Jisc has announced two new representatives to its board of trustees, who will help determine strategic direction and priorities to reflect the present and future needs of UK education and research. Professor Mark E. Smith, Vice-chancellor of Lancaster University, and Dr Ken Thomson, the principal of Forth Valley College in Scotland, will join board of senior leaders and managers from across UK further and higher education.
Professor Mark Smith held roles within the physics department before being appointed chair of the faculty of science in 2005, pro-vice chancellor for research in 2007, and subsequently deputy vice-chancellor. In his current role as vice-chancellor of Lancaster University, his responsibilities include chairing the main resourcing committee of the university.
With 21 years' experience in the further education sector, Dr Ken Thomson took up his role as principal of Forth Valley College in August 2013.
As a senior lecturer in life sciences he led a four college consortium in developing a £1.5m technical training project for biotechnology. He became head of science (2001), then director of learning services (2003) before becoming associate principal (2005) at Forth Valley College and deputy principal from 2007 with strategic responsibility for the college's future curriculum, school/college partnership, quality assurance and learning innovation.
The new trustees take up their roles in December 2014.
