HUBS committees, groups and networks

Professor Janey Henderson studied at Aberdeen and Manchester Universities before gaining her PhD from Durham University, a CASE award with Rothamsted Experimental Station. Janey completed post-doctoral projects at Warwick, Oxford, and Oxford Brookes Universities before taking up a career in academic leadership in higher education, holding positions as a head of department at Coventry University followed by an assistant dean position at Teesside University with responsibility for academic quality, learning, and teaching. She is passionate about the student experience and has a wealth of experience in learning and teaching in higher education.

Janey has a longstanding record as an academic leader and a strong record in teaching and support of student learning, having taught at all levels from undergraduate to postgraduate with consistent, excellent feedback from students and peers. She was also awarded a vice chancellor’s University Teaching Excellence Award for innovative teaching and assessment methods providing an enhanced student learning experience and has been recognised as a principal fellow of the HEA. Janey has also supervised 16 doctoral research degree students to successful completion.

Janey has served as a member of several key national committees including those of the Royal Society of Biology. A former member of the Society’s education, training, and policy committee and degree accreditation committee, Janey is currently a member of the Chartered Science Teacher (CSciTeach) committee which assesses and elects university-level educators to the Royal Society of Biology CSciTeach register, and demonstrates her commitment to reward and recognise excellent teaching, a key issue across higher education at the current time.Answer text here

Dr (Georgina) Gina Manning studied BSc Biological Sciences at the University of Leicester after which she remained in Leicester to do her PhD with Professors Tim Mitchell and Peter Andrew where she studied virulence gene regulation in Streptococcus pneumoniae. After her PhD, Gina moved to the Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA, now APHA) in Surrey where she spent nine years as a senior research scientist managing a team of scientists carrying out research into the pathogenesis of Campylobacter jejuni. The research at the VLA, which was funded primarily by DEFRA and the Food Standards Agency (FSA), was focussed on distinguishing pathogenic from non-pathogenic strains of C. jejuni to identify markers of pathogenicity and to investigate control strategies to remove this major human pathogen from the food chain.

Following that Gina moved to Nottingham Trent University (NTU) as a Senior Lecturer in Microbiology. Throughout the twelve and a half years at NTU, Gina taught Microbiology to students at all levels on Biology, Biomedical Science, and Forensic Science courses, whilst remaining research active. Promotion to Principal Lecturer saw Gina take on the role of Post-Graduate Courses Manager as well as Outreach Coordinator for the team. Gina was then appointed Acting Head of Bioscience in August 2014 before moving to take on the role of Head of Department of Biology, Chemistry and Forensic Science at the University of Wolverhampton in September 2017.

Dr Simon Baines is the Head of Biosciences, Agriculture, Nutrition, and Dietetics at the University of Hertfordshire. He is a microbiologist with a degree in Biomedical Sciences (UWE, Bristol) and PhD in Medical Microbiology (University of Leeds). His research is focussed on the study of nosocomial pathogens and antimicrobial resistance, and, in particular, the study of the gut microbiota Clostridioides difficile using complex in vitro models of infection. Simon joined the University of Hertfordshire as a Senior Lecturer in Microbiology in 2012, following employment in the Biopharmaceutical industry (Phico Therapeutics) and also in research role in the NHS and in academia (University of Leeds). Simon has a strong interest in developing students and embedding research into teaching and in the development of non-animal alternative models for biomedical research.

Dr Helen Watson is an education focused academic with an interest in bioscience and skills education research. She works at the University of Plymouth as Associate Head of School for Education, at the Peninsula Medical School. In November 2023 she achieved the status of Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (PFHEA). Helen has a background in biochemistry, but her current research is now focused on education, and specifically how best to integrate transferable skills into higher education curricula. Helen recently chaired a review of the QAA Biosciences Subject Benchmark Statement and has previously chaired the Biochemical Society’s Education, Training and Public Engagement Committee. She is now a Trustee and member of the Curriculum Committee at the RSB. Helen has a strong interest in EDI, particularly in how higher education institutions can make positive, tangible changes to culture regarding EDI. She has recently chaired both departmental and institutional Athena Swan Silver applications at Plymouth, which were both successfully awarded.

