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02 03 AYRSHIRE UPDATE Principal Presents Vision for New Ayrshire College AYRSHIRE UPDATE Student President Elections The Chairs of the Boards of Management and Regional Lead attend the first all staff meeting at Ayr Racecourse. The event at Ayr Racecourse was a great opportunity for all staff to meet our Principal Designate, Heather Dunk and hear about her vision for the new Ayrshire College. The Chairs of the Boards of Management from each college and the Regional Lead expressed their enthusiasm and optimism for the future of further education in Ayrshire. Dr Wai-yin Hatton, Chair of Kilmarnock College, expressed her excitement with the establishment of the new Ayrshire College to benefit students and staff. She likened it to fusion food whereby new, unique and even better results will be created from the best ingredients from the current three colleges. Sharing her vision, Heather said, “My aim is for us to work together to create the best college in the UK. My vision is for a seven star college offering excellence in learning and teaching supported by highly skilled staff, sector leading estates and industry standard resources providing the highest quality learning experience for our students. I know students have a choice; I want Ayrshire College to be the preferred choice. We will work together to improve life chances for all our students.” “We already have excellent relationships with business and I want to build on these strong foundations and be the provider of choice for Business. Critical to our success will be the continuation of partnership working and I look forward to strengthening these links.” Heather emphasised the important role the College has to play in meeting the local, regional and national economic needs by supporting and developing a highly skilled workforce and how the College can contribute to the development of innovative solutions for business. Willie Mackie, Chair of Ayr College commented that the creation of a new Ayrshire College would allow the sharing of best practice across the region. We have fantastic talent in the Ayrshire College and I can’t wait to see that talent working together to enhance the student experience. It’s a very exciting time for all of us. Derek Little, Chair of James Watt College said, “The creation of a new Ayrshire College is a fantastic step forward and will enable the sharing of best practice. We have an outstanding leadership, teaching and support team in Ayrshire and should be proud of the positive effect this will have on the student experience. It’s a very exciting time.” Ayrshire College Vision: Raising Aspirations Inspiring Achievement Increasing Opportunities The elections for the first Ayrshire College Student President and Vice Presidents are underway. The voting for the overall Ayrshire College Student President will be open between 13 - 16 May. The candidates have been campaigning around all the campuses so you should have had an opportunity to meet them and hear their manifestos. Please get involved and make your