International fellowship conferred on Open Polytechnic CE

Wednesday, 4 December 2013, 4:44 pm
Press Release: Open Polytechnic

4 December 2013

International fellowship conferred on Open Polytechnic Chief Executive

The Commonwealth of Learning conferred an Honorary Fellowship on Dr Caroline Seelig, Chief Executive of the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand, at the Pan-Commonwealth Forum on Open Learning (PCF7) being held in Nigeria this week (2-6 December 2013).

The Commonwealth of Learning, based in Vancouver, Canada, is an intergovernmental organisation created by the Commonwealth Heads of Government to encourage the development and sharing of open learning and distance education knowledge, resources and technologies.

The Honorary Fellowship was conferred on Dr Seelig for her outstanding service to the advancement of open and distance learning in the Commonwealth, her leadership of the Open Polytechnic, and Dr Seelig’s contribution to promoting access to quality skills development through the use of technology.

“I am delighted to receive this Honorary Fellowship from the Commonwealth of Learning”, says Dr Seelig who was on hand to receive the fellowship at PCF7 in Nigeria.

“As Chief Executive of one of the world’s leading providers of distance learning, I and my organisation are focussed on delivering world class, flexible learning experiences that enable students to achieve their educational goals.

“Receiving this Honorary Fellowship is fantastic acknowledgment of the work being carried out by the Open Polytechnic, and I feel privileged to be leading an organisation devoted to helping mainly adult learners gain the skills they need to get ahead in their professional or personal lives.”

Background
Dr Caroline Seelig joined the Open Polytechnic as Chief Executive in 2009. Dr Seelig has more than 20 years’ experience as a senior manager in New Zealand’s institutes of technology and polytechnics sector. She is a board member of New Zealand Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics and also an honorary adviser to the Commonwealth of Learning. A Woolf Fisher Scholar in 2004, Caroline holds a PhD in Biology from University College of Swansea and a Master of Educational Administration from Massey University New Zealand.

The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand is a Government-funded national provider of open and distance learning, enrolling an average of 34,000 part-time students per year. The majority of students are adult learners combining work and study, making the Open Polytechnic one of New Zealand’s major educators of people in the workforce.

ENDS

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