Dr Helen Packer is Head of Department of Biological and Medical Sciences at Oxford Brookes University. She is a microbiologist with a BSc in microbiology followed by a PhD in biochemical engineering, both at UCL. Her research was very much focused on application of image processing to microscopy first in fermentation and then on moving to Oxford to join Judith Armitage’s research team on bacterial cell tracking. Following on from a NERC Advanced Fellowship at Oxford ion bacterial environmental sensing, Helen joined Oxford Brookes as a senior lecturer establishing research in biofilms before taking on teaching focussed role as programme lead to enhance student experience, from which she moved to her current role. Helen has a strong interest in the development of students, using innovative techniques including OL learning and assessment and skills development, as well as the recognition of diverse academic career paths.

Dr Phillip Gould is Associate Head of School for Enterprise and Innovation in the School of Health and Life Sciences at Coventry University. Phillip graduated with a First Class Degree in genetics at the University of Birmingham and remained there to complete his PhD in Molecular Microbiology before moving to the University of Warwick. Following an extensive post-doctoral research career predominantly working on negative sense respiratory viruses he joined Coventry University initially as a lecturer in 2016. Here he teaches molecular biology across all year groups. He is particularly proud of developing a new suite of Master’s courses including those with an extensive professional experience placement component. He remains research active and has a passion for embedding this in the student experience. His research outputs have led to the launch of a spin out company that is commercialising a technology platform that improves viral vaccine manufacturing.

Professor Stephen McClean is Head of School of Biomedical Sciences at Ulster University. He graduated from Ulster with a BSc Hons in Science with Business followed by Master of Research and PhD degrees. The focus of his postgraduate and doctoral work was on the development of bioanalytical techniques, in particular mass spectrometry. A main area of focus of his bioscience research has been natural product drug discovery, and in particular venom-derived peptides for the treatment of diabetes. Stephen contributes to the delivery of a number of undergraduate and postgraduate programmes within the Schools of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences at Ulster. He is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and was involved in the 2022 QAA subject benchmark review advisory group for Biomedical Science(s). He is a strong advocate of active learning and has a keen interest in the use of digital technologies to enhance the student experience. Stephen is the recipient of Ulster University distinguished teaching fellowships and Students’ Union learning & teaching awards.

Professor Robert James is a muscle physiologist who obtained his BSc and PhD at the University of Leeds. After four years of postdoctoral research at the University of St Andrews he started as a lecturer at Coventry University. His teaching was focused on biomechanics and muscle physiology. He undertook various leadership roles at Coventry including Dean of the Faculty of Health and Life Sciences, Deputy Dean, and Associate Dean (Research), before joining Bradford as Dean of the Faculty of Life Sciences in July 2022. Robert is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), a Chartered Scientist (CSci), and an elected Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB). His main research focus is to utilise physiological techniques, such as the work loop technique, to better understand the effects of drugs, temperature, obesity, or ageing on muscle performance. Robert is the EDI lead for HUBS and a member of the Royal Society of Biology’s Diversity and Inclusion Network.

Professor Amanda Harvey is Associate PVCE (Quality Assurance) at Brunel University London. She studied at the Universities of Wales College of Cardiff and Sheffield before developing her research expertise in breast cancer cell signalling. Amanda joined Brunel as a lecturer in 2006 and has had a number of roles since then, including Head of Biosciences and Deputy Dean Academic Affairs (College of Health Medicine and Life Sciences). She has led two successful RSB accreditation events and an Advance HE Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence (CATE), and is actively engaged in programme design and development, and quality assurance. Development of both staff and students is important to her, and she is currently the Chair of Brunel’s Recognition Panel for Advance HE fellowship and has led the development of Brunel’s Access and Participation Plan. External to Brunel, Amanda has been an active member of the British Association for Cancer Research and spent eight years as a member of their Executive Committee, six of those as Honorary Treasurer. She is a member of the Biology Educators’ Network, the CATE network and a reviewer of Advance HE (CATE) applications.

