Professor Sandra Thom-Jones is the Pro Vice-Chancellor (Research Impact) at Australian Catholic University. She provides leadership, advice and support for research engagement and impact across the university’s research areas. Sandra also leads the Autism at ACU research program. She has undertaken numerous research projects­ in partnership with the autistic community on the experiences of autistic people and the knowledge and attitudes towards autism in the community, including research that won the Autism CRC's 2019 and 2021 awards for research translation. Her research includes a 12-month reflection study on the experiences of more than thirty autistic academics from around the world.

In 2018 she established ACU's Autism Inclusion Program, which aims to improve the attraction, retention and positive outcomes of autistic people in higher education. She is a passionate advocate for the inclusion of autistic people in all aspects of society.