Helene Feichter

Helene Feichter serves as Professor for Continuing Education with a focus on school and teaching development and Head of the Institute for Continuing Education and School Development at the University of Education Upper Austria since 2019 and 2022 respectively. Her leadership spans institutional strategy, research direction, and national educational initiatives in Austrian teacher training and school reform.

Her academic credentials include a BEd in Special Education (2010-2016) from Kirchlich Pädagogische Hochschule Wien/Krems and Graz, a PhD in Education (2008-2013) from the University of Vienna, and a Mag.phil. in Education (2002-2008) with specializations in school and vocational pedagogy. Additional qualifications include the SCOL Certificate in Social Competence and Organizational Learning from Alpen-Adria University Klagenfurt.

Feichter's research centers on student perspectives in educational systems, employing participatory action research to investigate school development processes. Her work critically examines how institutional structures constrain student participation while developing methodological frameworks for authentic youth engagement in school improvement. She pioneers approaches to democratizing educational research through student-led inquiry and co-constructed evaluation models.

Analysis of her 15 most recent publications (2014-2022) reveals consistent focus on Austrian school reform implementation, particularly the Neue Mittelschule initiative. Her scholarship bridges educational theory and practice through longitudinal evaluations of teacher training programs, with strong emphasis on qualitative methodologies and organizational barriers to participatory change. Recurring themes include power dynamics in educational settings and epistemological challenges in student-centered research.

• Theodor Körner Prize for Science and Art (2012) for dissertation research

Feichter has directed major national evaluations including the "Reading in All Subjects" teacher training series and the Interdisciplinary Doctoral Program in Intervention Research. Her grant portfolio demonstrates sustained funding from Austrian educational authorities for school development projects, with particular emphasis on building evaluation capacity within schools. She actively mentors researchers through supervising doctoral candidates and coordinating collaborative projects across universities.

As head of her institute, Feichter leads teams focused on quality management in school systems and continuing education design. Her work with the NOESIS project established participatory evaluation frameworks now embedded in Austrian school development practices, while current initiatives center on institutionalizing quality assurance mechanisms through the "Qualitätsmanagement in Schulen" program.