New Professor of Educational Leadership and Development

Dr Eric Addae-Kyeremeh, from The Open University’s School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport (ECYS), has been promoted to Professor of Educational Leadership and Development in recognition of his sustained excellence in teaching, knowledge exchange and academic leadership in education and international development.

Professor Addae-Kyeremeh joined The Open University (OU) in 2011 as a Lecturer in Educational Leadership and Management, following a decade in the Further Education sector in England. At the OU, he has played a pivotal role in postgraduate education, teaching exclusively on the Masters in Education and leading the redevelopment of the qualification.

Holding leadership roles in ECYS since 2013, most recently as Head of School, he has also continued his research and knowledge exchange work, collaborating with stakeholders across Ghana, Nigeria, Uganda, Kenya, Gambia, India, and Bangladesh. A key aspect of Professor Addae-Kyeremeh’s work is bridging the gap between research, policy, and practice. As an advisor to the Ghanaian government (2022–2023), he led the Beneficiary Assessment Review for the $173.8 million Ghana Accountability for Learning Outcomes Project (GALOP), funded by the World Bank. His leadership in this large-scale evaluation provided evidence-based recommendations to improve student outcomes and teacher effectiveness. Earlier, in 2018, he supported the revision of Ghana’s National Pre-Tertiary Education Curriculum.

He has had significant involvement in the development of knowledge products such as Open Educational Resources (OERs), Continuing Professional Development (CPD) courses, policy documents to support educators and policymakers and BBC/OU coproductions such as Don’t Exclude Me and Project 17.

Professor Addae-Kyeremeh's commitment to education extends beyond his project work. As a mentor at the European Digital Education Hub, he supports practitioners in developing and delivering impactful projects. One such project is the German-Ethiopian Textile School (GETS) Project, which aims to enhance vocational education and training in Ethiopia. His mentorship has been invaluable in guiding these initiatives to success. Additionally, as a member of the Body of Practitioner Knowledge (BOPK) at the Adhyayan Foundation in India, he advises on education quality frameworks and capacity-building initiatives, contributing to broader educational improvements.

Reflecting on his promotion, Professor Addae-Kyeremeh commented:

“My promotion is a testament to an unwavering dedication to the OU mission, and a commitment to equality, inclusion and collaboration. But this wouldn’t have been possible without colleagues believing in me and giving me the opportunity to contribute and shine. I appreciate all the support I’ve received over the years and will continue to be a role model for others, especially those that haven’t followed a traditional/linear path into academia - you can do it too.”

Professor Addae-Kyeremeh is a Chartered Manager and Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute, as well as a Chartered IT Professional and Fellow of BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT. He remains committed to these professional associations, actively participating in their events and contributing to their initiatives to advance the field.

He is currently leading the development of an Afrocentric Pedagogical Leadership Toolkit in collaboration with Dr Margaret Ebubedike, Dr Jane Cullen, Oli Biard and Dr C. Kwaah (University of Cape Coast). This toolkit is designed to empower educators and school leaders with Ghanaian knowledge systems and leadership principles, equipping them with culturally responsive strategies for effective leadership and professional development – and will be available from June 2025.

He is also working with Dr Jane Doka, Professor Klaus-Dieter Rossade and Farnaz Rais on IncluDE, a collaborative project with 13 EU partners to establish a comprehensive Inclusion Reference Framework for higher education institutions. This initiative aims to evaluate and improve inclusion policies and practices in universities across Europe.

Professor Addae-Kyeremeh is currently supervising two PhD and two EdD students and remains passionate about supporting early-career researchers.