Kathryn Richardson is Professor of Language Education, Head of the Language Centre Department, and Head of the School of Languages, Linguistics and Film (SLLF), one of the eight schools in the Faculty of Humanities & Social Sciences at Queen Mary University of London.
Kathryn steers the SLLF School strategy in terms of education, research and public engagement across its five departments of Modern Languages & Culture, Comparative Literature & Culture, Linguistics, Film and the Language Centre. As Head of the Language Centre, she leads on programmes that prepare overseas and home students to excel in their university degrees as well as leading on programmes which prepare students for employability as global citizens. For both the SLLF School and the Language Centre, Kathryn builds on and enhances the University’s reputation both internationally and in the UK by overseeing the education agenda: programme design & delivery, teacher development & training, student/staff co-creation of curricula. This is to ensure student satisfaction, achievement and intellectual engagement.
The SLLF School offers direct entry to programmes at all levels from pre-undergraduate to doctoral level but also provides students who are denied direct access the opportunity to study for a Foundation Certificate, to gain access to undergraduate degrees, or a Graduate Diploma, to gain access to master’s degrees. In addition, the School also provides University-wide non-specialist language & culture courses in a range of eight global languages to enhance students’ global employability skills.
As a specialist in education, Kathryn serves on a number of Queen Mary committees which aim to improve student engagement, student experience and student success and exerts influence on the education policies and strategies across the University. Kathryn is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She holds a Graduate Diploma in Higher Education Management, a Master’s degree in Applied Linguistics for English Language Teaching, a DELTA, CELTA, PGCE and an undergraduate degree in Politics and Sociology.
Dr. Arfa Sayeda Zehra is a Pakistani educationist and Urdu language expert. She is Professor of History, with over 50 years of teaching and research experience in various institutions in Pakistan; member of History faculty at FCCU since August 2009; served as visiting faculty member at Lahore University of Management Sciences, National College of Arts, National School of Public Policy, National Institute of Management, Government of Pakistan. Chairperson National Commission on the Status of Women, Member Justice Commission of Pakistan, Member Punjab Public Service Commission and Principal, Lahore College for Women, Lahore. Invited as a speaker on national and international forums including UN and Brooking Institute. Her research interests lie in the areas of Historical Analysis and Critique, Human Rights, Gender Literature and Social issues.