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Experience

This section is presented in themes, instead of a chronology. Although this may seem inconventional at first glance, I believe it offers a better insight into my professional journey, having been active in diverse fields and subjects simultaneously. Hope you enjoy learning more about my professional journey.

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Section A: Leadership in Education

Capel Manor College

Sep 2017 to Present

From the College’s website:

London’s only specialist environmental college, offering a diverse range of full and part-time courses in further and higher education for school leavers and adults.

The College plays a vital role in the green agenda for the capital, equipping the next generation of land-based sector workers with the skills and knowledge needed to help preserve and protect London’s wildlife, national parks and green spaces.

My journey in leadership began at Capel Manor College. It is here where I am gaining invaluable experience in Further and Higher Education, as well as managing animal collections, both zoos and farms. Through many challenges, including the global Covid-19 pandemic, I endeavoure to transform the School of Animal Management and Saddlery to better serve its team members, students, and the College’s vision of a green future in London.

Enfield Campus

Brooks Farm Campus

Crystal Palace Campus

Gunnersbury Park Campus

Regent's Park Campus

Mottingham Campus

Post Held

Director of Studies Land-Based

(Animal Management and Saddlery)

Apr 2022 to Present

  • Leading a team of 100+ across five campuses, implementing a cloud-based governance system that enhanced collaboration and resource management, adopted college-wide.
  • Improved quality of education to move from a –4.5% shortfall in achievement against national average, to exceeding it by 2%.
  • Driving the strategy for an intranet and digital governance platform, which standardises processes, resource sharing, and actively improves collaboration across teams.
  • Restructured educational offerings and resource management, including the animal collections across four campuses, delivering 12% in cost savings, while enhancing student satisfaction through data-driven course improvements.
  • Driving the Attendance Working Group across the College, improving attendance to exceed 5% over the national average.
  • Contributing to national EdTech and learning innovation efforts through the Landex Learning Materials and Technology Committee and JISC T&L Forum.
  • Collaborating with Worshipful companies to reinvigorate saddlery, shoemaking, and wider leathercraft training at national scale, with a £150k growth in the budget.
  • Saw 20+ new teachers through CET and DET programmes, while supporting them to innovate in their teaching.

Key Skills: Large Team Leadership // Budget Management // Organisational Change // Microsoft Sharepoint and Teams Administration // Strategic Direction // Zoo & Farm Management // Business Development // Sponshorship and Partnership Acquisition

Campuses

Team Members

Qualifications

turnover

Post Held

Curriculum Leader then Head of Animal Management and Saddlery

Apr 2020 to May 2022

  • Spearheaded a culture of self-assessment, leading to an 88% achievement rate, over national benchmark.
  • Modernised digital education, team collaboration, and digital governance in a blended setting, personally moving the digital infrastructure to cloud services and workflows via Microsoft 365, across the College.
  • Mentored, coached, and trained four new Team Leaders in leading the School’s largest team of Higher and Further lecturers.
  • Supported the Senior Leadership Team to identify and implement technological trends in learning.

Key Skills: Digital Leadership // Large Team Leadership // Internal Quality Assurance // Organisational Change // Microsoft Sharepoint and Teams Administration // Power Automate Flows // Large Team Coordination // Zoo & Farm Management // Business Development // Course Design and Implementation

Post Held

Team Leader

Sep 2019 to Mar 2020

  • Led a team of lecturers to deliver a wide portfolio of animal-focused courses.
  • Collaborated with three major national awarding bodies to ascertain the fulfilment of educational and training standards.
  • Enhanced internal quality assurance operations and re-engineered channels for collaboration. 

Key Skills: Project Management // Lead Internal Quality Assurance // Organisational Change // Microsoft Sharepoint and Teams Administration // Power Automate Flows // Instructional Design // Large Scale Learning Content Management

Post Held

Higher and Further Education Course Manager

Sep 2017 to Aug 2019

  • Accomplished over 95% achievement rates across all courses of responsibility.
  • Enhanced teaching delivery utilising targeted data analyses, to reach 100% satisfaction rates in HE courses as measured in the NSS.
  • Led multiple higher-level modules, including on statistics, research methods, and data analysis.

