multi-disciplinary artist, creative mentor, academic and professional developer

Kath studied painting at Edinburgh College of Art and at the Slade School of Art. She has a research led MA in the History and Theory of Modern Art (1997) from Chelsea School of Art and Design (now part of UAL) London and holds nationally recognised training, development and teaching qualifications for working in the public, private, higher and further education sectors.

She is a Fine Artist and Art Historian and has a broad and varied publishing, exhibition, and public lecture profile. Her teaching specialisms focus on contemporary art practice and theory associated with sexuality, psychoanalysis, sustainability, post modernism and learning and teaching pedagogy.

She has taught extensively around these subjects and on fine art and design practice-based courses in Higher and Further Education.

Her portfolio of skills ranges from working one to one as a creative and academic mentor with artists, students, and academics, to working with larger groups as a skilled facilitator and academic developer with strategic and thought leadership skill sets.

As Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, she has a significantly established national career in academia directing courses, pedagogy, retention, inclusion and learning and teaching since 2003 at a strategic level across arts, health, and science subject areas.

Follow Kath on LInkedIn for more information about her professional profile.

Watch Centre for Practice Based Research in the Arts / Interview with Kath Abiker

Significant Roles, Projects of Note in Higher Education & qualifications

    • Strategic responsibility for cross institutional leadership to evolve the student experience focused to Retention, Inclusion and Success and supporting student transitions across the whole student journey.

    • Collaboration with the Deputy Vice Chancellor, Dean of Learning and Teaching and Senior Leadership Group connected to work associated with developing the Access and Widening Participation Plan and TEF submissions, metrics analysis, designing targeted interventions for at-risk student groups and evaluating success.

    • Sector horizon scanning activity and development of strategies associated with changing needs and profiles of student’s post-pandemic.

    • Close working with Faculty Executive and School Executives to develop and deliver aligned learning, teaching and assessment strategies to support individual and staff CPD and improve metrics associated with student retention and success.

    • Charing and participating in university committees and working groups associated with Transitions, Inclusion and Learning and Teaching

    • Leading on University strategy and approaches across faculty and professional service domains to enhance the delivery of an Inclusive Curriculum and improve non continuation and attainment.

    • Influencing and developing change initiatives associated with learning and teaching practices and culture, student engagement, progression and transitions through policy, practice and procedure development.

    • Leading of the development of our cross institutional approaches to develop and deliver our Student Futures Manifesto (UPP Foundation).

    • Developing communities of practice cross faculty focussed to innovation and excellence in learning, teaching and assessment, designing and delivering targeted and bespoke briefings and workshops for Faculty Executive’s, UK Partners, Course Directors and School Directors of Learning and Teaching focussed to academic development and targeted to university change initiatives, university strategy and metric improvement needs.

    • Leading on the development of institutional strategy and all activity associated with student Peer Mentoring, Course Mentoring, developing partnering approaches with students as course reps, curriculum consultants and extra curricula projects.

    • Developing new initiatives in the curriculum associated embedding Employability, Graduate Attributes and Industry experiences, Health and Wellbeing, and Learning Skills

    • Interim Director of CCCU Academic Framework for MAP: HE (Accredited pathway to achieve Fellowship of Advance HE), supporting Senior Academic Developers to evolve approaches and content focussed to the design and delivery of our PGCAP and other faculty development initiatives associated with Compassionate Pedagogy, Assessment and Feedback, Sustainability, Enhancing Academic Practice and Small Scale Pedagogic Research projects. Active Fellow/Senior Fellow mentor and assessor.

    • Whole scale faculty and cross institutional work to identify training needs and devise CPD and other staff and organisational development approaches associated with Learning, Teaching and Assessment with a recent focus on Building Belonging for Student Retention, Designing and Delivering an Inclusive Curriculum and Decolonising the Curriculum.

    • Leading and managing the Learning and Teaching Enhancement team associated with Transition, Orientation and Induction and our university Students as Partners in Learning: Peer Mentors and Course Mentors scheme for students.

    • Strategic collaboration with Student Learning Development, Student Communications, Health and Wellbeing and Planning and Academic Administration to evolve the university offer and thinking associated with transition, retention, and success.

    • Directing Faculty Learning, Teaching and Assessment Strategy and aspects of Quality provision, Business Planning, Annual Course Monitoring, Boards of Study, curriculum design and development to support Employability, Non-Continuation, E&D (attainment gaps), Widening Participation and embedding Sustainability.

    • Developing Faculty Action Planning to meet Faculty and institutional KPI’s associated with Education, Enhancement, and the Student Experience.

    • Monitoring to improve metrics associated with the APP,TEF, NSS, Graduate Outcomes, National League tables

    • Strategic oversight of Academic Portfolio growth, validation, and re-validation, International and UK Partnerships and curriculum design for transformation.

