Sur College of Applied Sciences, Institutional Quality Audit, Dec 2012
 
Mr. Jack Connell
 
Mr. Jack Connell’s current higher education endeavors  include  Higher Education Consulting through his LLC, ConnellONE LLC and Education Specialist for Accrediting Commission for Career Colleges and Schools (ACCSC—2013 Educational Specialist of the Year). Regional Director for Workforce Opportunity Services (WOS), a New York based non-profit workforce training/college access program originally developed as a pilot program at Columbia University and now a national/international program. In addition,  to Member of the Board of Trustees for the non-profit The National Teachers College (TNTC—currently seeking authority from the Ohio Board of Regents) and the TNTC Professional Development Institute Educator-in-Residence training programs.Mr. Connell’s former higher education related work include External Reviewer for the Oman Academic Accreditation Authority as well as Director Special Projects/Strategic Initiatives in the Provost’s Office of the University of Akron (Developed materials/wrote Self-Evaluation Report for NCA-HLC Focused Visit & Proposals to Ohio Board of Regents & NCA-HLC for approval of the MSTechEd distance program).Worked on Interim Degree Approval Committee for the Accrediting Commission for Career Colleges and Schools (ACCSC). Held the position of Director of Academic Affairs for Private Institutions for the Ohio Board of Regents;and Director of Tuition Reciprocity Agreements with contiguous states for the State of Ohio. Worked on Ohio Board of Regents Liaison with the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools/Higher Learning Commission- (NCA/HLC), the US Department of Education (USDE) and the Council for Higher Education (CHEA);In addition to holding the position of Director of the University of Akron (UA)/Akron Public Schools (APS) Collaboration in the College of Education (UA) (University/Public School partnership for enhancing student learning through the development of on-site collaborative activities between School and University Faculty in the Akron Public Schools). Consulting work with the School of Public Policy at Duquesne University (Establishment of a Bachelor’s Degree Program in Conflict Resolution and for implementation of a Pittsburgh-based US Housing and Urban Development project focused on Conflict Resolution training for incarcerated youth in the City of Pittsburgh).Educational achievements include Baccalaureate Degree in Liberal Studies from Antioch University (Yellow Springs, OH); and Master of Arts Degree in Psychology from Pepperdine University (Malibu, CA). A Master of Arts Degree in Higher Education Administration at the University of Akron (integrated within the EdD degree program at UA);PhD Social Science Degree program at Syracuse University (Syracuse, NY) (ABD);Granted a NY State Certificate in Conflict Resolution/Divorce Mediation, and Doctor of Education in Administration Degree program (EdD) at The University of Akron (ABD). 
 
Prof. Khaled Day
 
Khaled Day received his undergraduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Tunis in 1986.  He was awarded in 1986 the ‘President Habib Bourguiba Prize’ for excellent academic performance upon completion of his undergraduate degree. He was then awarded a scholarship from the Tunisian government to pursue graduate studies in the USA starting in 1987. He obtained his MSc and PhD degrees in Computer Science from the University of Minnesota (USA) in 1989 and 1992 respectively. Dr. Day worked at the University of Bahrain in the period 1992-1996 as Assistant Professor. He then joined Sultan Qaboos University in 1996 as Assistant Professor. He was promoted to Associate Professor in 1999 and then to full Professor in 2005. He served as the Head of the Department of Computer Science at Sultan Qaboos University in the periods 2000-2002 and again for the period 2006-2010. He also served as the Dean of Research at Sultan Qaboos University during the period 2013-2016. His areas of research interest include interconnection networks, parallel computing, distributed systems, grid computing, and wireless networks. He has published around 90 research papers in international journals and conferences in the above listed areas of research. In 2000 he received the Abdul Hameed Shoman Prize for Young Arab Researchers. He was promoted in 2001 to the grade of senior member of IEEE.
 
Dr. Patsy Paxton
 
Dr Patsy Paxton, a Higher Education Consultant based in New Zealand, has a PhD in Education, and her academic quality expertise includes over 20 years’ experience with academic quality issues in the New Zealand and South African tertiary education sectors. She is the former Director of the South Pacific College of Natural Medicine in Auckland, New Zealand (2011-2019).  From 2007 – 2011 she served as the Senior Researcher on the South African Norway Tertiary Education Development (SANTED) project, based at the Nelson Mandela University (NMU) in South Africa. Here she was responsible for facilitating the development of coherent approaches to curriculum consolidation as well as appropriate articulation pathways between various programmes. Amongst her many responsibilities as the Academic Director at the Auckland University of Technology (1999-2007), she managed the planning and preparation for the University’s NZUAAU comprehensive academic audit in 2001 and 2006. From 1995 – 1999 Patsy was the Academic Manager at the Waikato Institute of Technology. Before emigrating to New Zealand in 1995, she was a full professor in the Vista University (South Africa) Faculty of Education (1986-1995). Her early years (1974-1986) were spent as a senior teacher of the Economic Sciences (Economics, Business Studies, Commerce). She is committed to academic quality audit and quality assurance principles in higher education and has had extensive experience in conducting academic quality reviews and audits. From her own practical experience, Patsy has a deep understanding of the challenges that often arise when quality management theory and policies are applied to institutions’ daily operations.
 
Dr. Penelope Bidgood
 

Penelope (Penny) Bidgood holds higher degrees in both Mathematics and Statistics and a Postgraduate Certificate in Education. She has recently retired from the post of Principal Lecturer in Statistics at Kingston University, UK, where she taught Mathematics and Statistics and supervised several postgraduate research students. Penny`s main areas of research interest are in the applications of statistics, particularly in the broad medical and education fields, and in statistical education. She has published widely and given many presentations at national and international conferences. In the period 1998-2000, Penny was a reviewer for the UK Quality Assurance Agency’s review of Mathematics, Statistics and Operational Research in universities; she has been an external examiner for undergraduate and postgraduate degrees at five UK universities and is Chief Examiner for the Royal Statistical Society (RSS) examinations. Penny is a Chartered Statistician and has been a Fellow of the RSS for over 20 years. Currently he is the RSS`s Theme Director for Education and chairs its Educational Strategy Group and the Steering Group of the RSS Centre for Statistical Education. In 2006 she was elected to membership of the International Statistical Association and, since 2011, has chaired its Committee on Women in Statistics.