Dr Mary Russell is CEO at TEQSA. She was appointed to the role in May 2024, having led TEQSA as acting CEO since June 2023.

Mary joined TEQSA as the Executive Director of Regulatory Operations in 2022. In this role she led the regulatory teams which manage higher education provider registration, course accreditation, compliance and regulatory risk assessments.

Before joining TEQSA, Mary was Assistant Ombudsman for Dispute Resolution at the Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman. She held executive roles at the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) for six years, including as State Manager for Victoria, National Manager of Notifications and National Manager of Regulatory Risk Strategy. While at AHPRA, she led the development and implementation of a risk-based approach to managing concerns about the performance and conduct of health practitioners.

Mary has served as chair and member of regulatory boards, concurrently with roles as a health practitioner and a tertiary educator. She has extensive experience of university teaching, curriculum development and delivery, and has completed her PhD in Health Sciences.