Professor James McEvoy gained his MChem and DPhil degrees from the University of Oxford, and carried out postdoctoral research at Yale University. James taught at Regis University, Colorado before moving in 2010 to Royal Holloway University of London. Here he teaches chemistry and biochemistry and has served in various leadership roles, including Associate Dean (Education) in the Faculty of Science. James is currently the Head of the Department of Biological Sciences. His disciplinary research interests include biological redox chemistry and bacterial antibiotic resistance; his pedagogic interests are in problem- and games-based learning, and in the reduction of demographic awarding gaps. In this regard he is a co-founder and member of the Bioscience Awarding Gap (BAG) Network, an advisory group to HUBS. James has won several university teaching awards and is a Senior Fellow of the HEA.

Professor Alison Snape is Head of the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Leicester, where she holds overall strategic responsibility for the development and delivery of undergraduate and postgraduate teaching in the broad area of biosciences. Alison studied genetics as an undergraduate and then undertook her PhD and postdoctoral research in the field of embryonic development, working in the University of London, the US National Institutes of Health, and the UK National Institute for Medical Research. Before moving to the University of Leicester in 2022, she worked for 25 years at King’s College London where she held several education leadership roles within the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine. She is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA) and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB). Alison is one of the co-authors of two textbooks, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and Biological Sciences: Exploring the Science of Life both published by Oxford University Press. She has a particular interest in supporting first year students in their transition to university, using methods that encourage students to think, ask questions, and support each other in their learning. Another interest is in supporting colleagues to develop their teaching practice and career strategies.

Zoha Tauseef AMRSB

Professor Jim Boyne (HUCBMS representative) began his research career at the University of Sheffield working on cell cycle control before completing postdoctoral research posts at Cancer Research UK and the University of Leeds, investigating cancer signalling and oncogenic viruses, respectively. He took up his first academic position at the University of Bradford in 2009, where he established a successful cancer research group as PI and eventually took on the role of Director of Postgraduate Research. In 2018, he moved to the University of Huddersfield as Reader in Cancer Research, where he secured external funding to establish a melanoma research group. In 2021, he joined Leeds Beckett University as Head of Biomedical Science, and was promoted to Professor of Cancer Research in 2022. Work in Professor Boyne's laboratory investigates the role of RNA in human disease, focusing on the utility of cell-free RNAs as liquid biomarkers for cancer progression and healthy ageing. His main research audience are scientists and clinicians interested in understanding how genetics contribute to human disease.

Dr Beth Lawry (ECLBio representative) is a lecturer in the School of Biomedical, Nutritional, and Sport Sciences at Newcastle University, also supporting students to find year-long and summer placements. Beth originally joined the school as a teaching fellow in 2017 and has since led several modules including first year practical skills, microbiology, and immunology, study abroad year, and science communication. Prior to this position Beth was a Research Associate at Newcastle University working on novel biomarkers and vaccine targets for pathogenic bacteria. Beth's PhD was on diagnostic biomarkers for Clostridium difficile and she also completed an MRes in Medical Microbiology at Newcastle University in 2012. Beth’s science career began with a BSc in Applied Biology from Northumbria University, graduating in 2006, before working as a biology technician, and upon returning from working abroad, a microbiology technician. Beth is keen to increase opportunities for students from all backgrounds and performs pedagogical research in working with students as collaborators.

