New Dean of the Faculty of Education

On May 1, 2024, the Faculty of Education at the University of the Faroe Islands will welcome a new dean

Kalpana Vijayavarathan, who is currently associate professor at the Faculty, will take the lead in managing and developing the department along with the department leadership and staff.

Kalpana has extensive experience as a staff member at the Faculty, having started as assistant professor in 2013 and associate professor in 2022. She was enrolled in the PhD program at the University of the Faroe Islands and Aarhus University, and in 2017 she completed her PhD with the thesis "Teacher Cognition and the Teaching of Speaking in English as a Foreign Language in grade 8 schools in The Faroe Islands – Seven Case Studies".

In her research, Kalpana has focused on inclusion and social justice in relation to diversity in education. She is passionate about raising awareness of the importance of obtaining research-based knowledge and paving the way for interaction between policy and practice in the field of education.

Kalpana also has extensive expertise in teaching, and in addition, she has coordinated and taught courses on university pedagogy, aimed at ensuring the quality of teaching at the University of the Faroe Islands.

As Erla Olsen steps down as dean, a role she has diligently fulfilled since 2018, the University of the Faroe Islands would like to thank her for her significant achievements. Erla will return to her previous position as associate professor in biology at the Faculty of Education, where she will continue her research and teaching.

The dean of the Faculty of Education was advertised externally, and four applications were received. A unanimous appointment committee has decided to appoint Kalpana as the dean of the Faculty of Education.