ALSF Team

President

Byron Hodkinson

Mobile: +61 431 481 553 Email: bhodkinson@alsf.org.au

Byron was the first student of La Trobe University to be elected as President of the ALSF, after serving as Secretary in 2007-08.

Byron's policy interests centre on legal and constitutional issues.  He vehemntly opposes an Australian bill of rights as well as an Australian republic.  In 2008-09, Byron is seeking to maintain the status quo in relation to voluntary student unionism, seeing the ALSF hold its rightful place at the front line of the culture wars within the tertiary education sector.

In July 2008, Byron travelled to Israel as part of a study tour arranged by the Australia/Israel & Jewish Affairs Council.  In his spare time, Byron enjoys cycling and supporting the Essendon Football Club.

Vice-President

James Paterson

James Paterson is a 3rd Year Arts and Commerce student at the University of Melbourne, where he also serves as the Vice President of the ALSF's oldest and largest Liberal Club.

James represented Melbourne University at the 2007 National Union of Students conference and currently serves on its Students' Council. In the summer of 2007-08, James worked in the Washington DC office of a Republican Congressman where he worked on a variety of political and policy issues. Previously, James served as the Federation's Media Liaison Officer.

Secretary

Alex Butterworth

Alex is studying a combined Law/Arts (Political Science) degree at the University of Western Australia. Alex is the immediate past president of the UWA Liberal Club and Western Australian President of the Liberal Students.  Alex's experience in campus politics saw him elected as the only openly Liberal councillor on the UWA Student Guild Council.

Alex has experience working on marginal seat campaigns in both federal and state elections and has campaigned hard for the UWA Student Guild to stop paying tens of thousands of dollars in fees to the National Union of Students. Alex is committed to ideas of small government and individual freedom and as the ALSF's first Policy Director in 2007/08, he worked with the policy committee to develop detailed policy papers on higher education deregulation. Alex sees the ALSF as the Liberal-Conservative front line in the culture wars.

Treasurer

Amy Houston

Amy is studying International Relations at Macquarie University in Sydney. As well as serving on the ALSF Executive, Amy is the President of the Macquarie University Liberal Club and the Women’s Office of the NSW Young Liberals.

Amy has extensive experience working on student elections and on marginal seat campaigns. Her involvement with Liberal Students began at the University of New England, when in her first year she was elected to the UNE Union board, and then to the UNE Students’ Association. While on UNESA, Amy was the VSU spokesman and part of the team that ran a successful campaign against NUS in a Disaffiliation Referendum. Amy served as the UNE Liberal Club’s Secretary and President before transferring to Macquarie University.

In her spare time Amy enjoys reading, catching up with family and friends and riding her Ducati.

Policy Director

Natalie Karam

Natalie is in her second year of a combined Jurisprudence/Law degree at the University of New South Wales.  Her role of Policy Director follows her service as a member of the Federation's Policy Committee in 2007-08.

She is also an active member of Australians for a Constitutional Monarchy and the Samuel Griffith Society, frequently championing their ideals in public forums through her involvement with university debating.

Natalie is currently the only Liberal to sit on the National Union of Students NSW State Executive, a role in which she has and continues to lobby student organizations to adopt a platform that combats academic bias in tertiary institutions.

Publications Officer

Duncan McDonald

Victorian Representative

Gideon Rozner

Gideon is currently completing degrees in Law and Arts at the University of Melbourne. He was first elected Victorian Representative in Melbourne in July 2007 and again in 2008. He is the current president of the Melbourne University Liberal Club, and is committed to strengthening and revitalising clubs across many other campuses in his role as Victorian Representative.

He serves on the Students Council of the University of Melbourne Student Union, providing an energetic and vocal opposition to the appalling excesses of the union. Gideon has also been a recipient of the Australian Students' Prize, as well as Premier's Prizes in Politics and Legal Studies.

Among his policy interests are foreign affairs and industrial relations reform. Gideon is also a fierce opponent of the 'nanny state' policies of both state and federal governments, and has recently been involved in the campaign against the 2am Lockout imposed by the Victorian Government, lobbying various members of the state parliamentary Liberal Party.

Tasmanian Representative

Trent Hasson

Trent Hasson is a Queensland-born and Hobart-based member of the ALSF. He has lived in almost every state in Australia but now calls Tasmania home. He is in his final year of a Bachelor of Music Studies at the University of Tasmania's Conservatorium of Music.

Trent has been actively involved in reviving the Liberal student movement in Tasmania and served as the Federations' Publicity Officer in 2007. Trent has a keen interest in all things related to technology, music and politics.

ACT Representative

Jessica Adelan

Jessica is currently studying a double degree in Law/Arts majoring in Political Science at the Australian National University. Her love of freedom has been demonstrated during her service as the Vice-President of the ANU Liberal Club. This is her second year of involvement with the Federation and after convening Federal Council in Canberra in 2008 was elected to the position of ACT Representative.

Jessica has been involved in politics from the age of seventeen when she joined the Victorian Liberal Party. In Canberra she has continued to fight the good fight with the ACT Division and is planning on having many sleepless nights to ensure the election of a Liberal government in October.

Queensland Representative

Jonathon Costello

New South Wales Representative

Sasha Uher

Sasha is studying Commerce at the University of Sydney. She is currently the secretary of the Sydney University Liberal Club, where she has contributed to a number of Union and SRC election campaigns. In 2008, she headed the Liberal ticket for union board elections.

Sasha’s main policy interests are foreign affairs, immigration and education. Like all Liberal students, she is a strong supporter of voluntary student unionism, helping to organise a counter-protest to the left’s anti-VSU rally in 2008. Sasha is also a passionate advocate of recent initiatives to investigate academic freedom and sub-standard teaching in our universities and schools, having experienced these issues whilst studying degrees in Arts and Education.

South Australian Representative

Todd Hacking

Todd is in his final year of a Law / Arts (Politics) degree at the University of Adelaide.  In addition to his role on the ALSF, Todd is currently the President of the Adelaide University Liberal Club and Development Director of the South Australian Young Liberal Movement.  In 2006, Todd served on the SA Division’s State Executive and was elected a Councillor in the City of Tea Tree Gully in 2005.

Todd’s campaign experience includes active participation in the 2004 Federal Campaign in the Federal Electorate of Makin and the 2006 Florey State Election Campaign.  In 2007, Todd was Chairman of the Makin Campaign Finance and Campaign Committee.

In his spare time Todd loves sport, movies, catching up with mates, reading and cooking.

West Australian Representative

Tom Coulter

Tom is currently completing his 3rd Year of a Law/Arts (Politics and International Studies) degree at Murdoch University.   He is the Vice President of the Western Australian Union of Liberal Students as well as being President of the Murdoch University Liberal Club.

A member of the Marketing and Promotions Committee of the WA Liberal Party, Tom is keen to use these skills to entice liberally minded students on campus to join the ALSF on campuses throughout WA.

Tom enjoys reading, supporting the Western Force. and travelling.