Chair

Dr Beth Lawry MRSB is a lecturer in the School of Biomedical, Nutritional, and Sport Sciences at Newcastle University, also supporting students to find year-long and summer placements. Beth originally joined the school as a teaching fellow in 2017 and has since led several modules including first year practical skills, microbiology, and immunology, study abroad year, and science communication. Prior to this position Beth was a Research Associate at Newcastle University working on novel biomarkers and vaccine targets for pathogenic bacteria. Beth's PhD was on diagnostic biomarkers for Clostridium difficile and she also completed an MRes in Medical Microbiology at Newcastle University in 2012. Beth’s science career began with a BSc in Applied Biology from Northumbria University, graduating in 2006, before working as a biology technician, and upon returning from working abroad, a microbiology technician. Beth is keen to increase opportunities for students from all backgrounds and performs pedagogical research in working with students as collaborators. 

Secretary

Dr Chinedu Agwu completed her PhD in Women’s Health at Manchester University, investigating the acute and chronic effects of statins on vascular function in hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, with a major focus on pre-eclampsia. Following this, she spent some time working as an Associate Medical Writer for a private healthcare communications company where she created oncology related scientific content for pharmaceutical companies such as MSD and Incyte. In 2021, Chinedu returned to academia and worked part-time as a Teaching Fellow in Biosciences and an Admissions Tutor at the University of Hertfordshire and part-time as a Scientist TBL Educator creating curriculum content for the new medical school at Brunel University London. Currently Chinedu works full-time at Brunel Medical School as a Lecturer on a teaching and scholarship contract. In this role she teaches in the Scientific Enquiry and Evidence-based Medicine and Reproduction, Growth and Ageing TBL Teaching Sessions whilst also serving as a house tutor, SSC Project Supervisor, and recently appointed as Academic Lead for Widening Participation. Externally, she has also launched a science enterprise called BioSci Toolkit, a non-profit organisation supporting decision-making for students pursuing Bioscience degrees and careers, especially black and racially minoritised students. 

Deputy Chair

Dr Andrea Paterlini is a teaching-focused Lecturer in Genetics Education at the University of Edinburgh. He obtained a BSc with Honours (Plant Sciences) from the University of Edinburgh before completing a PhD in Plant Sciences at the University of Cambridge. His research has focused on cell-cell and long-distance transport, processes with high relevance for plant growth and development. In the last few years, he has transitioned from core research roles to more education-oriented jobs in academia and in the third sector. He worked for the Gatsby Plant Science Education Programme, promoting plant science education across the UK, and then moved to the University of Sheffield as a University Teacher in Plant Molecular Biology. He started his current position in Edinburgh in 2023 and is heavily involved in teaching genetics via interactive lectures, workshops, and practicals. He continues his research by involving students in the projects. Andrea is a HE Fellow with a keen interest for innovative pedagogical approaches and hopes to support the community of early career lecturers in developing their personal teaching philosophies. 

Dr Matt Bawn studied physics and worked as an engineer in industry before studying a PhD in biochemistry. He undertook postdoctoral positions in New York and Peru, and at the Earlham and Quadram Institutes in Norwich working on pathogen evolution, before joining the University of Leeds in July 2022 as a lecturer in bacterial genomics. Matt applies bioinformatics solutions to research questions concerning the evolution of bacterial pathogens via their interaction with the environment, their hosts, and horizontal-gene transfer and implications for human health. His work addresses the biological evolution of pathogenicity and its impact to epidemiology and method development of tools for the detection of horizontal gene transfer in bacteria. Matt is the programme leader for a new fully online MSc in Precision Medicine and Genomic data science, the module leader for BIOL2114 Big Data, and Omics Biology, and is the incoming assessment lead for the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology. He is also the Faculty representative for the Working Group for Artificial Intelligence in Student Education. His teaching interests are in how to increase student engagement and outcomes through the application of digital tools and authentic assessments.

