| Description | Interview with Maureen Salmon, Senior Lecturer BA (Hons) Design Management and Cultures.
The interview can be accessed in QuickTime Movie and Waveform Audio formats.
Interview description:
Audio 1 [00:00] Maureen Salmon; Knowledge Exchange Lead within Design School at London College of Communication; beginning career at UAL in 2014 as an associate lecturer; background before joining UAL, running consultancy practice Freshwaters. [02:44] Developments in the college, significant changes are those focused on equality and diversity; addressing student attainment gap, developing a strategy for the curriculum. [04:20] Applying to UAL for an Associate Lecturer position; first impressions of LCC; sister studied and works at London College of Fashion; memories of LCF, interest in fashion. [11:24] Background in fashion design as a child and teenager, family worked in clothes making and learning to cut freehand; early years in Caribbean, moved to UK in early teens; cultural importance of making clothes, value of craft and process of making clothes for relaxation; teaching Leadership and Human Resources on the Executive MBA Fashion, and on the MA Fashion Design Management. [14:44] Teaching responsibilities and academic focus; specialism in collaborative working, leadership and developing practice; lead on development of Creative Entrepreneurship unit in 2017, highly successful with 160 students electing this unit; other courses taught on. [20:34] Working across various departments and colleges, changes driven by the nature of different disciplines and different teaching methodologies; professionalism of students, aided by practice based learning. [25:12] Work as visiting lecturer at the University of the West Indies, within Errol Barrow Centre for Creative Imagination; developing MA Arts Management, established to address the growing demand for creative courses within Caribbean region; motivation and attainment of students at UWI, reasons for this. [28:21] Work as a visiting lecturer at the International School of Management in Senegal; student motivation and aspirations. [31:20] Bringing elements of overseas practice to teaching at UAL, high expectations of students; students from culturally diverse backgrounds not seeing themselves represented in staff and industry; students bringing their cultural backgrounds into their work and barriers to tutors recognising this; expectations of students, reservations about being taught by individuals not from a background they are familiar with; lower numbers of staff from culturally diverse background compared to students, UAL work to address this. [36:55] How to increase diversity in educational leadership; correlation between lack of staff diversity to student diversity; navigate working in the HE sector; involvement in initiatives including the Race Champion Forum and Staff Development Committee; setting up group of alumni from culturally diverse backgrounds to support current students. [43:57] Diversity at UAL, contributed to by reputation and location; student feedback and evaluation. [49:00] Attainment gap; decline in motivation and performance from BAME students and factors contributing to this including teaching and the curriculum; student’s understanding of self; mental health issues amongst students. [55:20] Being an emotional intelligence practitioner; leading an international cultural leadership programme funded by the Arts Council England, placed mid-career people from culturally diverse backgrounds in organisations abroad; interest in emotional intelligence, saw phycologist and educationalist Reuven Bar-On speak at a conference; using emotional intelligence in teaching; applying this practice to making changes with UAL. [01:08:07] Developed Freshwaters consultancy in 2000, an enterprise around skills and employability; worked with public and private bodies, supporting the organisation through change; importance of being a professional practitioner alongside teaching, natural link in how one informs the other. [01:14:55] Nominations for multiple industry awards, including Woman of the Year in 2000 at the Millennium Festival of Women’s Work and European Federation of Black Women Business Owners Professional Award; meeting HRH Queen Elizabeth II; discussions around commonwealth. [01:23:45] Falling in love with LCC, the working environment and people; student presence in the college; making a conscience effort to interact with and cultivate relationships with all staff; senior leadership visibility. [01:29:53] |