About BETTER:

BETTER (Building East Timor Through Education/Resources) is an innovative leader of charitable education within East Timor. BETTER partners with communities to give a 'hand-up' rather than a 'hand out.'

We are a small organisation with a big vision looking to take BETTER to the next level and fully live out our mission. We are looking to strengthen our team with compassionate, talented individual/s who have a wealth of experience and passion.

Our Founder, Ornella Byak, has been working to advance the quality of education in East Timor since her first visit in 2013 at the tender age of 14 years old. That day Ornella made a promise to the Timorese community: to do everything she could to create the same education opportunities she has growing up in Australia. She never forgot that promise. Prior to starting BETTER, Ornella helped to redevelop a rural senior school that has since ranked fourth in the country and has provided more than 650 students an education, but this wasn’t enough.

BETTER was founded with a big dream to set a new national education standard in East Timor. In April 2023, BETTER opened the Bakhita School of Excellence in the rural community of Same (Sah-May). BETTER’s progressively built school and custom curriculum has the backing of the Noble Peace Prize Laureate and the President of East Timor, Josè Ramos Horta.

BETTER’s Bakhita School of Excellence is the first school outside of Timor’s capital, Dili, to teach English from the Foundation year – providing an international standard of education to rural children.

With 70% of grade 1 students in East Timor failing to meet basic learning outcomes, this isn’t just another school project… it’s the start of an education revolution for the people of Timor-Leste.

The Board of Directors

The Board of Directors plays a crucial role in ensuring effective governance and strategic oversight. It generally holds a 1.5-hour meeting a month online. The following general responsibilities apply to each of our Directors:

1. Contributing to the overall strategy of BETTER.
2. Monitoring BETTER’s progress/performance against the strategy and measures of success.
3. Providing advice specific to your area of expertise.
4. Acting with reasonable care and diligence.
5. Disclosing any conflicts of interest if/when they arise.
6. Ensuring that the financial affairs of BETTER are managed responsibly.
7. Overseeing processes to comply with legal and regulatory requirements.

About You We now wish to grow our Board with Executive Directors who have a genuine passion for making a positive impact in the world. You will ideally have several years’ experience as a Company Director, as well as expertise in a combination of the following areas:

• Risk
• Good governance
• Data
• Technology
• Overseeing operations in rural/remote areas

Oversight of the Risk portfolio will involve chairing BETTER’s Risk Committee, which generally holds a one-hour meeting a month online.

This is a volunteer role for a fixed term of two years, with opportunity of renewal.

Why Volunteer with BETTER

At BETTER, we are proud to be a 100% volunteer-led charity. We deeply appreciate the time gifted to us by our volunteers, knowing that it is through their dedication that we can succeed.

Equal Opportunities

BETTER is an equal opportunities volunteer organisation that prohibits discrimination and harassment of any kind. Volunteer decisions at BETTER are based on organisational needs, requirements, and individual skills/qualifications, without regard to race, color, ethnicity, religion or belief, family or parental status, or any other status protected by laws or regulations in the location where we operate. BETTER will not tolerate discrimination or harassment based on any of these characteristics and encourages applicants of all ages. Thank you for considering volunteering with BETTER. Together, we can make a lasting impact on the communities of East Timor.