Plymouth Marjon University will welcome a new Vice-Chancellor to the city following the retirement of Professor Rob Warner in December.
Professor Claire Taylor will join the University in May 2023, from her current position as Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Professor of Education at Wrexham Glyndwr University in North Wales.
Like Marjon, Glyndwr is a values-based university, rooted in a background of social inclusion and with similarly outstanding student satisfaction ratings.
Professor Taylor studied Music and Education at the University of Cambridge and qualified as a teacher, working with learners of all ages for ten years before becoming a primary school Headteacher. She then moved into higher education, studying for her PhD at the University of Nottingham.
Professor Taylor also held Dean and Pro Vice-Chancellor roles at two other values-based universities: Bishop Grosseteste in Lincoln and St Mary’s University, London. Reflecting the experience of many of Marjon’s students, she was the first in her family to go to university and this continues to inspire her work.
She has advised on a wide range of boards and panels across higher education, including with the Office for Students, Advance HE and the Higher Education Funding Council for Wales. Professor Taylor is committed to addressing areas of social inequality and to seeing individuals and communities flourish. Outside of higher education, she is currently Chair of the Board for Alpha - a social housing provider on the Wirral and is Interim Chair of the advisory board at Ty Pawb, Wrexham's flagship arts, markets and community facility.
Graham Raikes MBE, Chair of the Board of Governors at Marjon, who led the recruitment process and chaired the appointment panel, said: "Professor Claire Taylor is an outstanding appointment to Marjon. Her breadth of experience, clear vision and values mean that Claire is the ideal person to take forward the legacy left by Professor Rob Warner."
Professor Taylor said: “I'm looking forward immensely to joining Plymouth Marjon University as the next Vice-Chancellor. Marjon's purpose, values and ambition resonate deeply with me and provide a solid platform from which to extend the University's influence as a distinctive place of learning, research, and innovation for current and future generations. I look forward to joining the Marjon community and working with students, staff, Governors, and partners as we shape the future together.”
Professor Taylor will join Marjon as Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive, responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the University and driving the long-term vision; developing new academic provisions, expanding into international markets, building research and taking the University to carbon net zero by 2030.