“We’ve appointed the best people for the roles. It just so happens that now we have more than 50 per cent female. This wasn’t a deliberate statistic, it just happened this way,” he said.

Newly-appointed chairwoman Felicity Melican agrees.

“Skills, experience, representation from different sectors and gender are all important in the appointment of a board,” she said. “I believe we have covered all of these.”

This year’s board marks the first time a staff member has been appointed director of staff since 2012 and VCAL teacher Sharna Westley says it’s an inclusion she’s proud to be a part of.

“I love my job and I feel privileged to have been chosen on the board,” she said.

“I feel like my job is to represent all staff in a governance role by bringing a connection via a different skill set, adult education, which compliments the group.”

The board will feature 10 members this year, unlike seven in past years.

This is also the first time a CEO has featured on the board at South West TAFE.

“Support for TAFE is strong at the moment,” Mr Fidge said. “TAFE is getting back to strength.

“We have increased employment by 10 to 15 per cent which is 40 to 50 new staff across TAFE and we are five to six per cent ahead of what we were this time last year,”

“Numbers are good across the institute,” he said.

The full South West TAFE board will be appointed by October.