Marie Stephenson

Dr Marie Stephenson serves as Senior Lecturer in the Department for Education & Inclusion at the University of Worcester's School of Education, joining in 2014 with extensive post-compulsory sector experience including curriculum design for the visually impaired at the Royal National College for the Blind. She holds dual leadership roles as pathway lead for the MA in Education (Leadership & Management) and Course Lead for the BA (Hons) Special Educational Needs, Disability and Inclusion, while coordinating the NPQ SENCO program in partnership with the Church of England (Diocese of Worcester).

Her educational qualifications comprise a PhD in Education (2018), MSc in Educational Leadership and Management with Distinction (2008), PGCE in Education with Distinction (1998), BTEC Professional Award in Teaching Adults with Visual Impairment (2006), and Further & Adult Education Teachers’ Certificate (1997), supplemented by a PGCert in Research Methods with Distinction (2013).

Research centers on Special Educational Needs, Disability and Inclusion, and Ethical Leadership frameworks examining how leaders maintain moral compasses in value-expressive organizations through principles of equality, fairness, dignity, and democracy. Her doctoral work on ethical decision-making in not-for-profit contexts reveals interconnections between responsibility, trust, and ethics in morally intense situations, extending to her role as Academic Integrity Tutor promoting scholarly standards across the School of Education.

As academic tutor for undergraduate through doctoral levels, she emphasizes student empowerment and skill development in supervision contexts. Her collaborative approach drives interdisciplinary projects on inclusive leadership models while her NPQ SENCO coordination delivers nationally recognized training for SEND practitioners through church-school partnerships.