Symposium Organising Committee
The 2021 National ITP Research Symposium is organized by The Open Polytechnic of New Zealand and Whitieria and WelTec. Meet the team of organisers.
Dr Nadia SalResearch Development Leader Dr Neda Sal (Nadia) is one of the 2021 symposium chairs. She works as a Research Development Leader at the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand where she manages the operations of the Research Office. She is research active herself and has established a reputation as a researcher in the areas of media discourse, racism, discrimination, minority representation, and interculturalism and has published in numerous national and international peer-reviewed journals. Since gaining her PhD in Applied Linguistics from Victoria University of Wellington, she has dedicated time to working with and advocating for migrant rights in New Zealand. She has presented numerous talks and speeches in various events including Kate Sheppard Place Women 2018, Migrating Kitchen Trust, Department of Internal Affairs, Khadija Leadership Network among others.
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Dr Fiona BealsPrincipal Lead • Teaching Inno & Research Dr Fiona Beals received her PhD from Victoria University of Wellington in 2007 and has since published in the fields of sociology of youth, sociology of education and qualitative research methodologies. Dr Beals' research stems from a grassroots desire to see a change in Aotearoa NZ so that all children and young people have the same opportunities in life.Dr Beals has an established reputation in youth sector here in Aotearoa NZ and abroad. She leads the Bachelor of Youth Development here at WelTec and sits on the governing board of Ara Taiohi, the youth sector's peak body. Dr Beals is a proud West Coaster who can be often seen eating a whitebait fritter while she is engaging in research practice.
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Dr Ahmed Al-Sa'diSenior Research Advisor Ahmed is a Senior Research Advisor at Whitireia and Weltec. I worked as a lecturer at Auckland University of Technology and NorthTec in New Zealand. Also, I worked in Saudi Arabia, Malaysia and my home country Jordan. My main research and professional interests are in Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Education and Design Thinking, where I explore people's ideas and how we could have a better digital design to have a better life. My focus is on enabling users to overcome obstacles to effective decision-making and participation through the design of technologies.
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Dr Lee SmithSenior Research Advisor Dr Lee Smith (PhD, M.A.(dist), P.G.Dip(Arts,dist), B.Tchg (Primary), BA(English)) has been employed as a Senior Research Advisor at Whitieria and WelTec for a year and a half. Her role is centred on boosting the research culture at Whitireia and WelTec and helping staff to design, conduct and write up their research. Lee’s role at the Symposium has been to co-coordinate the more ‘academic components’ of the symposium such as disseminating abstracts to reviewers and organising speakers. Lee will be in attendance on the day so please approach her if you have any concerns or queries.
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Alex RowOperations Officer – Teaching Innovation And Research My name is Alex and I am excited to be a part of this year’s planning for the ITP Research Symposium. I have been working at Whitireia and WelTec for 1 year and it has been an amazing opportunity to learn new skills in event management and project management.
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Madeline HarrisLearning Delivery Administrator My name is Maddy and I am part of the team planning the ITP Symposium for 2021. With my years of experience in Event Management it has been a pleasure to insert my skills and knowledge into the planning. I am new to the Open Polytechnic of New Zealand this year - it has been a joy to assist the Research Office as an administrator and work in a support role for our Academic Staff members. I am also active in the community investing time into our younger generation. I'm looking forward to the Symposium in November, it'll be a great opportunity to see all the ITPs together.
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