Esther Verboon new Director of Education and Research
1 Feb 2022 13:21 | CommunicationEsther Verboon has been appointed director of the Education and Research staff department (O&O) at the Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences. She succeeds Eldrid Bringmann, who took up a position at Leiden University of Applied Sciences in October 2021. Verboon is an experienced leader in the field of Education and Research and policy development in higher professional education (HBO). She is currently director of the Institute of Law at Utrecht University of Applied Sciences.
Esther Verboon
Dr. Esther Verboon MBA (Rotterdam, 1964) studied physiotherapy, health sciences and business administration. She was a physiotherapist and teacher before shifting to policy and management positions in education and research at the Utrecht University of Applied Sciences (HU) in 2001. At HU she held a number of roles, such as programme manager of HBO Law and programme manager for educational innovation at the Faculty of Social Sciences and Law. In her current role as director of HU’s Institute of Law, she is responsible for the social sciences and legal programmes and is also involved in an institution-wide educational innovation programme.
Esther Verboon is also no stranger to research. She obtained her PhD in 2017 with a doctoral thesis focusing on loyalty among SME clients (small and medium sized enterprises) in the legal profession (De cliënt in beeld: een onderzoek naar de loyaliteit van mkb-cliënten in de advocatuur). After this she continued to combine research activities with policy development and management tasks.
A bridge-builder
The AUAS was looking for a bridge-builder and networker, who understands the challenges in education and research and has a vision for addressing them. The selection committee decided unanimously that Esther Verboon was the right person for the job. Verboon is inspired by AUAS’s Strategic Plan and looks forward to contributing to its realisation and further development. Esther Verboon: 'I look forward to working with my colleagues from O&O and the other policy departments and supporting the Executive Board, the faculties, and the service departments as we take the next steps together. In my new position, I hope to help deliver actual results via an approach that is focused on service, growth and making connections.’
The Executive Board is pleased with this appointment. Rector Geleyn Meijer: "We view Esther as a professional manager who has a keen eye for balancing interests and connecting people. We look forward to working with her and the team." Esther Verboon will start at AUAS on 1 May 2022.