Dr Kate Randall joined Northumbria University in September 2022 as a Lecturer within the Forensic Science team, as part of the Environmental Forensic research group. Through her research, she extracts genetic information (DNA and RNA) from environmental samples (e.g., soil, plant roots, sediment, freshwater, air), identifying and quantifying communities, to study ecological responses across a range of geographical, environmental, and management scenarios. Predominantly, Kate’s research has focused on studying the effects of climate change, urbanisation, and agricultural management on microbial communities. Understanding changes to microbial taxonomic and functional diversity can be extremely informative when paired with additional abiotic and biotic measurements, to better predict how perturbations will impact wider nutrient cycling and food webs. An additional branch of her research focuses on the use of environmental DNA (eDNA) as a tool for biomonitoring key endangered species such as the freshwater pearl mussel. Kate’s research spans spatial scales, from small and controlled lab settings, to semi-controlled mesocosms and large-scale field sampling, working within interdisciplinary fieldwork teams, travelling to a range of locations, from the remote Arctic to South Africa and places closer to home (e.g. UK and Ireland).

Dr Alisha Aman is currently the Program Director for MSc in Clinical Trials at the College of Medical, Veterinary, and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, in collaboration with the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. She works closely with the NHS and aims to provide workplace skills-focused education, integrating the triple helix of academia, industry, and the NHS. She is currently also developing an MSc in MedTech Innovation in collaboration with the West of Scotland Innovation Hub and the College of Science & Engineering (University of Glasgow). She also is part of the Health Research Authority (HRA)’s Research Ethics Committees, and Community Committee. Alisha had trained as a geneticist first in India followed by her Master’s and PhD in the UK under the British Heart Foundation studentship. Her expertise lies in using large scale genetic data to inform health outcome and drug effects. As a lecturer, and member of ECLBio, she hopes to bring forth her perspective as a neurodivergent immigrant woman in UK HE to narrow the gaps in equitable academic success in these marginalised groups.

Dr Shraddha Gang is Assistant Professor (teaching focused) in Biosciences at Coventry University. She was awarded PhD in Microbiology in 2018. Her research has focused on microbial strategies to enhance plant growth and development, with significant contributions to the understanding of plant-microbe-soil tripartite association and biofilms in nature. In recent years, Shraddha has transitioned from core research roles to more education-oriented positions in academia. She has served as a Lecturer of Academic and Professional Practices at Coventry University and a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at Imperial College London. She contributes to teaching at post graduate level within School of Sciences at Coventry University with a strong emphasis on interactive and inclusive teaching methods. She is acting Course Director of BSc Biotechnology and involved in course development of new courses. Shraddha is actively involved in mentoring and supervising research projects, providing academic guidance, and developing innovative games for staff development. She continues her research by involving students in projects related to Biotechnology and antimicrobial resistance. As an advocate for innovative pedagogical approaches, Shraddha is committed to supporting the development of early career lecturers and enhancing the overall student learning experience.

Amara Anyogu is a widening access educator with expertise in building communities and spaces that support inclusive and impactful learning experiences in Higher education. Drawing on her experiences of accessing HE as a mature learner with ‘non-traditional’ qualifications, Amara has developed particular expertise in designing and delivering successful foundation year programmes that equip learners from diverse backgrounds with the tools and confidence required to successfully transition into HE and achieve their academic and professional goals. Amara is currently a Senior Lecturer at the University of West London and a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. Amara’s research interests centre on the interactions of microorganisms in food as producers, spoilers, and agents of disease. Amara is particularly interested in the role of foodborne microorganisms in the transmission of antimicrobial resistance and improving the technology used for the production of traditional fermented foods. Amara is also focused on widening participation in scientific research. Amara sits on the AntiRacism working group of the Society for Applied Microbiology and is the Co-Chair of the Nigerian Applied Microbiologists network, a platform for supporting research collaborations and mentoring early career researchers.

