High recognition for Hilton’s Director of International Learning
Hilton College is proud to announce the appointment of our Director of International Learning, Dr Alexei du Bois, as the Heimbecker Inspiration Chair for Experiential Education for 2023-4.
Dr Du Bois will take a sabbatical next year and be based in Canada while he serves as Heimbecker Inspiration Chair. During his tenure, he will remain involved at Hilton, albeit from a distance, ably assisted in his A-Levels work by senior member of staff James Webb. He will return to Hilton College full time in January 2025.
The Inspiration Chair is bestowed by Shawnigan Lake School, an independent co-educational boarding school on the west coast of Canada, on an expert from outside of the school to help enrich the educational experience of its learners.
The Inaugural Inspiration Chair (2022) was held by Tom Hall, the former Head of Geelong Grammar School’s world-famous Timbertop Campus and now Vice Principal of GGS, in Victoria, Australia.
Dr Du Bois has worked as Director of Studies and Head of English at Peponi School in Kenya and as an English and History teacher at Rondebosch Boys’ School. He holds a BA in English, History and Music from the University of Cape Town, a PGCE from the University of South Africa, and both an MSc in Comparative and International Education and a DPhil in Education from the University of Oxford (Commonwealth Scholarship).
He is recognized as a leader in experiential and sustainability education and the benefits it brings to communities, individuals and the environment.
Hilton College’s headmaster George Harris said the school had a strategic imperative to be globally positioned. “This opportunity for Alexei supports our growth in that direction.”
The head of Shawnigan Lake School, Larry Lamont, said he was delighted to have attracted an educator of Dr Du Bois’s calibre. “I believe that his unique skill set will help us both develop a Canadian and global reputation and competitive edge in experiential learning and create an Ideas and Innovation Centre that buzzes with inter-disciplinary thinking.”
Dr Du Bois said he was excited at opportunity to build on the exceptional work that Tom Hall had begun at Shawnigan. “In particular, I look forward to working with the Shawnigan team on embedding a range of inter-disciplinary, sustainability learning opportunities for Shawnigan pupils participating in both the Shawnigan Journey and beyond. Immersing pupils in a systems-focused curriculum that develops resilience and an appreciation for complexity complements the invaluable experiential learning that the Shawnigan Journey presents,” he said.
