WOMEN IN EDUCATION SPECIAL INTEREST GROUP
WOMEN SUPPORTING WOMEN
OUR VALUES
- Keeping and promoting gender equity at the heart of our enterprise
- Leading inclusively and ethically
- Building communities that cultivates alliances, allyship and collaboration amidst diverse perspectives
- Committing deeply for measurable impact
- Advocating for sustainable and systemic change that increases access and elevates WiE (and allies)
- Making visible the challenges through innovative co-creation for transformation
NEWS
MEET THE COMMITTEE
Nancy Lhoest-Squicciarini
Nancy Lhoest-Squicciarini
Special Interest Group Chair
Lead Facilitator & Trainer, ECIS | WomenEdBeLux NetWork Leader
Nancy is the Lead Facilitator and Trainer for ECIS, and the facilitator for ECIS Studio, which provides professional learning opportunities for international educators. She is a trainer for the Principals’ Training Center and the ECIS Middle Leaders Certificate Programme with a true passion for supporting the development of teacher leadership. Nancy is one of the network leaders for @WomenEdBeLux, a global grassroots movement that connects aspiring and existing women leaders in education. Her previous roles include the Head of Community Relations at the International School of Luxembourg, Assistant Principal responsible for Teaching and Learning, Chair of ECIS Curriculum and Assessment Committee, and a Middle School teacher for 24 years. Her approach to developing a positive school climate is building and supporting strong relationships between all the school’s stakeholders.
Liz Free
Liz Free
Committee member | CEO & Director IS Rheintal | WomenEd Strategic Network Leader
I passionately believe in the power of education to make the world a better place for adults and young people alike.
I have been a teacher and head teacher in some of the world’s leading schools before specialising in learning and development for school improvement. This journey has enabled me to develop and lead one of the UK’s largest education professional learning and development services before founding the International Leadership Academy (ILA), The Hague. This physical and metaphorical centre is learning and development home for international schools across Europe as well as the learning for school improvement arm of the British School in the Netherlands, the largest British international school in Europe with over 800 staff. I am particularly proud of developing the flagship International Professional Qualifications (iNPQs) and we work with around 2500 school staff every year.
Alongside this work I am also a global board member for the TES Institute and a strategic lead for WomenEd globally, with responsibility for Europe and Asia. I am a Founding Fellow of the Chartered College of Teaching and Fellow of RSA. I am author of the recently published ‘International Perspectives’ chapter of the Amazon number one bestseller ‘10% Braver: Inspiring Women to Lead Education’ book published by Sage (2019) and have also written for education publications such as TES, Schools Week, International Schools Magazine and Independent Schools Magazine. As a visible school leader, I advocate for the profession and speak around the world on the theme of leadership development and the global school workforce.
These are exciting times in the global village of education and I look forward to connecting, leading and developing learning, realising the potential we have to improve the world and securing bright futures for us all.
Erin Robinson
Erin Robinson
Head of Secondary School, Atlanta International School | Women of Influence in Education, Founding Executive Member
A visionary, courageous, adaptive, and inclusive leader who believes in the power of holistic education to engender the agency, competency, connectedness, creativity, and authentic learning that is necessary for students to positively influence a peaceful and sustainable future.
Pauline O’Brien
Pauline O’Brien
Director of Global Recruitment
Pauline O’Brien, ISS Director of Global Recruitment has 20+ years of experience in professional recruiting, client service, and school board relations in international education. Pauline has led multi-cultural teams in international corporate recruitment, and the non-profit international sector. Her focus has always been on developing talent and creating inclusive (aspiring) leadership programs.
She has designed multi-faceted learning opportunities for international schools, which include competency-based recruiting strategies, skills-based interviewing methods, and STAR application profiles. Pauline has coached and supported thousands of international school leaders in their career goals, has run international workshops and recruitment fairs around the globe. Her work in Women in Leadership is vast and she is a returning educational conference speaker globally.
Pauline’s work also includes service on the International Task Force for Child Protection (ITFCP), resulting in the creation and the delivery of educational sessions on Effective International Recruitment Practices worldwide. Most recently Pauline has been appointed Chair of the Recruitment Committee of ITFCP and has been appointed to the ECIS Women in Leadership Special Interest Group.