Key Skills: Module Design // Assessment // Industry Standards // Teaching & Learning // Course Implementation // Student Development

Section B: Digital Design

MESH WEB DEVELOPMENT

Sep 2015 to Aug 2017

Post Held

Digital Project Manager / Owner

Sep 2015 to Aug 2017

  • Founded own business and forged the online presence of multiple small-sized.
  • Bridged creative professionals and business owners to tailor highly appealing and effective products.
  • Blueprinted, designed, and developed engaging visual materials utilising HTML, CSS, Javascript, SQL, as well as Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop.

Key Skills: Small Business Management // Digital Marketing // UX/UI/Frontend Design // Web Development // WordPress // HTML // CSS // Javascript // PHP // SQL // Social Media Management // Project Management // Adobe Illustrator // Adobe Photoshop

Section C: Biological Research

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

Jan 2020 to Aug 2021

Jul 2012 to Mar 2017

Post Held

Postdoctoral Researcher

Jan 2020 to Dec 2021

  • Co-designed an innovative project on the evaluation of wildcat (Felis silvestris silvestris) spatial behaviour using telemetry within protected areas of Northern Greece.
  • Utilised technological means, including telemetry collars and camera traps, along with biological signs of presence, to map wildcat movements and nesting.
  • Led the deployment and maintenance of an electronic platform (wildcatproject.gr) to disseminate scientific knowledge in an accessible format, and educate the public on the wildcat’s conservation status.
  • Significant findings published in peer-reviewed conferences and journals.

Key Skills: Research Design // Funding Acquisition // Resource Management // Ecological Analysis // GIS

Post Held

Postgraduate Researcher

Jul 2012 to Mar 2017

  • Designed and executed a long-term project on the ecological implications of biomechanics in the evolution of eutherian mammals, with added focus on primates.
  • Developed novel methods in high-speed experimental video recording.
  • Carried out advanced data analyses using statistical programming methods.
  • Contributed to the teaching and preparation of practical and theoretical modules, including Morphology and Systematics of Chordata, Comparative Animal Anatomy and Histology, Biological Anthropology.
  • Supervised undergraduate dissertations and mentored research students.
  • Was awarded a Doctorate of Philosophy in Biology unanimously, by an international panel of world-class academics.
  • Published 10 peer-reviewed articles in high impact-factor international journals.

Key Skills: Research Design // Funding Acquisition // International Research // Academic Writing and Publishing // SPSS // VBA in Excel

Completed a

Senior Education Leadership Programme

in>pd // University of East London

Jan 2021

  • Obtained a clear understanding of the senior leader’s role in overall leadership and effective management of the organisation.
  • Understood how to inspire, influence and build high performing and effective teams.
  • Was equipped with strategic leadership and management skills to enhance team performance.
  • Became confident to deploy a range of effective management techniques and tools

Achieved a

Doctorate of Philosophy in Biology

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

Jul 2012 to Mar 2017

Achieved an

MSc in Human Evolution and Behaviour

University College London

Sep 2009 to Aug 2010

  • Obtained a solid practical and theoretical grounding in issues relevant to the evolution of humans and non-human primates.
  • Studied modules on Human Evolution and Behaviour, Palaeoanthropology, Primate Evolution, Evolution of Human Cognition.
  • Completed a thesis on the comparative positional behaviour of three captive callithricid species.

Achieved a

BSc in Biology

Aristotle University of Thessaloniki

Sep 2003 to Mar 2009

  • Gained invaluable knowledge across all fields of Biology.
  • Specialized in Molecular Biology, Genetics and Biotechnology.
  • Succesfully defended a BSc Thesis on the “Handedness of Wild Silvery Woolly Monkeys (Lagothrix poeppigii)”.