Dr Nick Freestone is an Associate Professor for Physiology and Pharmacology and Course Director for the undergraduate Pharmaceutical Science degree courses at Kingston University. He researches both calcium handling in isolated cardiac myocytes and the nature of learning itself at university via pedagogic research. As a pedagogical researcher he has run national workshops on teaching and learning for AdvanceHE and HUBS, and has recently been awarded a National Teaching Fellowship by AdvanceHE. Nick is a Senior Fellow of the HEA, a Fellow of the RSB, and UK Education Theme Lead for the Physiological Society. He is the holder of the UK HEA Bioscience Teacher of the Year Award 2014/15. The undergraduate courses he leads were shortlisted by both the Guardian University Awards in the category of Course Design, Student Outcomes and Retention and The Organisation for Professionals in Regulatory Affairs Regulatory Excellence Awards in the Education category in 2020. For the Physiological Society as Education Theme Lead, Nick has run a series of worldwide webinars on topics as diverse as Teaching in the Time of Covid, Delivering Final Year or Capstone projects, and Diversity in Teaching. As an Expert Panel Member for the British Pharmacological Society (BPS), Nick helped draw up a new national BSc Pharmacology curriculum. Also for the BPS he is a member of their Inclusive Pharmacology Curriculum Group.

Aranee Manoharan is an HE professional with experience across teaching, student success, careers, and Board governance. Currently the Head of Careers & Employability at King’s College London, she is a Senior Fellow of the HEA (SFHEA) specialising in inclusive curriculum design that prepares all students with the knowledge, skills, and significant experiences to effectively progress into fulfilling lives and careers. A keen advocate of equity, inclusion, and social mobility, Aranee has volunteered for over 15 years on issues affecting ethnic minority and refugee communities within health, social care, and human rights. She sits on the AGCAS and ISE EDI advisory boards, is an Athena SWAN panellist, and having contributed to the Race Equality Charter (REC) for a number of years, is now a member of Advance HE’s REC Governance Committee. Alongside her work, Aranee is completing a PhD in International Relations, proposing an interdisciplinary framework to better understand the underlying causes of protracted ethnic conflict in postcolonial societies to develop more effective policy interventions.

Dr James McEvoy is a Senior Lecturer (Teaching Focused) at Royal Holloway, University of London, where he is the Head of the Department of Biological Science and researches various things, including antibiotic resistance in bacterial biofilms. In his pedagogical work he is particularly interested in the way that active and group-learning teaching methods can help to reduce demographic attainment gaps. James has won several institutional teaching awards and is a Senior Fellow of the HEA.

Dr Prachi Stafford joined the department of biosciences and chemistry at Sheffield Hallam University in February 2015 to take up a lectureship in biological sciences. Prior to that, she graduated with a BSc in pharmacology at the University of Sheffield followed by a Masters in Research (MRes) in biomolecular science at the University of York. Prachi gained her PhD at the University of Cambridge (dept. of haematology). After a brief spell at Medimmune as a research scientist working with phage display technology, she returned to academia as a post-doctoral research associate at the school of clinical dentistry, University of Sheffield. This was then followed by a Discipline Hopping Fellowship at the University of Sheffield (chemical and biological engineering department) before her appointment at Sheffield Hallam University. Prachi now teaches on a range of courses at undergraduate level (biology, biomedical sciences, human biology, nursing) as well as at Masters' level where she leads one of the modules. Her research interests focus on the interactions of oral pathogens with host cells and how these can impact on systemic disease such as cardiovascular disease. Prachi is particularly interested in elucidating the molecular basis underlying these interactions and the resulting effects on host cellular functions. She has also been involved in a range of outreach activities.

Dr Maria Canal is a Senior Lecturer in Neuroscience at the University of Manchester and a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). Maria was Programme Director for the BSc Cognitive Neuroscience & Psychology for five years and of the BSc and MSci Neuroscience programmes at Manchester for eight years, in addition to being the Membership Secretary of the British Society for Neuroendocrinology for 11 years. Maria’s bioscience research interests focus on the development of circadian rhythms and specifically, the long-term effects of early life experiences on health and wellbeing. Maria has also a keen interest in pedagogical research, specifically in the areas of teaching innovation and inclusive education. Maria is currently Deputy Director for Inclusive Education at the School of Biological Sciences and Lead of the Inclusive Education stream of the FBMH Success Hub, which aims to address awarding gaps across all disciplines within the Faculty of Biology, Medicine, and Health.