    • TEF preparation cross Faculty and chairing TEF Working and Writing Groups.

    • Module evaluation and impact case study development.

    • Contributing to dissemination of teaching and curriculum design and development within the University’s academic professional development framework, including the PGCAP, UCAP, MAP:HE Portfolio route to achieve Advance HE Fellowship( HEA Assessor and Verifier).

    • Evolving clusters of learning and teaching practice, learning and teaching communities of support and development days connected to Learning and Teaching CPD, Innovation in Learning and Teaching awards and conference co-ordination.

    • Identification of academic development needs and design, delivery and evaluation of development interventions for faculty and the broader University. Key themes: embedding Sustainability, improving Student Outcomes, prep for TEF at subject level, supporting BAME attainment and international students for success.

    • Supporting Course Directors and Module Leads in planning for learning, teaching and assessment strategies in implementation, delivery and at validation/periodic review.

    • Chairing University and Faculty Committees and working groups relevant to Learning, Teaching and Assessment.

    • Leading on and management of specific innovation in Learning, Teaching and Assessment enhancement projects to target improvement in metrics associated with the NSS, non-continuation and student outcomes.

    • Collaborating with the Dean, Faculty Director of Quality and Faculty Office to shape curriculum offer (Foundation Year, UG and PG) and associated planning and enhance quality mechanisms.

    • Collaborating with Quality and Standards as a chair and a learning and teaching panel member on internal (CCCU) UK and International collaborative partner events for Validation and Major Modification. I have worked internationally to support the acquisition of international partners and lead on the learning and teaching elements of approving creative curriculum partnerships in Hong Kong, Athens and Sri-Lanka

    • Designing and co-ordinating ‘Deep Dive’ cross university activity conducted with Registry, Student Wellbeing Services and Faculty to identify improvements, make recommendations and implement new ways of supporting the student and staff experience associated with Learning Support Plans, Exceptional Circumstances and Temporary Learning Agreements, focussed to build on wellbeing, resilience and belonging.

    • Supporting development of our Vision 2030, Strategy, our new Learning and Teaching Strategy, Academic Framework and operational planning, the University 2015-2022 Learning and Teaching Strategy, to ensure that the University’s strategic priorities and values were reflected and able to be communicated to diverse audiences.

    • Devising cross Faculty strategy and Action Plans associated with identifying training and learning and teaching staff development aligned to APP, TEF, NSS and other league table metric improvement and university KPI’s.

    • Leading on institution wide culture change (Academic and Professional service domains) associated with delivering an Inclusive Curriculum for retention and success.

    • Developing Student Curriculum Consultant Roles, LGBTQ Peer Mentor and BAME Mentor student roles and Course Mentor Roles in curriculum contexts. Shaping the growth of peer mentoring in course contexts and new approaches to target embedding and leading on student and staff development associated with partnering and mentorship.

    • The Roots Project -Strategic Lead in Arts and Humanities as part of Sustainability remit supporting a faculty Partners in Learning project to improve the international student and staff experience of ‘community’, leading to KE and publication.

    • Faculty co-lead for ‘Culturosity’ a whole cross faculty induction activity developed as forum and invisible theatre workshop with students as Partners in Learning to evolve student values and behaviours associated with diversity, building resilience and developing graduate skills, leading to KE and publication.

    • Faculty lead for ‘Sustainability’- evolving strategy associated with embedding Education for Sustainability into the curriculum and in extracurricular activities e.g. evolving the development of an Augmented Reality Sustainability Trail designed by students.

    • Collaborating on the development of the CCCU Curriculum Design for Transformation which brings together existing strategies and learning and teaching resources and teams for reviewing and validating courses.

    • Collaborating on the redesign of the University’s Academic Professional Development Framework (taught & portfolio routes) and supporting the redesign of Advance HE accredited provision.

    • Developing learning and teaching academic mentors and coaches to support the accredited professional development frameworks in cross university contexts and Faculty: Humanities and Media, Art and Design Hubs.

  • Principal Fellow, Advance HE, 2024

    Senior Fellow, Advance HE, 2017

    University Certificate in Academic Practice (UCAP), CCCU, 2015

    Advanced Certificate in Further and Higher Education, CCCU, 2004-2005

    CIPD Certificate in Training Practice, CIPD (London), 2001-2002

    MA History and Theory of Modern Art, London Institute, Chelsea School of Art and Design, 1996-1999

    Postgraduate Higher Diploma Fine Art, UCL, Slade School of Art, 1989-1991

    BA (Hons) Fine Art (1st Class) Painting, Herriot Watt University, Edinburgh College of Art, 1985-1989