Mariam Ghorbannejad FHEA

I am an experienced multilingual professional passionate about increasing access to education. I have a values-based commitment to inclusive education and seek to develop opportunities for all students to succeed irrespective of their background. My role involves working with many stakeholders across King’s on inclusive education to ensure inclusion is embedded in our curricula, pedagogies and assessment. I manage the Race Equity and Inclusive Education Fund (REIEF) projects which seek to address racial inequalities and form part of our institutional commitments to the Race Equality Charter Mark. I co-design and co-deliver Inclusive Practice for Educators workshops for staff within faculties and across King’s. I also act as faculty liaison for the Florence Nightingale School of Nursing, Midwifery and Palliative Care.

Prior to my current role, I was a Learning Developer at King’s Academy. I empowered undergraduate and taught postgraduate students to develop independent learning skills and academic literacies to help them succeed in their studies by providing high quality student-centred resources and activities. I oversaw the one-to-one academic skills service and managed and developed a team of King’s PhD Academic Skills Tutors. I worked with a variety of stakeholders to embed academic literacies in the curriculum and contribute to the development of educators.

I am passionate about ensuring all students feel valued, welcomed, challenged and supported in their academic work to allow them to reach their potential. My research interests include creative and inclusive pedagogies, teacher training, mentoring and assessment and feedback.

Previous Experience

Prior to joining King’s Academy, I worked as an editor at the Middle East Centre of LSE where I managed international research collaboration projects and supported early career academics with the publication of their policy papers. In the LSE Values in Practice Awards 2021-22, I was nominated in the EDI Champion category for my work as a Fair Recruitment Adviser to challenge unconscious bias in hiring decisions at grade 7 and above and as an Equity Assessor to identify the impact of new policies on various groups and ensuring all students feel a sense of belonging at LSE.

I previously worked as an English for Academic Purposes (EAP) Tutor at St Mary’s University, Twickenham where I pursued fellowship of Advance HE via the CPD route. I was awarded fellowship in March 2022. Prior to this, I worked as an EAP Tutor at King’s Foundations for three years and taught on the University of Oxford online pre-sessional for two summers. In 2019, I was nominated for a King’s Education Award for Inclusive Education.

I hold a BSc (Joint Honours) in Mathematics with Management from Imperial College London and a Master’s in Economics from University College London. Prior to King’s Foundations, I worked as a mentor, teacher trainer and teacher at the British Council in Cairo and as an editor and writer. I have also worked for various international organisations and think tanks.

I spent many years living in the Middle East; long stints in Cairo, a few months in Tehran and Beirut and a year in Damascus until the outbreak of the civil war. I have been involved in various educational projects supporting Syrian refugees. At King’s, I worked with a team of tutors to design English language MOOCs aimed at displaced Syrian refugees living in Jordan and Lebanon and led a group of students on a pilot trip to Greece to teach mainly Syrian refugees as part of the Sanctuary Programme. At the British Council, I designed the face-to-face component of an English course supporting Syrian refugees in higher education in Egypt.

I am a Fellow of Advance HE and currently undertaking a Professional Doctorate in Education (EdD) with a focus on Inclusive Education.