Our People
Alis is Professor of Philosophy of Education and Research Policy at the University of Oxford, where she has also been Director of Research in the Department of Education. Her interests are in research on research and philosophy of research. Her research has focused on research policy and governance, research assessment and evaluation, incentives and criteria for worthwhile research (including openness, quality, impacts), methodological theory and research capacity building; higher education policy and reform, including the reform of teacher education in international contexts; and empirical, theoretical and philosophical exploration of different modes of research.
Elisa Brewis is a Research Associate at CGHE and is currently working on Project 8 ‘Local and global public good of higher education: A 10 nation study’.
Lorraine Dearden is Professor of Economics at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society and was a CGHE Co-Investigator on the former Project 2.2, ‘HE choices and post-HE destinations to age 25: parental background and effects of higher education funding reform in the UK’.
Barbara is Professor at the Leibniz Center for Science and Society, University of Hannover, Germany.
Xin Xu (许心) is a Departmental Lecturer in Higher/Tertiary Education at the University of Oxford. Her research concentrates on higher/tertiary education and research.
Gemma Derrick is Associate Professor (Research Policy & Culture) at The University of Bristol and a CGHE Co-Investigator on CGHE Project 3, ‘Research on Research: the research function and mission of higher education’.
Vivienne Stern took up the role of UUK Chief Executive in September 2022. Vivienne was previously the Director of Universities UK International (UUKi), which represents UK universities around the world and works to enable them to flourish internationally. Vivienne has over 20 years’ experience of working in higher education policy and politics at national and international level.
Professor Joanna Newman joined SOAS as Deputy Director and Provost in September 2023. In her role she provides academic and strategic leadership to support the School’s overall strategy and lead on its Education Strategy 2021-26 that sits at the heart of the Strategic Plan 2021.
Nick Hillman is currently a governor of the University of Manchester and the University of Buckingham as well as a Trustee of the National Foundation for Educational Research.
He has been the Director of HEPI since 2014. He worked for the Rt Hon David Willetts MP (now Lord Willetts), the Minister for Universities and Science, from 2007 until the end of 2013, as Chief of Staff and then Special Adviser in the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills. Previously, he was a History teacher and worked at the Association of British Insurers. At the 2010 general election, he was the runner-up in Cambridge.
