St Mary’s Doctoral Student Awarded Bursary

A Professional Doctorate in Education (EdD) student at St Mary’s University, Twickenham has been awarded a £2000 bursary to support her doctoral study.

Zoe Griffiths, who is in her third year of her doctorate, has been given the funding by the British Educational Leadership, Management & Administration Society (BELMAS) for her study What mental models are useful for effective school leadership?

The research bursary will be spread evenly across the final two years of Zoe’s degree after being selected as the ‘outstanding candidate among several high quality applicants’, according to BELMAS Business Manager Richard Davis.

Zoe, who is in the first cohort of EdD, also studied the Leading Innovation and Change MA at St Mary’s and is part of the University’s new Doctoral College, which was opened by Sir Vince Cable last month.

Head of School of Education, Theology and Leadership at St Mary’s Dr Maureen Glackin, said, “Zoe was an exceptional headteacher so this is a testament to a life in educational service. We are very proud that her professional wisdom is forging new academic insights and we look forward to her sharing these more broadly at university seminars and national colloquia.”

Zoe said of getting the bursary, "I'm absolutely over the moon at the news of the award. To have the recognition and support of BELMAS towards my doctoral studies is such a validation of my research focus, and I am very much looking forward to sharing the final thesis with the wider audience that sponsorship from such a prestigious academic and professional body provides."