Who We Are

Kathryn Riley, UCL Emeritus Professor of Education

Born and brought up in Manchester, Kathryn now lives in Greenwich, London enjoying the river landscape. She began her work in education as a volunteer teacher in Eritrea, later teaching in inner-city schools, before holding political office as an elected member of the Inner London Education Authority (ILEA) and becoming a local authority chief officer.

Always focused on the joy and opportunities which education can offer children and young people, she has been a practitioner, policymaker, academic and change agent. Her extensive international profile includes heading up the World Bank’s Effective Schools and Teachers Group and contributing to the development of the Bank’s ‘Global Leaders in Education’ Programme. Her engagement in research, policy and development work has involved her in partnerships with a range of organisations, including the OECD, UNICEF and the British Council. Many of her Phd and EdD students now hold senior positions in education and social policy in different parts of the globe.

Kathryn is a pioneer in the field of place and belonging and her commitment to schools as places of belonging is deep rooted. She currently focuses on fostering school belonging and provides advice to several jurisdictions around the world; leads an innovative UK-based ‘Leading for School Belonging ‘programme; and supports several system-wide initiatives on school belonging, in both mainstream and special schools. She was the research adviser to the 2026 DfE commissioned research on school belonging, led by IPSOS.

Kathryn says, ‘here’s something of what I’ve learned along the way ……’

In schools where belonging works, the student-teacher relationship is powerful. Young people feel trusted. They believe that their voice is heard and that what they say matters. They are happier, more confident and perform better academically. Their teachers feel more valued, and their families connected.

DancePoet TioMolina

Born in Habana, TioMolina (Roberto Molina Rivero) was a choreographer, poet, dancer and artistic director. He trained in Cuba and worked as a dancer in Habana’s renowned Tropicana, later moving to the Conjunto Nacional de Espectaculos under the direction of Alberto Alonso. As a dancer, he embraced Cuban popular dance, Contemporary, Ballet and Afro-Cuban folk dance styles. He was a leading figure in the world of Rumba, working closely with Yoruba Andabo and undertook an exploration of the significance of Rumba, as part of Cuba’s national identity.

TioMolina lived in Cuba and London, giving workshops for the Royal Opera House, Hampstead School of Performing Arts and Greenwich Dance Agency. His many collaborations included events with the Barbican, the Royal Festival Hall and the Round House.

He studied the art of ‘spoken word’ under the tutelage of Luis Carbonell and performed in English and Spanish, developing a new approach to poetry performance which fused poetry with contemporary musical rhythms. His videos include the Habana hit ‘Marietta’ and his wide repertoire of poetry embraced many genres: Nicolás Guillén, Pablo Neruda, Benjamin Zephaniah and the Beatles.

Dr Manuela Mendoza

Born in Santiago (Chile), Manuela is a researcher at the Centre for the Study of Educational Policies and Practices (CEPPE), in Chile. She is also currently supporting a UCL Innovation Project on inclusion and belonging in schools, in the UK and has been the co-researcher in a number of the Art of Possibilities’ projects.

Manuela is an Anthropologist (Universidad de Chile) with a Master’s degree in Sociology from the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, and a PhD in Sociology of Education from the UCL-Institute of Education. In her doctoral research, she explored the views of families and teachers in socially diverse schools, in order to understand the potentialities of these schools to contribute to social justice.

She has conducted research in sociology and education for over ten years, with a special focus on the relationship between market-based educational policies and the construction of subjectivity by students and parents. Manuela’s specific areas of interest include school choice, school mix, and social class identity.

Lisa Jo Robinson

Lisa Jo Robinson was born in Northampton and became a Southeast Londoner at the age of four.

Lisa is a Senior Integrated Graphic designer of 15 years plus experience, with an added passion for illustration. She studied Typography and Graphic Design at The Ravensbourne Art college and has worked on a broad range of commercial and charity clients.

Lisa’s most recent permanent charity position was at Comic Relief where she designed the Red Noses for 2017. During her time there, she worked closely with the schools’ team. Together they created lots of free resources for teachers to use.

Lisa loves to design for the education, health and charity sectors because she wants to be part of something bigger that can help to make a difference in the world. Her illustration style has a colourful child-like wonder, and she uses this skill to ‘talk’ to young people through her designs.

She has worked closely with Kathryn for some years and supports the Art of Possibilities projects through her design work. her book cover designs include for ‘Compassionate Leadership for School Belonging’ and she continues to create illustrate book covers for UCL Press.

James Pyke

James Pyke is a song writer, recording artist and spoken word artist. Hailing from south London, he has performed internationally, in the U.K. and on European tours, including playing lead in a London theatre production, ‘Purgatory’.

Creativity is his outlet, socials being his platform, James has been growing increasingly popular in the mental health, wellness, and music/entertainment space.

Having had experience from a young age working with youth/younger adults, he understands and resonates amongst the younger generation particularly. Marrying his vast experience with his ever-evolving insight to life and its lessons, James champions personal growth and spiritual development.

James has collaborated with Sonny Reeves, renowned singer song writer and producer. Their work is filled with intention and their aim is to inspire through musicality. James wrote and recorded the Rapps for the Podcast Series, ‘Let’s hear it or School Belonging’.

Kristyna Campbell

Kristyna Campbell is a Researcher and Artist, currently pursuing a PhD within the department of Education, Practice and Society at the IOE, UCL. She is a member of the Society for Research into Higher Education and is interested in how adult students learn.

Her Artistic endeavours includes a number of notable Exhibitions, such as the 2019 London Ultra, Free Painters & Sculptors, The Bargehouse @ OXO Tower Wharf, London, UK.

Kristyna’s vivid illustrations are displayed throughout the Art of Possibilities website, and her work for the Art of Possibilities has also included analysis and design work for the Podcast Series, ‘Let’s hear it for School Belonging’.

Francisca Ortiz Ruiz

Francisca Ortiz Ruiz is working as a Postdoctoral researcher at Millennium Institute for Care Research (MICARE), Santiago, Chile. She gained her PhD in Sociology at the University of Manchester and is a member of the Women in Network Sciences (WiNS) Council.

Francisca’s areas of interest include mixed methods research, social network analysis, social gerontology, science, gender and care. Fran provided technical expertise for the Podcast Series, ‘Let’s hear it for School Belonging’.

Dom Aquilina

Dom has experience of teaching, mentoring and leading across Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 in both the State and Independent sectors in the UK. Having previously worked as the Head of KS1, Designated Safeguarding Lead and a SCITT Mentor, he has since established himself as an education consultant and teacher trainer.

He has a particular interest in how important a sense of belonging is to us all, and especially the profound significance it has for academic engagement, motivation, and achievement, as well as for self-esteem, mental health, and overall wellbeing in our schools. Over the past few years this has led him to make contributions to the Global Leaders in Belonging Project and enjoy opportunities to work with and train teachers in the UK, India and Bali.

Kudsi Tuluoglu

Kudsi Tuluoglu is the Director of MERIDIAN IT CONSULTANTS LTD which speciales in many core aspects of IT ranging from basic hardware/software installation to providing IT consultancy and web design services for small to medium size businesses.

Kudsi has worked with the Art of Possibilities for some years, providing IT and web-design and support.