Otago Appoints New Professor of Education

23 March 2005

Otago Appoints New Professor of Education

Professor Helen May has been appointed as the University of Otago’s new Professor of Education.

Professor May is currently Professor of Early Childhood Education at Victoria University, the first person to hold such a position in New Zealand.

Announcing her appointment today, University of Otago Vice-Chancellor David Skegg, said Professor May’s experience in both universities and colleges of education will be particularly valuable.

“As the University and the Dunedin College of Education enter discussions about the future of teacher education in Dunedin, Professor May will bring vital experience to that work.

“She was involved in the negotiations that led to the merger of the Wellington College of Education with Victoria University and similarly at the Hamilton Teachers College when it merged with the University of Waikato in 1990,” Professor Skegg said.

Professor May has a national and international reputation as an outstanding researcher, speaker and advocate, particularly in the field of early education, national curriculum development and education policy.

Her background in teaching includes nine years as a primary teacher and eight years as an early childhood teacher-supervisor, before she moved to teacher education in the tertiary system.

Professor May takes up her appointment in June. In July she will deliver a keynote address to the sixth Child and Family Policy Conference, hosted by the University’s Children’s Issues Centre. The lecture on 7 July is open to the public and will address the question of children’s rights in relation to the early childhood sector.

ENDS

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