Former Media Design School founder/ceo Frances Valintine, who ran the business (including the MDS AdSchool) for 14 years to 2013, has been named as one of the world’s top 50 innovators by Makers & Shakers of Education Technology Index in London.
She’s the only New Zealander on the list, and sits alongside leaders including Salmon Khan of the Khan Academy, Satya Nitta from IBM Watson, David Braben from The Raspberry Pi and Demis Hassabis from DeepMind.
An active leader in education for more than 20 years, Valintine is the founder and chair of The Mind Lab by Unitec, a learning laboratory committed to technology, science and discovery. She also recently launched Tech Futures Lab, running courses for senior executives in New Zealand business and government.
“To be recognised on the list of 50 outstanding global educators was beyond all expectation – not to mention being the only New Zealander,” she said. “New Zealand often falls off the radar in international awards or education studies so the very fact that we were included in the geographic sweep of the world is a great step”
The Index is the first comprehensive global listing of thought leaders in the edtech sector and was curated by EdTechXGlobal and the World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE). The Makers & Shakers were selected by 15 members of the global advisory committee comprised of industry leaders from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Google for Education, IDEO, IBIS Capital, Kaizen Private Equity, Learn Capital, LinkedIn, Times Higher Education and TES Global.
“Being at the forefront of education change requires a massive team effort and to receive this accolade from an international jury serves as a great motivator for our entire team of dedicated and passionate educators,” she said.
The recognition comes as Tech Futures Lab launches in Newmarket, Auckland.
“At Tech Futures Lab we run engaging courses connecting business executives, innovators and entrepreneurs with growing technologies. We are helping business leaders develop new ways to prepare for the future, and it is an honour and privilege to be recognised for that,” she says.
“We are excited to open the doors of this hi-tech facility. We will be offering executives the opportunity to re-engineer their careers through our full-time 10-week boot camps.”
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