Professor Nadine Petersen is a National Research Foundation C2-rated researcher and an acknowledged scholar of service learning and teacher education. She is currently the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Johannesburg (UJ). Prof Petersen obtained her Higher Education Diploma from the Rand College of Education. She then completed her BA in Education at the University of South Africa before moving to Rand Afrikaans University (now UJ) where she obtained her Honours and Master’s degrees in Adult and Community Education. She completed her PhD in Teacher Education at UJ. She has invested in the research and practice of teacher education often in collaboration with international partners such as the University of Helsinki and the University of Hong Kong. Prior to this, she served as Vice Dean for Teaching and Learning in the Faculty of Education and as Head of Department for Childhood Education at UJ, during a crucial period in the establishment of the University of Johannesburg’s laboratory/teaching school, Funda UJabule.

Over the 25-year span of her academic career, Prof Petersen has published widely; raised research funding; supervised graduate students; invested in academic staff development; and led curriculum innovation and the development of new qualifications and partnerships. Recognition of her educational expertise is reflected in the positions she holds on the Boards of the National Research Foundation and the Gauteng Education Development Trust and previously as a Sasol Inzalo Foundation trustee for 10 years. In 2019, she received an award from the International Association for Research in Service Learning and Engagement in recognition of excellence in scholarship that advances the practice of service-learning and community engagement within and across borders/cultures.

Prof Nadine Petersen is a member of the Board Procurement Committee.