Families, students and ex-students are warmly invited to the Santa Sabina College 4th Annual International Women’s Day event, presented by the Ex-Students’ Association in partnership with the P&F Association and the College.
Join us for an inspiring evening featuring a panel of exceptional Santa Sabina alumnae who are shaping change and advocating for women in diverse fields.
Hear from Dr Cathy Foley AO, Sarah Dale, Nina Kerwin Roman, Caroline Smith and Danielle Funston. There will be time to connect, meet others and build connections over dinner and refreshments.
Thursday 5 March 2026
6:00pm
Santa Sabina College Siena Hall
Adults $60 | School and University students $30
Watch this short preview video to see what Balancing the Scales means to our students.
Panellists
Dr Cathy Foley AO PSM
Physicist and former Chief Scientist of Australia
Advocate for women in STEM
Class of 1975
Cathy Foley, President of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences and Engineering (ATSE), was Australia’s Chief Scientist from 2021-2024, following a distinguished career at CSIRO, including as Chief Scientist. A world-renowned physicist, she led pioneering research in superconductors and sensors, culminating in the LANDTEM mineral exploration system.
As Chief Scientist, she advanced the national quantum and research strategy and the National Science and Research Priorities for the country. She is an advocate for research translation, quantum technologies, open access to research literature and scientific excellence.
Sarah Dale
Award-winning lawyer and leading human rights defender
Class of 2004
Sarah has led the Refugee Advice & Casework Service since 2019, after several years of working with people seeking asylum and refugees. RACS was recently recognised as Australia’s Law Firm of the Year for their work, a Community Legal Centre outflanking large global firms in 2024 under her leadership.
Sarah supports unaccompanied children seeking asylum, stateless communities as well as children and others detained in Australia’s Offshore Detention system. Sarah successfully held the Australian Government to account before the United Nations Human Rights Committee evidencing their extraterritorial responsibility for people seeking asylum.
Caroline Smith
General Manager at Apprenticeship Careers Australia
Class of 1994
Caroline Smith is focused on easing Australia’s skills shortages and growing women’s participation in male-dominated industries, especially the trades. Her work builds stronger workforce pathways and challenges outdated ideas about where women belong.
A CPA, she also serves as a Board member in the apprenticeship support sector, contributing to national workforce strategy and governance. Her background includes executive finance and commercial leadership roles across education, health services, not-for-profit and private sectors.
Nina Kerwin Roman
Lawyer specialising in online safety and technology law
Class of 2016
Nina is an Associate at Baker McKenzie. She graduated from Santa Sabina in 2016, where she was College Vice Captain in Year 12. In 2025, she completed a six-month secondment as Legal Counsel in TikTok’s AUNZ legal team, steering online safety compliance for 30+ ByteDance products in Australia.
As an Associate, Nina regularly advises social media companies and other online services (such as TikTok, Snapchat, X [formerly Twitter], Pinterest and Apple) on online safety compliance and the implementation of the Social Media Ban. She is committed to strengthening child safety in an increasingly digital world.
Danielle Funston
Senior Partner at Maddocks specialising in Restructuring and Insolvency
Class of 1999 and current parent
Our facilitator Danielle became a partner of an international law firm the day after her second daughter’s birth. With a three-year-old, a newborn and Partner title, life was busy but certainly rewarding.
Over her career, she has welcomed the shift in the legal space, which now fortunately recognises women for senior promotion, and allows men equal parental leave opportunities. She has seen first-hand how the industry has certainly changed for the better.