Principal
Claire Foster |
Claire has devoted a 26-year career to working in further and higher education. She is passionate about improving people’s life chances through the transformational power of education, skills and training. Claire has worked in several successful colleges, initially as a teacher in the creative arts and part time arts technician. She has taught on many different programmes and levels including entry level programmes for students with physical and learning needs, full time further education, adult and community as well as higher education up to master’s level. She has written and developed new and innovative courses and qualifications including leading and developing more than a dozen degree courses. She has been a senior leader for 9 years and now honoured to be Principal and CEO of Boston College. She has developed many new and different approaches to educational challenges and embraces the chance to challenge the ‘norm.’ As a proud mother of three grown up children, she is particularly proud that Thomas, her son with Down’s Syndrome, role-models the usefulness of people with educational needs, working as he does in the East Coast family hospitality and retail business that she and her husband run. Although she started her current college role in the midst of the difficulties of 2020, Claire has made it a priority to build strong, purposeful partnerships with communities and businesses in the region to secure exciting collaborative opportunities including the Towns Deal for Boston. Building a positive, innovative, thriving and supportive college culture has been one of the key drives for staff, learns and stakeholders. ‘Always happy but never satisfied’ is one of Claire's many maxims for life and therefore we have a college vision of ‘Brilliant Today, Better Tomorrow’ which encourages positive thinking and continuous improvement. Claire is also committed to ensuring that Boston College is constantly attuned to its environmental responsibilities and continually seeking ways to ensure that the 'green thread’ is woven throughout everything it does and ‘is’ from curriculum design to our buildings and facilities. |