New Board members announced

The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is welcoming five new members to its Board. The appointees will replace Board members whose terms of office have recently come to an end.

The five new members are:

• Professor Elizabeth Gammie
• Steven Grier
• Professor Sue Rigby
• Joanna Campbell
• Danny Gallagher

Professor Elizabeth Gammie is an Emeritus Professor at Robert Gordon University and a Chartered Accountant with the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland (ICAS). A strategic and forward thinker, with extensive experience in change management, she combines educational experience with financial and business acumen.

Steven Grier is a former Director at Microsoft where he has held several leadership positions over last 24 years, including Country Manager of Microsoft in Scotland. Mr Grier has 36 years of experience in technology leadership across a broad spectrum of business and industry in Scotland and wider UK. A life-long supporter of work-based learning and skills, Grier also chaired the Scottish Apprenticeship Advisory Board Equalities Group and is a SAAB Main Board member.

Professor Sue Rigby is Vice Chancellor and Principal of Edinburgh Napier University, taking this role in January 2025 after seven years leading Bath Spa University. In both roles, Professor Rigby has worked to strengthen links between FE and HE, for example by setting up a University Centre in partnership with New City College. She was a member of the Board of Quality Assurance Agency for five years until 2024 and is a member of the advisory board of the Arts and Humanities Research Council.

Joanna Campbell is Principal and Chief Executive of Glasgow Kelvin College, bringing extensive leadership experience from across the college sector. She began her career as a lecturer and has since held a broad range of executive and non-executive roles in both education and industry. With a strong record of delivering transformational change, widening access, and driving innovation, she is committed to the role of colleges as engines of growth and social mobility through skills development.

Danny Gallagher has over eight years’ experience of strategic leadership and governance in Higher Education in his current role as a Governor on the Court of Glasgow Caledonian University. His most recent role was as Chief Executive of SEEMiS Group LLP, providing core national education services to all Local Authority schools in Scotland. He was previously a Chief Officer at City of Edinburgh Council and also held senior leadership roles during a lengthy career in the communications sector with Virgin Media, ntl and BT.

Commenting on the new appointments, chair of the SFC Board, Professor Cara Aitchison, said:

“I’m delighted to welcome new members to our Board; this group of people brings exceptional senior leadership experience across colleges, universities, business, industry and apprenticeship providers.

 

“In the coming period we will be working hard to seize the opportunities that present themselves as we work with the Scottish Government and our partners towards the reform of tertiary education, skills and research in Scotland.

 

“We face significant challenges as we continue to support Scotland’s universities and colleges navigate changes in the funding and policy environments in which they operate while continuing to deliver maximum impact.

 

“The new members announced today will add strength and diversity of experience to our board and I very much look forward to them joining us. I would also like to say thank you to the three members who are leaving the board, David Alexander, Lorna Jack, and Professor Lesley Yellowlees, each of whom has made a significant and sustained contribution to its work.”