Overview
As Access and Participation Manager at AUB, my role is to support the institution in meeting the targets set out in our Access and Participation Plan. This focuses on developing the mechanisms by which we support students from under-represented backgrounds to access creative subjects in Higher Education.
Tackling inequality of educational opportunity is of great importance to me both personally and professionally. As such, I’ve worked as a researcher and professional in widening access to Higher Education for the last decade. Alongside my work for the university, I write regularly for publications such as WonkHE, the Higher Education Policy Institute and the Society for Research in Higher Education, contributing to the national conversation on how to make university access fairer and more equitable.
During my time conducting doctoral research in inequality and access to university for white working-class boys in the West Midlands, I was afforded the opportunity to be a regular speaker at national conferences, delivering talks and workshops to practitioners across the Higher Education sector.
Qualifications
Qualifications
- PhD Education and Sociology (University of Wolverhampton)
- MA Drama (University of Wolverhampton)
- BA (Hons) Drama (University of Wolverhampton)
Teaching Qualification
- Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching in Higher Education
Research
Research Interests and Projects
Walking the Black Country tightrope: the development of white working-class males’ expectations toward (non) participation in higher education.
A qualitative exploration of how boys at a school based in the West Midlands negotiated their expectations for the future in education and work.
The study addresses the following research questions:
- How are institutional practices deployed at West Midlands High School to develop the expectations of white working-class students for their future in education and work?
- How do white working-class males draw upon the resources to available to them when deciding what is possible for their future in education and work?
- How can the expectations of white working-class males for their future in education and work be shaped by the experiences of their social networks?
The study utilized participant observation with students and semi structured interviews with teachers, students, and members of their social network. The primary focus of the research was to investigate the complex negotiation of white working-class students educational/work-based expectations within a traditionally working-class educational institution. Drawing on quantitative data to contextualize the students framing of future possibilities within the socio-economic history of the locality, the research examines the impact of inter-generational disadvantage in reproducing restricted conceptions of ‘what is possible’ for their future education and work.
Professional Engagement
Writing on Widening Higher Education Participation
- Higher Education Policy Institute – Navigating the aspiration trap: white working-class students and widening access to higher education
- WonkHE – White working-class students have been let down – just not by a debate over “white privilege”
- WonkHE – Education, widening participation and the digital divide
- WonkHE – A strange speech to widening participation practitioners
Memberships
Advance HE Membership
- Fellow (FHEA)
Professional Memberships
- Fellow RSA