Southern Regional College (SRC) lecturers Kenneth Milligan and Sharon Fitzpatrick have finished in the top three, for the prestigious ‘IT Further Education Educator of the Year Awards’. These awards were held by the British Computer Society Northern Ireland (BSC NI) on Wednesday 9th October as part of the Annual General Meeting in Belfast.
The awards aimed to recognise and celebrate those educators who consistently innovate, challenge and embrace technology to inspire and support young people to drive computing and digital education within schools and Colleges. Finalists were considered by a jury of Education and IT professionals, including previous recipients of the award.
Kenneth, in his role as computing specialist lecturer, has been at the forefront of the development and delivery of the computing curriculum within the College. His extensive knowledge has positioned the College at the forefront of the computing curriculum with other Colleges following his trailblazing efforts and now delivering qualifications he has developed.
Sharon was commended for her dedication to maintaining high teaching standards. Sharon has been pivotal in the delivery of computing programmes to further education students, incorporating new technologies into lessons and sharing learning outcomes with fellow College staff.
Sharon is currently engaged in a number of full time and part time computing courses within the College and has been praised for her ongoing commitment and always going the extra mile for her students. Sharon offers additional classes, catch-up sessions, and one-on-one support to ensure her students have the best chance of success.
Although Kenneth and Sharon narrowly missed the top spot, Andrew Foreman, Chairman of BCS NI referenced that the committee and awards review panel were ‘significantly impressed with both educators’ adding that ‘SRC were the only College to have two award winners’ and this being the first time two lecturers from the same college were top 3 finalists.
Stephen Rogan, Head of Faculty for Computing, Design and Academic Studies at Southern Regional College commented:
“It was amazing to have both Kenneth and Sharon as top 3 finalists and their nominations reflect the significant work that each undertake every academic year to develop, mould and support the students that they teach. This was a very well-deserved achievement for both lecturers. Their dedication to excellence is shaping the future of IT education in Northern Ireland and we couldn't be prouder of their achievements”