Chair
Dr Don Perlgut
Don is an executive media and education leader, communications expert and lecturer. Since March 2012 he has worked as Senior Outreach Educator and Deputy Team Leader with the Community Outreach section of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), Australia’s corporate regulator. He also lectures part-time at the University of NSW and APM College, and was CEO of the Rural Health Education Foundation for eight and a half years. Don is an experienced non-profit organisational leader, with particular expertise in business development, project management, marketing, relationship management, public relations, fundraising, educational program development and new media.  His other previous employers include the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), the Australian Institute of Management (NSW/ACT), ICE Interactive Ltd, the University of New England (Armidale NSW) and the Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils (WSROC).  He has wide experience in the telecommunications, education & training and health sectors, including extensive involvement in the development of rural and remote Australia.  He holds a PhD in media from Macquarie University, a Masters degree in City Planning (Berkeley) and a BA (Government, Cornell).

Chair of the Finance Committee
Jane Rybarz
Jane has extensive experience in accounts and finance for the film and television industries. Jane is currently the Chief Financial Officer at  Evolution Media Group and Evo TV, where she is the strategic financial adviser to the CEO and plays an active role in shaping the financial strategy of the organisation. She is also currently a Consulting/Acting Finance Manager at Link-Up; an Aboriginal corporation funded by State and Federal Government Health Departments to assist the health and well-being of members of the Stolen Generation. Prior to that, Jane worked as Director of Finance and Audit at NITV, Financial Controller at Bazmark Inq (Baz Luhrmann and Catherine Martin), Management Accountant at Southern Star Endemol, and worked at KPMG Chartered Accountants, as well as roles at a variety of other media organisations. Jane is a Chartered Accountant, CPA, a member of the Taxation Institute of Australia, and holds a BA (Accountancy) from the University of South Australia.

CEO/Managing Director
Phyllisse Stanton
Phyllisse has been CEO/MD of Aurora Community Channel for the past four and half years. Prior to this she was part of the launch team as Group Creative Director for UKTV; a joint venture between the BBC, Fremantle Media and FOXTEL broadcasting in Australia and New Zealand. Phyllisse has previously held numerous roles across marketing, branding, advertising, promotions and production in the television industry, including Nine Network, Prime Television, SBS and Optus Vision.

Company Secretary
Daniel Prypchan
Daniel specialises in financial and business management for media and arts organisations, particularly in the areas of film production and non-profit enterprises. He has  been the Company Secretary at Aurora since August 2010 , assisting the channel through a period of growth and change. Previous roles include Group Financial Controller at Ovation Channel, Production Accountant at Firelight Productions and Producer at Human Productions.

Programming & Production Manager
Corrie McDougall
With Aurora since 2007, Corrie has been integral in the growth of quality programming on the channel. Passionate about the countless independent producers who deliver premiere shows week in week out, as well as the community partnerships formed with some of the country’s leading arts and community organisations. Corrie has also been a part of the development of Aurora’s growing in-house productions including Aurora Short Film Festival and My Community. Prior to Aurora Corrie was co-artistic director and producer at Lamb n Co, a Arts and video based organisation, developing regenerational art projects, installations and video productions for schools, charities and art organisations in Australia and the UK.

Marketing & Social Media Manager
Louise Lenihan
Louise has worked at Aurora since 2008, starting in scheduling and working her way across to marketing. It was during a brief stint in the advertising world that Louise discovered her passion for social media, and she now manages all of  Aurora’s social profiles, as well as producing content for the website. With a background in screen production, Louise is also heavily involved with  in-house production My Community, and coordinates the Aurora Short Film Festival.

Promo Producer
Dirk Jonker
As Aurora’s longest serving employee, Dirk has worked across a variety of roles at the channel – from programming, to operations, to on-air, he knows the channel inside out. Dirk is currently the resident Promo Producer, and also works across web content and  editing for all in-house productions. With a background in audio and music recording, Dirk has found his second home in the editing suite.

On Air Scheduler
Sarah Jane Cook
Sarah Jane Cook is Aurora’s On Air Scheduler and one of the most recent members of the channel. Having over ten years of experience in television, she has worked for FOXTEL, XYZ Networks, ABC and Innovations Park Studios. Sarah Jane brings to Aurora a diverse range of skills including on-air presentation and broadcast operations, broadcast material coordination, acquisitions, post-production editing and production assistant.

Programming Coordinator
Malina Mackiewicz
Having recently graduated from the AFTRS Foundation Diploma course, Malina undertook a three month internship at Aurora as part of the ASTRA Graduate Program. Proving herself to be an invaluable addition to the team, Malina was invited to stay on as a member of staff, and is now focusing her efforts on the production of Aurora’s new program My Community.