Super six academics become newest Fellows of the Advance HE Academy

Congratulations to six of the University of Northampton’s academic professionals who have become Fellows of the Advance Higher Education (Advance HE) Academy.

Advance HE Fellowship demonstrates a commitment to professionalism and provides recognition of practice, impact and leadership in teaching and learning.

The first successful academic to receive a Fellowship is the Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology’s Dr. Mahmoud Moradi, who has made a significant contribution to delivering effective practice in teaching and hosting a supportive learning environment.

Dr Moradi is currently the Programme Leader of MSc Advanced Design & Manufacturing and Senior Lecturer at the University of Northampton.

The University of Northampton’s five additional newest Advance HE Fellows are as follows:

Faculty of Arts, Science and Technology

Dr Anthony Stepniak, Senior Lecturer in Media & Cultural Theory.

On his appointment as a Senior Fellow, Dr Anthony Stepniak said: “Being awarded Senior Fellowship is a wonderful highlight of my career so far and I am greatly humbled.

“A key part of my reason for working in Higher Education revolves around working towards creating an inclusive learning environment to enable all students to succeed and to always consider their voice in what we do. This ambition lends itself to my leadership style supporting academic members of staff, and to have this noted by the panel was especially rewarding.

“This recognition will be invaluable in my career as I look to progress into more leadership related roles and support others with their Learning and Teaching.”

Faculty of Health, Education and Society

Valentina Diaconu, Graduate Teaching Assistant.

On her appointment as a Fellow, Valentina Diaconu said: “I’m truly honoured to receive the HEA Fellowship, as it represents my commitment to teaching excellence and student support. As a former UON student myself, this recognition is especially meaningful – I see it as a way to give back to the institution which helped shape my own academic journey.

“As I teach Psychology and Research Methods with a central focus on Statistics, I understand that some students experience anxiety around these topics. This fellowship motivates me even further, to make complex concepts more accessible by breaking them into manageable steps, using varied explanations, and fostering an engaging and inclusive learning environment.

“I look forward to using this recognition as a platform to continue innovating in my teaching practice and inspiring students, just as my former tutors (and now colleagues) have inspired me.”

Martin Wyres, Head of Social, Therapies & Communities.

On his appointment as Senior Fellow, Martin Wyres said: “I am very pleased to have achieved Senior Fellowship through my work at the University of Northampton, building upon my work at two previous universities.

“I have been able to evidence my impact within my role, which could not have been done without the great academic and wider support teams I have worked with. I plan to continue building upon my case scenarios which focussed on collaborative simulation work with professionally regulated courses and also leading large teams of academic staff to achieve positive outcomes in relation to student and staff experience, financial contribution to the university, social impact and workforce development.”

Emma Langridge, Associate Lecturer (Education).

On her appointment as Associate Fellow, Emma Langridge said: “I decided to apply for the AFHEA to increase my impact in the university. It was important to me that I was doing the best for the institution and the students. Because of the nature of my role, the process took me two years to complete but in this time I was able to really draw upon my experiences and reflect deeply about best practice.

“In particular, I enjoyed the feedback process of my students and of my collegues. The Fellowship Champion allocated to me,  gave me confidence in the process and I was elated to find out that I had been successful. I am looking forward to accessing all of the resources available to me and I hope to apply for the next stage of the Fellowship in the near future.”

Faculty of Business and Law

Dr Kardi Somerfield, Senior Lecturer in Marketing.

On her appointment as a Senior Fellow, Dr Kardi Somerfield said: “I am delighted to have been awarded the SFHEA. You have to provide a substantial amount of evidence of educational leadership and strategy to earn it. I think that when you are in the thick of academic delivery, taking some time to evaluate your own performance and contribution in an analytical way is very validating.

“I’ll be sharing my experience of gaining Senior Fellowship with colleagues working towards their FHEA or SFHEA but more importantly, encouraging the leadership behaviours that enable an application.”

The Associate Fellowship, Fellowship and Senior Fellowship categories achieved by our six academics reflect the diverse roles of those who teach and support learning at our institution, highlighting the significant impact they make on staff and students around them.

• Senior Fellowship is awarded to professionals whose comprehensive understanding and effective practice provides a basis from which they lead or influence the learning and teaching practices of others (peers, colleagues, mentees, etc.) who teach and/or support high-quality learning.
• Fellowship is awarded to individuals whose practice with learners has breadth and depth and demonstrate effectiveness of practice in teaching and/or support of high-quality learning.
• Associate Fellowship is awarded to professional individuals from a wide variety of different contexts torecognise who demonstrate effectiveness of practice in teaching and/or support of learning as demonstrated through evidence of meeting the criteria.