Joachim James Calleja elected as EfVET new President

Professor Joachim James Calleja elected as EfVET new President and Liisa Metsola re-elected as treasurer.

Brussels. 10 September 2018. EfVET is pleased to announce that Professor Joachim James Calleja has been elected as new President of EfVET and Liisa Metsola re-elected as Treasure by the Steering Committee this weekend in Leuven (Belgium).

Professor Joachim James Calleja has been involved in vocational education and training since 2001. He served as Cedefop Director from 2013 to 2018. Prior to his appointment as Director of Cedefop he served as Permanent Secretary (State Secretary) of the Ministry of Education and Employment (2011-2013) in his native Malta. Currently, he is Principal and CEO of Maltese EfVET Member, Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology Malta (MCAST).

In 2005 he was entrusted with the setting up of the Malta Qualifications Council where he served as its Chief Executive for five years. Under his leadership Malta launched its National Qualifications Framework and related legislation leading to the validation of informal and non-formal learning, quality assurance and accreditation. His career started in 1986 at the Foundation for International Studies at the University of Malta followed by appointments at the United Nations International institute of Aging (1995-1998) and the Ministry of Economic Services (1998-2001). In 2001 he was appointed Administrative Director at MCAST followed by a short spell at the European Training Foundation in Torino.

Professor Calleja is a graduate of the Universities of Malta (B.A. Hons Educ; 1981), Padua (D.ED; 1986) and Bradford (Ph.D; 1991) and an accredited commercial mediator at CEDR London. A prolific writer, Professor Calleja has published several books and articles and edited publications in a number of countries. He is the co-author of the Malta Referencing Report of the Malta Qualifications Framework to the EQF and the QF-EHEA. His uninterrupted international career in education spans over 35 years. He has been Malta’s delegate on the EQF Advisory Board, the Bologna Follow-Up Group and Cedefop’s Governing Board.

As EfVET’s new President, Prof. James Joaquin Calleja, will shape and communicate the vision of EfVET. He will continue the excellent work done by its predecessors: participating in different European forums and representing EfVET member’s views and interests.

Prof. James Joaquin Calleja, addressed these words to EfVET Members:

I am truly honoured to be chosen as your new President and I am committing myself to make EfVET a stronger association of European training providers. In the same breath I wish to thank very warmly indeed my predecessor Santiago Garcia Gutierrez for leading the organisation over these last two years. His leadership and approach to VET has attracted my attention as Director of Cedefop and I was very pleased to participate in last year’s annual conference which took place in Thessaloniki.  During such time, I had the pleasure to forge with Santiago and many other members a strong bond of cooperation to enable EfVET to be present in most of the European VET forums. I am a strong believer that training providers should be the catalysts for VET policy and not simply receivers of policy trails that may be good in theory but not in practice. As Einstein said: in theory, theory and practice are the same, but not in practice. VET providers are a strong resource. In many ways they have been European VET’s best kept secret! I commit myself to unleash this resource, to rally VET providers into a voice of practice built on the rich multicultural experience of conducting VET at the grassroots of European VET schools, colleges and University colleges. Together, we can make VET a natural choice for learners and workers”.    

Santiago Garcia Gutierrez, former EfVET President, stated on his farewell message:

I can only say thanks to all of you. Thank you for your trust, your support, your closeness, your kindness, your friendship, your patience and understanding. Thank you also for your hard work to make VET a first choice, and to improve EfVET and make it a well-known and valued organisation in Europe. It has been a real and undeserved honour to be your president during these two years. I have learnt a lot, and I have received more than I have given. I wish you all the best in the future, in your jobs, schools, organizations and families. Once again, thank you, thank you, thank you

Liisa Metsola re-elected as EfVET Treasure

Liisa Metsola, was re-elected as EfVET treasurer by the Steering Committee. Metsola, has hold this position for the last two years with a with successful results.

Liisa Metsola holds a Master’s degree in English Philology from Jyväskylä University; special needs teacher degree from Häme University of Applied Sciences and an MBA in Educational Leadership from Jyväskylä University. She works as a development director at Finnish EfVET Member, Invalidisäätiö (Vocational College Live) in Helsinki.

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