FUTURE Women of
the portrait gallery
It is a tremendous honour to feature in the Portrait Gallery of Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School. The women who appear in this collection have achieved, and continue to achieve, significant milestones. Their presence in the gallery is a tribute to their time at the school and recognition of their enduring accomplishments.
As Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School welcomes its inductees, the Foundation is both celebrating the women of the Portrait Gallery and providing them with the opportunity to support and lift the future generation of great women leaders, thinkers and doers.
In this way, we seek to honour women of the past, the present and importantly – the future.
ABOUT THE gallery
Mac.Robertson Girls’ High School played a formative role in helping to create and shape the women of the Portrait Gallery. The gallery recognises, rewards and promotes the feats these women have accomplished through education, ambition and opportunity.
The Foundation has now immortalised the women of the Portrait Gallery in a digital format so that their legacy can live on and be showcased beyond the School halls.
Explore the wonderful achievements of the women of the Portrait Gallery and how they continue to inspire and support the future generation.
MEET THE 2024 INDUCTEES
Leonie Bird
1959-1962
An accomplished barrister and theologian, Leonie Bird has achieved a remarkable career spanning law, education, community service and religious studies. She serves on the board of a domestic violence shelter, and currently acts as an ambassador for Anglicare Victoria. Leonie has been a member of the Palladians Association for more than 30 years.
Dr Elizabeth Grant AM
1943-1946
Dr Elizabeth Grant AM was a trailblazing pharmacist and businesswoman who made lasting impacts in health administration, medical research and community programs. Atter swimming competitively for Victoria, she opened her own pharmacy in 1958 – a rarity for women at the time – while advocating for women's advancement.
Jennifer ten Seldam
1992-1995
Jennifer ten Seldam is a marketing and leadership development executive who builds high-performing teams at top companies. Drawing from her corporate experience and coaching accreditations, she co-founded Wingmaven to help businesses and leaders achieve bold ambitions through strategic advisory and strengths-based coaching.
Jacqui Weatherill
1980-1983
Jacqui Weatherill is a leader in the public sector, sports administration and gender equality advocacy. Her impressive career spans chief executive roles at local councils and trusts, presidencies with Gymnastics Australia and the Federation of International Gymnastics, and extensive non-executive directorships.
more Women of the portrait gallery
This section will be updated regularly and members will be featured on rotation so that we can showcase all the wonderful Women of the Portrait Gallery. We aim to reach out to all inductees in due course and provide them with an opportunity to be immortalised digitally.
Eva Besen AO
1942-1945
A philanthropist and passionate advocate for healthcare and the Arts, Eva co-founded "Friends of the Peter Mac" and served on the board of Peter MacCallum Hospital. She was an active contributor to the NGV, NGA and Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. In 2002, Eva and her husband established the Tarrawarra Museum of Art.
Anna Brown OAM
1993-1996
Anna Brown OAM is a lawyer and advocate. Her fingerprints are on nearly every major reform for LGBTIQ+ people in recent years, including playing a crucial role in achieving marriage equality as co-chair of the ‘YES’ campaign.
Sarah Davidson
2003-2006
Sarah Davidson is a lawyer, entrepreneur and media personality. Her award-winning podcast (and later, best-selling book), Seize the Yay, inspires others to swap metrics such as success and the glorification of busy for fulfilment and joy. Sarah is also a motivational speaker, MC, author and TV host.
Larissa Dubecki
1987-1990
Larissa Dubecki was shortlisted in the Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Awards as the world’s best critic, while Epicure won world’s best food and wine section in a newspaper. She has appeared as a guest judge on Master Chef and a permanent judge on Iron Chef. Her works appear in Gourmet Traveller, Time Out, The Age and Guardian Australia.
Professor Elif Ekinci
1991-1994
Professor Elif Ekinci is a clinician scientist, an academic endocrinologist who is working to translate research into improved outcomes for people with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. Her research is focused on the pathophysiology, prevention, detection and treatment of diabetes and its complications in humans.
Krystina Emmanouilides
2005-2008
Krystina Emmanouilides is a Computational Fluid Dynamics Engineer at Sauber Motorsport AG, who entered into the 2022 Formula One World Championship as Alfa Romeo F1 Team ORLEN. An ambassador for Motorsport Australia’s FIA Girls on Track program, Krystina hopes to improve access to information for young girls aspiring to enter the motorsport industry.
Esther Erlich
1970-1973
Best known for her gritty style of portraiture, Esther Erlich is an artist who has been exhibiting since 1985. She won the 1998 Doug Moran National Portrait Prize for her painting “Gaunt and Glorious”, a portrait of Steve Moneghetti, and in 2000 won the Archibald People’s Choice Award with her painting of Bill Leak.
