Our Advisory Board
Jennese Alozie
Jennese is passionate about the power of education to cause positive ripples across society and empower learners to take an active role in their lives and that of others. She started her career as a secondary school English teacher in the South of England. Having taken on a range of Senior and Executive leadership roles Jennese completed an MA in Inclusive Education to further explore how education affects lives and our society. She is a Lead Ofsted Inspector and sits on the Board of two Multi Academy Trusts (MAT) and a Teaching School Hub.
Jennese is the mother of two boys and has fuelled their enthusiasm for literature and the power of storytelling. She is also an amateur ceramist and volunteers for a local theatre. Most recently she has been part of the executive team leading a successful MAT operating across London and East Sussex. She continues to use her extensive sector knowledge to support Trust growth, including leadership development at national level.
Shelley Gonsalves
Shelley is responsible for the high-quality delivery of Teach First programmes in England and Wales. Shelley joined the charity in 2009 and has held numerous roles in teacher support and development, learning and development, talent management and programme delivery.
Prior to this, Shelley spent seven years serving communities in Houston, Texas. First as a 2002 Teach for America corps member
teaching reception and later as a founding teacher and leader at KIPP SHINE Prep, the KIPP network’s first early childhood and elementary school. A native of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Shelley holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature from Louisiana State University and a Master of Education from the University of St. Thomas in Houston, Texas. She proudly serves as chair of governors at East London Arts and Music (elam.co.uk).
ALAN PARKER
Alan’s a career in voluntary and statutory agencies in the field of education, culminated as Director of Education at the London Borough of Ealing (1997- 2002). Since then, he has been a consultant and held various part time roles including: Schools Adjudicator (2004 – 2012); Examination Reviewer for Ofqual & Qualifications Wales (2013 - 2019); and, Continuing Healthcare Reviews for NHS England (2020 - 2023).
He is a qualified executive coach and an active volunteer; having served as Society of Education Officers President in 2002 and as a trustee of several education charities. Including being Chair of the Association of Education Committees Trust, which supports Schoolgenie.
KATIE WALDEGRAVE
Katie Waldegrave MBE began her working life as a history teacher at Cranford Community College, training with Teach First. Having become Head of History she took a sideways step to co-found the literacy charity, First Story. Then, she co-founded Now Teach, a charity to bring career changers into education, in 2016 with Lucy Kellaway.
Most recently she has started Now Foster, a not-for-profit organisation, designed to bring more foster carers into the system. She studied history at Oxford and has a PhD in creative writing.
AMY MITCHELL
Amy has been with Teach First since 2012 and ensures that their programmes are of exceptional quality, evidence-informed and delivering impact. She brings this well-informed strategic vision and understanding of what works to the Schoolgenie Advisory Board. She is a qualified teacher, having taught secondary Science in East London, and has also spent time in learning and development roles within the private sector. Amy served as founding Chair of Trustees for ed-tech charity Learning with Parents.
Amy has a Batchelor of Science degree in Physics and Philosophy from the University of Nottingham, a Masters in Teaching from University College London (UCL) Institute of Education and a Masters of Business Administration from Aston Business School. She has two young children and lives in Bristol.
