Adrienne Nieuwenhuis was appointed Acting Chief Commissioner of TEQSA on 11 May 2024.  

Before her appointment as a TEQSA Commissioner in 2021, Adrienne was the Director of the Office of Vice-Chancellor at the University of South Australia. Prior to this, Adrienne was the Director Quality, Tertiary Education, Science and Research in the South Australian Department of Further Education, Employment, Science and Technology. 

Adrienne was an inaugural member of the Higher Education Standards Panel (2011–14) and the National Skills Standards Council (2011–13). She was reappointed to the Higher Education Standards Panel for a further three-year term in 2018. 

Adrienne has been a member of the South Australian Skills Commission since 2013 and has held several roles within the Commission, including Deputy Chair of the Commission (2013–14, 2019–20) and Chair of the Commission’s Traineeship and Apprenticeship subcommittee (2013 – present). Adrienne was also a member of the Australian Industry and Skills Committee (2019–22). 

Adrienne has over 30 years’ experience in tertiary education and has been a member of various state and federal committees and working parties associated with tertiary education. She holds an honours degree in science and a master’s degree in education policy and administration.