Further Education And Preparation For Work

Olly Newton spent 12 years in the Department for Education working on policies including 14-19 diplomas, raising the participation age and finally as Head of Apprenticeship Strategy. Olly is now Executive Director of the Edge Foundation, where he oversees a programme of primary research, is lead author on all of the charity’s policy reports and runs the Edge Future Learning delivery programme for schools and colleges. At Edge, Olly founded the Island Education Network to support and connect islands around the UK and overseas with their education work. In his spare time, Olly volunteers with the Scout Association, is Enterprise Adviser for Firth Park Academy and supports community theatre in Sheffield.

Session: Further Education and Preparation for Work.

Louise is the Principal of the Guernsey College of Further Education, a general Further Education College which forms part of the Guernsey Institute delivering all Further, Higher and professional learning for the Bailiwick of Guernsey. Louise has worked in education for over 24 years, originally teaching Health and Social Care, she was a qualified nurse working in Guernsey, UK and Australia; she has also worked in Public Health. Louise has Cert Ed, a BSc in Health Studies, and an MSc in Education and is currently studying for a Professional Doctorate in Education part-time with the University of Exeter. As Principal, she is committed to working in partnership with industry to ensure that the curriculum matches local current and future needs, both for students and to support economic development. She is committed to the development of excellence in teaching and learning and is always seeking new ways to enable and support innovation in vocational pedagogy.

Session: Further Education and Preparation for Work.

Jan is an experienced Teacher and Adviser with a demonstrated history of working in educational leadership and management across all phases. Skilled in coaching, teacher training and professional development as well as the strategic leadership of curriculum development, careers and employability education. She is an advocate of choice and opportunity for children and young people, with a real passion for life wide and life long learning.

Session: Further Education and Preparation for Work.

Anna Baldacchino is a provider of specialist services in the area of Adult Education and Child Development to tertiary education institutions in Malta and abroad. She has served as a Learning Manager at Holland College and part-time lecturer in the Faculty of Education at the University of Prince Edward Island, both in Canada. She has delivered various presentations on themes relating to Adult Education and Child Development in Taiwan, Sweden, Japan, Canada, Australia and Barbados. Anna now teaches at the Faculty of Education (Early Years) at the University of Malta.

Anna holds a Diploma in Early Childhood Education, a Bachelor’s Degree in Child and Family Studies and a Master’s Degree in Education, Leadership and Learning. Her Master’s thesis explored the challenges involved in implementing child-centred learning pedagogies. She also holds a Doctorate from the University of Sheffield in the UK.

Session: Further Education and Preparation for Work.

Dr. Arlene Smith-Thompson is the Owner and Director of Cadwell Consulting, Virgin Islands. She currently serves as a Higher Education Consultant to the H. Lavity Stoutt Community College in the Virgin Islands. Having served in various roles in the public sector up to the Permanent Secretary level, Dr. Smith-Thompson is highly experienced in several disciplines including business and technical vocational education and training; teacher education; inclusive studies; educational leadership; public policy and public sector management, among other related areas. She is guided by philosophical thinkers, such as Paulo Freire, who espoused that “education either functions as an instrument which is used to facilitate integration of the younger generation into the logic of the present system to bring about conformity or it becomes the practice of freedom, the means by which men and women deal critically and creatively with reality and discover how to participate in the transformation of their world.

Dr. Smith-Thompson is married to Professional Chef Macgarvey Thompson. Together they own a popular restaurant in the business district of Road Town, Tortola. She is also the parent of one adult son, Khalil.