The Team
YOU ARE PART OF IT!
John Regan - Chief Executive
John has been Headmaster of prestigious schools in Portugal, Egypt and the UK. With over thirty years of recruitment experience, he joined Teacherhorizons with a shared vision of the need to improve recruitment across the international school sector. John entered the teaching profession having graduated at Leeds University in 1971. He later gained his MEd from the same university. John’s career has encompassed the state and independent sectors in the UK as well as in the international educational system. As Headmaster of three independent schools, one of his major priorities in leadership has been the recruiting and nurturing of outstanding teachers. He now brings this wealth of knowledge and experience to Teacherhorizons in order to help schools to recruit excellent teachers, and teachers to gain access to suitable international schools. John has always enjoyed sport, having represented his country in three sports, as well as running two marathons. His other main interests are reading and travel.
Alex Reynolds - Co-Founder, Director of Marketing and Communications
Alex has taught and worked on education programmes in Japan, Nepal, Ethiopia, Uganda, Portugal and the United States. After graduating from University of Newcastle he participated in the inaugural cohort of TeachFirst and taught Geography for two years at the West London Academy. He then moved to Portugal where he was Director of Studies at the Oporto British School. In 2007 he returned to London as Education Advisor at CABE. There he designed and developed ‘Green Day', an education initiative about climate change which today involves 250,000 pupils across the UK annually. Prior to setting up Teacherhorizons, Alex was Director of the Youth and Philanthropy Initiative - an internatinoal education programme that inspires young people to engage with charities in their local communities.
Alexis Toye - Co-Founder, Director of Operations and Finance
Alexis was born in Turkey and went to an international School himself - St. Andrew's School in Argentina. Alexis strongly believes in the diverse benefits such an education can bring. Being interested in both travel and education, choosing a career in international Schools was an easy one. He has worked on education projects: in Nepal as a TEFL teacher, ICT Teacher in Nigeria, IB Coordinator in Portugal and Mathematics Teacher at Capital City Academy in the UK. Alexis graduated at the University of Birmingham, having studied International Studies with Economics and was part of the fast-track teaching program, Teach First. Alexis is now working full time on Teacherhorizons, living part of the year in London and part of the year in Spain. Alexis regularly plays football and tennis, loves the outdoors and also thinks he is a half decent chef!
Paul Grisewood, Senior Recruitment Adviser
Prior to his appointment at Teacherhorizons, Paul has worked as a Head in Australia, Japan and the Cayman Islands. He is a current serving Head with 22 years experience in education and administration.
He brings a wealth of experience to Teacherhorizons regarding recruitment and staffing of schools. He knows what teachers look for in schools and he understands the standards and commitment schools require of their staff to achieve their mission. Australian by birth and British by citizenship, he enjoys the challenge of leading and staffing schools internationally. Gaining his degrees in Australia and further education in the UK ,he has a strong interest in curriculum, governance, school improvement and change, human resources and pursuing best practice in schools.He is a member of many international professional organisations, trained in various accreditation methods and experienced in many curricula. His aim is to improve schools. He believes this is only possible with high quality staff in place and supported by effective school practices. Personally he loves to travel, read, take photographs and fish when he gets the chance, chasing the elusive one that got away....
Eldon Pascoe, Senior Recruitment Adviser
Eldon is the former head of a leading international school, a recognised authority in Gifted and Talented education and a respected professional learning provider.
He has a Bachelors degree in Education and a Master in Education (Gifted Education) both from Flinders University in Australia. He has worked around the world including in Russia, Romania, the UK, Peru, Ecuador and Australia. Eldon is a member of the World Council for Gifted and Talented Children, a former member of the Heads Standing Association of the IBO and the Latin American Heads Conference.
Prior to moving into the field of education Eldon had a very successful financial sector career working with some of Australia's leading financial organisations, in a variety of locations around the country.Eldon enjoys the arts, travel and the outdoors. He has acted in or directed numerous drama productions in a range of countries. Eldon is an active participant in walking tours of the places he lives and visits.
Otto Villarin, Director of IT and Web Development
Otto was born and raised in Cuba until he won a scholarship to study overseas. He moved to the UK a decade ago where he has developed websites for a range of large corporations and start-ups.
Otto is a highly skilled IT professional with over 12 years' experience with clients ranging from HSBC to the All England Lawn Tennis club.
He developed much of his strong skill set through practical application of cutting edge technologies in the development of complex bespoke software applications.
Nneka Chukwurah, Social Media Manager
Nneka studied French & Hispanic Studies at Queen Mary University, completing a teaching year abroad in Martinique and a period of study at the University of Havana. Buoyed by the experience of teaching overseas, she went on to coordinate CILT, The National Centre for Languages' Graduate Teacher Programme aimed at training native French, Spanish and German speakers keen to learn 'on the job' in UK host secondary schools. Following several years organising teaching taster days, promoting the GTP at national events and supporting trainees towards QTS success, Nneka went on to work in the arts & heritage sector and most recently for central government. Nneka has enjoyed working and engaging with a wide range of stakeholders, advisory and community groups to date and has previously facilitated on-line forums and debates for educational charity Gemin-i.org and CILT. Nneka is in charge of strengthening Teacherhorizons' social media presence and loves travelling, photography and salsa dancing.
.Catherine Dearden, Admin and Logistics Manager
Catherine has moved to Sri Lanka with her husband who is a Head of Department at the British School in Colombo. Having previously managed contracts with both the UK Border Agency and the NHS working with asylum seekers, refugees and those from minority communities in the UK suffering from mental health issues, she brings a wealth of experience working with people from diverse backgrounds and from all corners of the world in both a professional and supportive context.
Living in Sri Lanka within the international schools’ system, she has first-hand experience of uprooting and moving to a new country, culture and way of life, and brings with her a supportive nature to assist and advise those moving internationally for the first time or to a new place.
