Chair welcomes Board reappointments

The Chair of the Scottish Funding Council, Mike Cantlay, has welcomed the reappointment of six members of the SFC Board. The reappointments were announced earlier today by Higher and Further Education Minister, Graeme Dey.

The six will begin their new terms of office on 4 November 2023 and serve until 3 November 2026.

Lorna Jack is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland. She is the Chair of Highlands & Islands Airports Limited, a Scottish Government owned company and Chair of the board of private sector accountancy group Opulus Financial. Lorna is also the Honorary Consul for the Kingdom of the Netherlands in Scotland.

Professor Ewart Keep holds the emeritus Chair in Education, Training and Skills at the Department of Education, Oxford University. Ewart has advised the UK government departments, parliamentary committees at Holyrood and Westminster, the OCED and the governments of Australia and New Zealand.

Irene McAra-McWilliam worked as Director of Design Research for Philips Electronics and is currently Deputy Director of Research & Innovation at The Glasgow School of Art. Irene was awarded an OBE in 2016 in recognition of her work in Higher Education, Innovation and Design.

Peter Mathieson was the Dean of the Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry at the University of Bristol between 2008 and 2014 when he became the President and Vice-chancellor of the University of Hong Kong. Peter was knighted for services to higher education in 2023. He has been the Principal of the University of Edinburgh since 2018.

Andy Kerr has chaired several high-level boards including within the NHS. He was formerly the chair of the Board of Quality Scotland and South Lanarkshire College. Andy has extensive knowledge of business and commerce both as policy maker and as a practitioner and has worked in the public, private and third sectors.

Professor John Wallace CBE has had a distinguished career as a musician, playing the trumpet in the London Symphony Orchestra, Philharmonia, and London Sinfonietta. From 2002-14 John was the Principal of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. He has a CBE for services to Dance, Drama and Music and in 2021 was awarded the Queen’s medal for music.

Mr Cantlay said:

“Members of the SFC Board consistently demonstrate their determination to do their absolute best for tertiary education and research in Scotland. Their expert contribution is especially valuable in the face of the challenges and opportunities currently faced by the sector.“

“I am delighted that the Board will retain the services of these six experienced and highly regarded colleagues for a further three years.”