Sarah Rhodes

I am an Academic Developer with a background in inclusive curriculum design, technology enhancements and reflective practices. My most recent experience has been as a Senior Lecturer - teaching education related Level 3-7 modules - and Joint Programme Leader of the PG Cert Academic Practice course at the University of Wolverhampton.

My career in HE started in 2001 at Surrey University, as a Skills and Personal Development Officer designing and facilitating a personal development planning initiative with students studying STEM subjects. This work drew me into several widening participation activities and resonated with me as a first-generation student from a low socio-economic background. The values that I developed 

during this initial employment – equity, access, collaboration - continue to underpin my work today. Subsequent roles in professional services and teaching have shaped and focused my work into enabling academics, through coaching and mentoring approaches, to develop anticipatory and inclusive practices. This was no more apparent than at Harper Adams where I developed a good academic conduct resource with subsequent face-to-face session support for course leaders. I supported the course leaders to disseminate the resource to students via the curriculum. Outcomes included increasing knowledge on effective writing, greater academic confidence and skills and a reduction of plagiarism, collusion and cheating cases. During my time at Manchester Metropolitan, as one of seven Faculty Student Support Officers, I began to learn the art of working as a disparate yet collective team – supporting faculties and departments in a diverse institution to embed inclusive practices in a sensitive yet supportive manner.

At Wolverhampton, I led the development and agreement of the Considerate Marking Scheme, provided mentoring and reviewing for the Advance HE Fellowship scheme and redesigned the Inclusive Curriculum by Design Level 7 module dynamically and responsively creating transformational change across the university. My scholarly activity and research currently focuses on contemplative inclusive pedagogies, coaching and mentoring and teacher wellbeing.

My dedication and experience in Higher Education Practice can also be evidenced by my External Examiner role for the Postgraduate Certificate in Teaching in Higher Education programme and the external advisor role for the Advance HE UKPSF CPD framework both at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David.

My role in the Academic Development team will be to create spaces for conversations about inclusive pedagogic practice and opportunities for those to shape up into appropriate outcomes tailored to team/departmental plans. My specific responsibilities are induction/training and development/events and supporting the university student academic mentoring project. I am excited to open those spaces to talk all things learning, teaching and assessment, want to join me?