Introducing the Educational Office
How is the Educational Office positioned within DAE?
Literally, we’re located at a visible, accessible spot between the other staff members. Strategically, the Educational Office plays a central role in bridging educational policy and practice across both the Bachelor and Master programme. As a small team, we enjoy collaborating with all departments across the academy – from Heads and Coordinators of education to HR, Facilities, Workshops and Communications – to align policy, strategy and quality assurance with daily educational practice. We translate strategy into action, support our lovely teaching teams, and embed quality assurance in both policy and practice. Trust, transparency and continuous improvement are the values at the core of our work.
We last checked in with you in 2023, since then you've got a new head, what's changed within the educational office?
Ilka van Steen joined in late 2023, combining this role with her role as Fundamentals Coordinator. In May 2024, Lieke van der Wielen came on board. And in February 2025, Jetske Tuinstra became our new Head. After a period of change, we’re now at full capacity, which feels great! The three of us are now ready to move forward with a shared vision.
What’s your future vision for the Educational Office?
We aim to strengthen our strategic advisory role to the Executive Board by offering quality analyses and forward-looking policy recommendations. We also want to support professional development within the academy by designing interventions that help teaching teams reflect, collaborate and innovate – such as learning sessions on assessment and guidance during curriculum improvement. Additionally, we’re working on making our support, methods and planning cycle more visible and accessible to staff.
How does the educational office operate, and what is it?
You can think of the Educational Office as the bridge between policy and practice. We act as a strategic partner that transforms analysis to action. We identify needs, translate them into workable solutions, and offer practical tools and guidance. We work in yearly cycles where we process input from students for the education at DAE and are in close contact with participation committees. We develop and maintain key documents like the Student Charter, the Education and Examination Regulations (TER). We also support accreditation processes and help shape assessment policies.
Our team works closely with the educational heads, management and support staff to ensure that educational development is aligned, intentional, and well-supported. We also like to participate in meetings, classes and other education related activities to really get a sense of the practise of education at DAE, to highlight the good practices and improve on others.
