The Board of Berkshire College of Agriculture has appointed Gillian May as its Principal and Chief Executive with effect from 1st September 2013.
Mrs May (45) is currently Principal Designate at the Maidenhead college and was formerly its Vice Principal : Curriculum and Quality. Prior to this appointment Mrs May was Assistant Head at Newlands Girls School in Maidenhead.
The appointment has been made following the announcement last March by the previous Principal Bill Grady OBE that he would be leaving at the end of the academic year.
Mrs May has lived in Maidenhead since she graduated from the University of Southampton where she studied Accountancy & Law. A Chartered Accountant, Mrs May spent the first 14 years of her career in the corporate world handling multi- million pound deals working for Pepsico, Bunzl Plc and Arthur Andersen.
Chair of the College's Board, John Wilder said: "I'm thrilled that we have secured the services of a very experienced educational and business leader to take over the helm at BCA. There was fierce competition for this role and the calibre of the candidates from across the UK is testament to the growing reputation of the College.
"BCA grew by 15% in 2012/13 and expects to grow by a further 10% this academic year. The College is in a position to maximise further opportunities and we needed someone with the necessary vision and the drive and energy to work with the Governing Body and staff to deliver results.
"It was a competitive field, but Gillian, as a BCA Vice Principal clearly demonstrated to us that she shares our vision for the College, she has the expertise and determination to deliver a college which has a reputation for high quality teaching and learning and is at the heart of the local education and business communities, and beyond.
"The past two years, whilst working with us at BCA, Gillian has built productive collaborative partnerships with other education providers and sectors and these skills are a vital ingredient for the job of Principal. I'm really looking forward to working with her at this level."
Mrs May said: "I'm delighted to have been appointed as Principal and Chief Executive at BCA. We operate in a vibrant and exciting economy which deserves only the best educational provision. I share the view of Board members in believing that BCA should be a real centre of excellence providing outstanding academic education and skills training. I'm looking forward to continuing to work in close partnership with the other education leaders and forging stronger, effective working links with local authorities and local businesses.
"With so many opportunities developing regionally I want BCA to be a key part of future economic development, particularly in terms of the quality of teaching and learning available to young people, adults and businesses."
Mrs May lives in Maidenhead with her husband and two teenage children and is one of only five females nationally, to head up a land-based college.
