Dr Lisette Johnston

Bio

Dr Johnston has extensive experience as a leader in Higher Education and the creative industries, with 15 years’ senior journalistic experience in international news and features.

Having grown up Highland Perthshire in Scotland, she is passionate about the transformative power of education and the value in helping students succeed and further their ambitions. Her expertise lies in curriculum development: embedding employability throughout programmes and providing accessible academic support and innovative teaching approaches. Having worked within BBC News and the Press Association, she believes bringing industry best practice into the learning space is crucial, particularly In practice based education. She has worked with outlets such as BBC Storyville, Twitter and Amazon Studios to change the narrative on what teaching and learning looks like.

Inspired by her experience working in BBC newsrooms, her PhD from City University London focused on how user generated content was used to depict the Syria conflict and how this has impacted journalistic practices.

Prior to coming to UCA, Lisette was Academic Director at Bath Spa University London and led the expansion project of their Hoxton campus which has more than 1200 students. She has served as a Head of School at MetFilm School, based at Ealing Studios, and launched their Content, Media and Film Production programmes, securing industry partnerships, live briefs and student employment opportunities.

She has managed research and taught programmes in numerous subjects aligned to the creative industries: from creative entrepreneurship to ethics, production management and many forms of journalism. and is always looking for opportunities to innovate and disrupt traditional approaches to creative education.

Lisette loves collaborating with diverse teams, ideally over tea and biscuits.