Tess Fitzgerald
1997-2000
At the forefront of decarbonisation in Australia’s energy sector, Tess works extensively with state and Commonwealth governments, industry partners and market institutions to plot a new path for Australia’s energy in the 21st Century. Tess started her career at Allens, where she spent a decade working on energy and resource projects in Australia.
Dr Alice Garner
1983-1986
Dr Alice Garner is a teacher, historian, actor, and musician. Her first professional acting role was at the age of 11 in the feature film Monkey Grip. She went on to work in Melbourne theatre, TV, film and radio, and highlights include Love and Other Catastrophes, Sea Change and Secret Life of Us.
Kathryn Gilmore
1972-1973
Kathryn (Kate) Gilmore a is Professor-in-Practice at the London School of Economics and Political Science, Honorary Professor at the University of Essex and a former Fellow with Harvard University. She started her career in social work, working to combat violence against women and helping establish Australia’s first centre against sexual assault.
Seen Lee
1997-2000
The first Australian woman to medal in weightlifting, Seen won three bronze medals at the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games. She went onto represent Australia at the 2012 London Olympics, as well as several world championships and more than 30 global competitions. In parallel to her sporting career, Seen works in the resource industry as a mining engineer.
Jude Munro AO
1965-1969
Jude Munro AO became one of the first women to lead a local council in Australia, at age 39. She was made an Officer of the Order of Australia in 2010 for her services to local government, and given the keys to the City of Brisbane. She has been a director or chair of 30 boards across 11 industries in the past 25 years.
Genevieve Overell AM FAICD HonRAIA
1975-1976
Genevieve Overell AM is a company director, audit committee chair and trusted adviser. Former Head of Government Advisory at Deutsche Bank Australia, Senior Executive in the Victorian Government and KPMG Partner, Genevieve brings multi-sectoral experience in infrastructure, property and construction and government projects.
Vicky Papachristos
1979-1982
Vicky Papachristos is a leading female in the corporate world and an inspirational figure. With 25 years of experience in a range of fields including senior positions at Shell, Myer, Visa, Just Jeans and the Sydney Olympics, Vicky is paving the path for the next generation of females in traditionally male-dominated professions.
Dr Sian Prior
1979-1982
Dr Sian Prior is a writer, broadcaster, university lecturer, activist and musician. Sian’s works have been published in newspapers and magazines globally. Sian is the author of ‘Shy: A Memoir’ (2014) and ‘Childless: A Story of Freedom and Longing’ (2022); the latter short-listed for The Age Book of the Year.
Alice Pung OAM
1997
Alice Pung is an award-winning author who was awarded an Order of Australia in 2022 for her services to literature. She has won the WA Premier’s Literary Award, the Australian Book Industry Award, the Ethel Turner Prize for Literature, and was shortlisted for the Miles Franklin Literary Award.
Alida Sempill
1958-1961
Alida Sempill is a retired ballerina, gracing stages in Australia, London and the US, the latter of which performing at principal level with the National Ballet, Chicago Ballet, New York City Ballet, San Diego Ballet Company, and the American Ballet Theatre. She also taught ballet, movement and Pilates. Her memoir, Out of Step, was published in 1993 by Melbourne University Press.
Dr Judith Smart AM
1964-1967
Dr Judith Smart was the first woman appointed to edit Australian Historical Studies. She is an RHSV Fellow, adviser on Victorian women for the Australian Dictionary of Biography, a Victorian board member of the Australian Society for the Study of Labour History and served as Deputy Chair of the History Council of Victoria and Vice-President of the Federation of Australian Historical Societies.
Margaret Webb AM
1956-1959
Margaret Webb worked in education for 44 years, including as a physical education teacher at Mac.Rob. A past President of the Palladians Association and active member of the Mac.Rob Foundation, she has a long history in girls’ physical education, Indigenous education, global mentoring programs, and women’s leadership and development.
WOMEN OF THE PORTRAIT GALLERY: 2008-2023
Visit the following profiles for more information on the remarkable Women of the Portrait Gallery:
Captain Katja Bizilj (1976-1979)
Antoinette Halloran (1983-1986)
Debra Knight (1976-1977)
Tan Le (1990-1993)
Ida Lichter (1961-1964)
Professor Ann Nicholson (1979-1982)
Mary Sheargold (1996-1999)
Susan Sherson (1955-1958)
Wendy R. Taylor (1955-1958)
Professor Clare Wright OAM (1983-1986)
All inductees of the Portrait Gallery will be featured in this index as the digital gallery grows. Please check back regularly for updates.
If you are a Portrait Gallery member who would like to work with us to help future women of the Portrait Gallery, we would love to work with you.
Simply get in touch, and we can discuss the best way you can help us support the future women.