Nieves Segovia Bonet
Nieves Segovia Bonet
President, SEK Education group
An expert in learning innovation, Nieves Segovia is President of SEK Education Group, comprising of University Camilo José Cela and SEK International Schools..
Nieves Segovia sits on the Education Advisory Board of the Spanish Ministry of Education, chairs the Felipe Segovia Foundation, is a member of the Board of Trustees of Fundación Europea Sociedad y Educación, and Fundación Transforma España. She is Vice-Chair of the Talloires Network of Engaged Universities Steering Committee. She is also Vice-Chair of the Global Sports Innovation Center, the Club Excelencia en Gestión, and the Edutech Cluster Spain.
She founded the Global Education Forum, and SEK Lab, the first EdTech start-up accelerator in Spain. In 2017 she launched the UCJC Integra Programme, which has been joined by Sphera and EachTeach.
Recognized among the most influential women in education, she has received the UNICEF Prize for Education in Values, is a regular speaker at education forums, and writes frequently for the media.
Proserpina Dhlamini-Fisher
Founding Director and owner of Educational Aspirations, an educational consultancy that has focused on the principles of UBUNTU, working with schools in the capacity of an education advisor, board member, professional development provider, consultant, coach and mentor of school leaders and young educators. Proserpina is passionate about education in Africa, international education and learning and teaching. She is also a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Justice and Belonging as well as women empowerment Warrior, believing that as educators, we should aspire to have a positive impact on our learning communities, and ensure that all our stakeholders feel that they are fairly and positively represented at the decision making table.
She has worked in state, national and international schools and in global educational organisations in Africa, Europe, Middle East and North America. Her work has enabled her to interact and collaborate with students, parents, teachers, non- teaching staff and school leaders, tertiary institutions and governments. She is a conference presenter and speaker and is a contributor to the OECD 2030 Education Paper. She has written educational articles for The International Educator and International School magazine on racism, sexism, international education and other topics.
Proserpina has been a teacher, head of department, coordinator, vice principal and principal and this journey has empowered her to support others coming after her as she stands on the shoulders of giants that have influenced who she is as an educational leader.
She is presently employed by the International Baccalaureate as a Senior IB World Schools Manager working directly with IB world schools globally, a job she cherishes and one she says teaches her more about humility and inclusion on a daily basis.
Her personal motto is: I aspire to inspire!
EVENTS
THE ECIS MENTORING PLATFORM
Encouraging women to champion each other
Women can be powerful allies for other women, and women can champion each other at work, simple things we can do every day to celebrate and advocate for our female co-workers. Together we can level the playing field and go further faster. Whether you are interested in becoming a mentor or mentee, be part of the ECIS Mentoring platform. With it you can help to:
- Make sure women’s ideas are heard
- Look for opportunities to celebrate women’s accomplishments
- Encourage Women to Go for It. Women are prone to more intense self-doubt than men, and it is not because we’re missing a special confidence gene
- Mentor and Sponsor Other Women. Mentorship and sponsorship are key drivers of success, but unfortunately women often miss out. Men tend to gravitate toward mentoring other men because they have shared interests
Together we can encourage the next generation. Girls often look to the women in their lives for cues about how to think and act. When we speak confidently, take risks, and own our accomplishments, we set positive examples for girls to follow. There are countless opportunities every day to help girls gain the confidence and skills they need to lean in and take the lead.
WEBINAR LIBRARY
ARTICLES
Interested in contributing? Please visit www.ecis.org/insightful to learn more and to see the full library of articles.
ADVICE TO MY YOUNGER SELF
The ECIS “Women in Education” SIG in collaboration with the International School of Luxembourg’s Learning Loft (#ISLLoft) hosted a workshop entitled “Advice to my Younger Self”. School leaders were asked to share the advice they would give to their younger selves. Inspired by this event, members of the panel offered to write letters for others to read and learn from their experiences.
Advice to My Younger Self: A Letter to Nancy
CONNECT, CONTRIBUTE, COLLABORATE
WiE COMMUNITY
YOUR SUGGESTIONS
How can the “Women in Education” Special Interest Group serve you best for the 2023 – 2024 school year? Please complete the following survey so your feedback can be used for our future planning.