We are delighted to welcome Sharona as the new Chair of our Board.
Sharona has served on the IHE Board for six years, playing a pivotal role in guiding IHE's strategic direction, strengthening how we support our members, and championing independent providers of higher education.
As President and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Institute of Sport (GIS), Sharona leads the organisation's mission to transform the global sports industry through education and collaboration. Before taking the helm at GIS, she served as Chief Marketing Officer at the University Campus of Football Business (UCFB). Her earlier career included time at Imperial College London and The University of Chicago, where she played a key role in expanding international education and creating globally connected learning environments.
Throughout her journey, Sharona has remained committed to student-centred education grounded in global best practice, and to promoting the value of a diverse higher education sector that champions student choice.
Sharona succeeds James Pitman, who served as IHE Chair from 2023-2026. We thank James for his contribution both as Chair and as a long-standing supporter of IHE.
Commenting on her appointment, Sharona said:
“It is a privilege to give back to the IHE community by serving as Chair. I firmly believe in the power of our collective voice, and in the importance of IHE’s role in advocating for members, shaping policy and supporting providers to succeed.
"IHE Members reflect the diversity, flexibility, innovation and student focus that are so important to UK higher education, expanding student choice and helping ensure the interests of students and learners remain central to the sector.
"I look forward to working closely with the Board, Chief Executive and our members, while engaging with government, regulators and sector leaders to raise the profile of IHE and champion the contribution of its members.”
Welcoming the announcement, Alex Proudfoot, IHE’s Chief Executive, said:
"It is with great pleasure that I welcome Sharona as the new Chair of IHE. I know how passionate she is about education and have seen first hand her dedication to the causes she believes in. We are fortunate to be one of them.
"IHE is the home of innovation and opportunity in higher education. Our members are ambitious for the future of the UK and the role of high-quality, flexible lifelong learning pathways in building it.
"We are a nation animated by creative instincts, entrepreneurial spirit and a belief in the power of a great idea. IHE members bring this same energy and optimism to higher education, and with the right policy support can pioneer new models of learning that respond to the world today.
"In Sharona they will have a captain on the pitch who leads by example, as she builds the Global Institute of Sport from a small transnational start-up into a powerful force for positive change – placing British educational excellence and IHE values at the heart of a thriving global industry.”