Professor Ian Turner is a Professor of Learning and Teaching at the University of Derby (UK). He is a National Teaching Fellow and Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy; he was named Royal Society of Biology Higher Education Lecture of the Year in 2017. His research interests centre around game-based learning and playful pedagogies.

Dr Dominic Henri is a Senior Lecturer in the University of Hull bioscience subject area. He is a National Teaching Fellow (2021), Principal Fellow of the HEA, and a previous winner of the Royal Society of Biology’s Higher Education Teacher of the Year award (2018). As an ‘education-focused’ academic, his scholarship focuses on enhancing curriculum design in higher education, with a particular focus on building student confidence, maximising graduate employability and educational partnerships with charities and industry; e.g. see the Quality Assurance Agency funded Competence-Based Assessment project, which attempts to collaboratively build a framework of effective university assessment in the 21st Century with universities across the UK. Dom has been a keen advocate for the career development and wellbeing of bioscience academics as a founding member of ECLBio (the HUBS network supporting early-career bioscience lecturers) and is very pleased to be able to continue this work through the BEN steering group.

Dr Zoe Burke is Director of Teaching in the Department of Life Sciences at the University of Bath. She graduated from Cardiff University with a degree in Physiology and Biochemistry (Joint Hons) and a PhD in Molecular Neuroendocrinology. After her PhD, Zoe moved to Saint Jude Children’s research Hospital to investigate the role of Prox1 in liver development. On returning to the UK, her research at the University of Bath has focussed on cellular reprogramming towards the hepatocyte lineage, with a view to using these in drug toxicity screening. Remaining in Bath, she moved to a teaching focused role, obtaining her promotion to senior lecturer in 2022 and her SFHEA in 2023. Zoe teaches at all levels in the area of developmental biology, stem cell biology, medical biosciences, and biotechnology. She has a passion for postgraduate education, inclusive and active learning through Team Based Learning (TBL) and the development of engaging and interactive learning materials. 

Prof David Tree champions pedagogical innovations and promotes novel teaching and assessment methodologies through active learning pedagogies like Team-Based Learning (TBL) and authentic, synoptic assessments strategies, like Integrated Program Assessment (IPA). Beyond his contributions to curriculum design, David is a strong advocate for inclusive education. He has led initiatives to address cultural representation in science, belonging anxiety and awarding gaps, fostering a more equitable learning environment.

Dr Jo Stewart-Cox is a Senior Lecturer and Senior Academic Advisor at University of Bath. Following a BSc Honours degree in Biological Sciences with Molecular Genetics, Jo specialised during her PhD and post-doctoral research in mammalian transgenic technologies to investigate the molecular mechanisms underpinning renal cancers. She is a dedicated and enthusiastic teaching-focused practitioner in the biosciences, with a keen interest in maximising student engagement through diverse modes of learning and authentic assessments. 

Dr Cressida Lyon is a Biomedical Scientist with a BSc in Biochemistry, and PhD in Cardiovascular Sciences. She has been teaching Biosciences at the University of Bath since 2019 and prior to that worked as a Senior Research Associate at the University of Bristol, researching the effects of a cell-cell adhesion molecule (N-cadherin) on vascular smooth muscle cell behaviour – the aim being to develop and validate a therapeutic for cardiovascular disease. Cressida obtained Senior Fellowship (SFHEA) and promotion to Senior Lecturer in 2023-24, with the support and mentorship available through the Biosciences Educator’s Network (BEN). Cressida convenes a skills unit and is particularly interested in how active engagement with feedback can guide a student's skills development using ePortfolios. In addition, Cressida is interested in inclusivity in active learning techniques, including Team Based Learning.