Our Vision: A society where children are valued in their diversity and for their abilities, and where they enjoy equal rights and opportunities.

Our Mission: Noah’s Ark promotes community understanding and acceptance of children with diverse abilities and backgrounds, and works in partnership with families and communities to help children to reach their potential and participate meaningfully in society.

Our Values: Underlying our strategic plan and the actions we take are our core values. We believe that:

Each child is unique and all families have cultural, socioeconomic, geographic and linguistic differences
All children and young people should enjoy the same rights and opportunities
Children fall on a continuum of abilities, and that the definition of ‘disabilities’ is essentially arbitrary
Parents are experts on their children and are children’s primary source of life long support and early learning
Services should build on families' strengths and capabilities
Services should be provided in the child’s local community and all children should have the opportunity to learn
          together, regardless of ability
The focus of service should not be on inclusion as an end in itself, but as a means to achieving outcomes we
          should be seeking for all children (e.g. education/well-being/meaningful participation/community participation)
Inclusion should not just involve attending a mainstream and universal service – it must also involve the child’s
          meaningful participation in all activities in that setting
Effective collaboration with partners in service delivery, research, policy and management is necessary to create
          flexible, innovative and effective types of services that offer the best opportunities and choices for children
The most current scientific knowledge should be used when making decisions about developing or providing
          services and resources
A work culture that encourages creativity, diversity, teamwork, accountability, continuous learning, enthusiasm,
          trust, celebration of achievement and high ethical standards provides the most effective basis for working with
           children, families and services
Noah’s Ark will operate as one organisation, with a single approach to management


Our Strategic Goals:

Families have the information, confidence and resources that they need to promote their child’s development and to           strengthen family wellbeing
Children’s services are supported to develop high quality inclusive programs that value children with additional
          needs and meet the needs of all children
Children and families receive the best possible programs and services through a commitment to continuously
          improve quality broadly
Stronger relationships are built with communities and Governments to promote greater investment in and
          opportunities for children with additional needs and their families
Noah’s Ark will continue to develop as a sustainable, unified and responsive organisation.

Noah’s Ark is a not-for-profit, incorporated association with a Board of Management.

Board Members

President: James Garde is a corporate finance practitioner and partner with PricewaterhouseCoopers. He is married with three children.

Vice President: Still to be elected.

Secretary: Giuliana Antolovich is a Paediatrician working at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Melbourne. Her clinical practice is focused on the management and care of children and young adults with Developmental Disability.

Treasurer: Fintan Magee is a Qualified Practising Insurance Broker and Company Director. He has worked in Senior Management at local and then International Broking Houses and is a co-founder of Gallivan, Magee & Associates Pty. Ltd. He is the father of three children, one of whom received services at WestArc and this experience gave him more than a passing interest in ECIS.

Tim Moore, an educational and developmental psychologist for over 30 years, has had a long involvement in the provision of early childhood intervention services. Currently is a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Community Child Health, Royal Children's Hospital.

John Dowling, an estate agent, auctioneer and valuer is also involved in primary production. Currently a Board Member of the Burnet Institute. He has held previous community board positions with the Royal Children's Hospital, Royal Children's Research Institute, The Citizens’ Welfare Service of Victoria, Drummond Street Relationship Centre and Nidkids Support Group.

Nancy Black first joined Noah's Ark with her daughter in the 1970s and she has served on the Committee of Management over many years. She was a founding member of WestRaid in the western suburbs and works in theatre, film and television as a writer, director and teacher.

Campbell Thomson, a Barrister practising in the areas of Native Title, Crime and Environmental Law for fifteen years.

Roberta Whittaker, Roberta’s role on the Board is to represent the views and voices of parents. She has a young daughter with Prader Willi Syndrome who received early intervention at Noah’s Ark Windsor.

Noah’s Ark is a statewide service with central and regional managers.

Chief Executive Officer: John Forster has spent the past 25 years working to reduce enduring disadvantage, focusing on poverty issues prior to joining Noah’s Ark in 2000. He is a keen advocate for better services and educational outcomes for children with disabilities and their families, the Australian sector body, and the Victorian Past President. John has a son who has a disability. He has a BA(Hons) from Melbourne University, is a Fellow of the Williamson Community Leadership Program and has completed the Strategic Perspectives in Nonprofit Management at Harvard Business School.

Senior Manager, Services: Val Johnson trained as an occupational therapist at Lincoln Institute in Melbourne. Val has completed a Masters of Arts in Developmental Disabilities at New York University, USA, a Graduate Diploma in Management at RMIT in 1990 and a Postgraduate Diploma in Program Evaluation at Melbourne University in 2000. She has worked as an occupational therapist, manager, lecturer and trainer, established a consultancy business and raised a family. Val is currently President of Early Childhood Intervention Australia (Victoria Chapter).

Corporate Services Manager: Robert Petherick is responsible for all IT, Property, Vehicles and operational matters within Noah’s Ark. Robert has an extensive background within corporate businesses and has completed a Masters of Business through the University of Queensland and a Social Sciences degree with Latrobe University.