joining the AIC Brian worked for the Defence Housing Authority for nine years, where he held several positions within the finance section including Financial Accounting Manager and Revenue Manager.
Colin Campbell – Communications Manager
Colin is the Communications Manager of the AIC. He was a journalist in the 1980s. From 1989-1995 he worked as a media adviser for the Hawke and Keating Governments, then moved to Canberra in 1996 to work in the Federal Parliament, most recently (2009-10) as a senior adviser for the Minister for Defence.
Janine Chandler – Library Manager
Janine is the manager of the JV Barry Library. She has more than 20 years experience in academic, government, and research libraries including several years as Client Services librarian at the Institute. Janine is involved in CrimNet, the Australian Libraries in the Emergency Sector group, and the World Criminal Justice Librarians Network.
