Publishing Head appointed chair of publishing committee
The University of Central Lancashire’s (UCLan) Debbie Williams has been named the chairperson of a national publishing committee.
Debbie, Head of Publishing at UCLan, has been appointed as Chair of the Association for Publishing Education (APE). She is the first representative of a northern university to fulfil this role.
The APE supports and represents higher education institutions which offer publishing courses. UCLan became a member of the APE when its MA Publishing course was established six years ago.
Over 30 educational institutions and professional publishing bodies make up the association, including the University of Bristol, the University of Plymouth, Oxford Brookes University and the University of Stirling, as well as the Publishers Association and The Bookseller.
"I am a passionate believer in the value of educating students in publishing skills and knowledge so that they are ready to confidently enter the industry and play a leading role in taking the sector forward."
As part of her new role, MA Publishing course leader Debbie will chair all meetings, work to form partnerships with bodies such as the Publishers Association, raise the profile of the association and emphasise the importance of publishing education.
Debbie said: “I am honoured and delighted to be elected Chair of the Association of Publishing Education. I am a passionate believer in the value of educating students in publishing skills and knowledge so that they are ready to confidently enter the industry and play a leading role in taking the sector forward.”
UCLan’s MA in Publishing is the only specialist postgraduate publishing programme in the north of England, and was the first of its kind to be awarded the Skillset approval and tick mark.