Ms Joy Qiao is the founder and Chair of Governors of Huili Education and Wellington College China. She has been devoted to international education in China for many years and is committed to fostering exchanges and partnerships with Britain. Having grown up in Shanghai, Ms Joy Qiao attended the University of Oxford from which she holds a BA in Computer Science. She then worked in the IT industry for a decade in a variety of sales and marketing roles in the UK, Germany and China. Becoming a mother motivated her interest in education and inspired her advance into the international education sector. She has extensive experience in multi-lingual communication and cross-cultural co-operation and is a critical bridge for bringing together the multiple partners involved in setting up Wellington College in China. Ms Joy Qiao also holds an EMBA degree from the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) and is fluent in Mandarin, English and Shanghainese. She is married with two children, both of whom are attending Wellington College International Shanghai.

Ms. Helen Kavanagh is Chief Executive Officer of Wellington College China. Helen is a native of the UK who was employed as the International Business Director for Wellington College, quality assuring the schools in China and leading business development globally. She has served on the Wellington College China Board as the Deputy Chairman since August 2014 and already has a deep understanding of our needs as a fast-growing organisation.

With over 30 years’ experience in education Helen has operated in a wide range of contexts in the UK and internationally. After two successful Headships in England she became a Senior Inspections Manager with responsibility for the quality of inspections in over 1500 schools, and from there went on to lead a school reform project in the UAE before being promoted to Regional Director Middle East. She was next appointed as Executive Vice President of an American education company providing advice and guidance to schools in the US, UK, UAE, Qatar, Turkey, India and Jordan.

Helen has represented employers nationally and internationally up to government level. She has mentored many Heads for over 15 years and still gains a buzz from being in the school environment. She has a BA (Hons) from Sheffield University; a PGCE (Leicester University) and 2 further postgraduate degrees in Education Management from Manchester Metropolitan University. Her elder daughter is a teacher in the UAE. Her younger daughter is a graduate of Wellington College and currently studies at McGill University, Montreal.  She enjoys travel, keeping fit and food.

Over the last eight years, May has led two groundbreaking innovations in higher education:  NYU Shanghai and ShanghaiTech. Utilizing her experience in various industries (financial services, education, and marketing), insight into entrepreneurship and deep understanding of the innovation ecosystem in China and the U.S., May offers strategic advice to large organizations on change management and digital transformation.  Moreover, her ability to bridge academic research and product development gives her a unique ability to drive innovation within an organization.  As a leader, May articulates a clear vision, formulates strategy, and oversees execution with attention to detail.

May received a B.A. from University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from New York University School of Law. She was a Visiting Foreign Student of Peking University. She is a member of the World Economic Forum and the Global Future Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship. She is also a mentor for Chinaccelerator Shanghai, the Board of Directors of National Partnership for Women and Families, the Lifetime Trustee of NYU School of Law, and the Board of Directors of Chelsea Day School.

Elton Huang has over 20 years of experience serving the Chinese Government, Chinese companies and multinational companies. Since 1995 when he joined PwC Shanghai， Elton has completed a number of overseas assignments in London with the European M&A Group and in San Jose, California in the US. Elton has a wealth of experience in tax planning, investment and finance structuring and has been leading a professional team in serving Chinese companies to invest overseas.

Elton is the Senior Partner of PwC Shanghai. He is also the Vice Chairman of Shanghai Association of Enterprises with Foreign investment, Shanghai Services Federation Committee Member and advisor to the Shanghai Municipal Government. Elton is a board member of Shanghai Charity Foundation – United Way Fund.

Elton is married and has two children , both are presently attending Wellington College International Shanghai. Elton enjoys running marathons and ultra-trail races.

Jacky Ni is the Headmaster of Shanghai Pudong High School, with over 20 years of school leadership experience across six schools. He graduated from Shanghai Normal University and began his teaching career at Shanghai Jianping High School and progress his career there.  In July 1996, Jacky took up his first headship position.

He studied part-time at East China Normal University and the National Training Centre for Secondary School Principals by Ministry of Education. In order to extend his professional learning beyond the education sector, Jacky also studied EMBA courses at Fudan University, the China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) and Freeman Business School, Tulane University.

In 2004, he took part in a Leadership program sponsored by the British Council and Shanghai Education Commission and in 2006 led Hualin Middle School successfully through an inspection by 2 HMIs. Between 2006 and 2007, Jack completed a Leadership and Self Inspection programme at the Institute of Education, London University and he also attained a Master’s Degree in Education from Towson University, USA. Jacky has undertaken more than ten research projects at national, municipal and district levels for which he has been awarded two National First Prizes and numerous other prizes.

Throughout his career, Jacky’s leadership has been recognised with a wide range of honours, including the award of Excellent Teacher and Excellent Master by Shanghai Education Commission. He has also been bestowed the ‘Prominent Master Development Project’ in Shanghai and requested to deliver Advanced Master Workshop Training for High Schools nationwide organised by the Ministry of Education. Furthermore, Jacky has been invited to deliver lectures by The British Council and a wide range of universities.

Jacky is motivated by finding ways to effectively integrate western and eastern education, to link the traditional and current educational approaches and is fully committed to continuous school improvement.

Born in Shanghai, Jacky is married and has one child. He enjoys travelling.

Helen Zhang is currently Director of Finance at Wellington College China. Before the appointment, Helen has served as a member of the Wellington College China Board during 2016-2018. Helen Zhang graduated from Fudan University major in International Finance. She is a qualified Chinese CPA and started her career as an auditor in PwC Shanghai. The audit experience provided her with extensive technical knowledge and practical skills in accounting, auditing, tax and internal controls. Helen subsequently joined Johnson Controls Asia Pacific where she took on diverse roles with enhanced business and management responsibilities including the Regional Lead Auditor of Asia Pacific, the Finance Controller of Power Solution Asia Headquarter and the Controller of Supply Chain Management. Helen is married and has two children.

Ms. Lydia Cheung is the Financial Controller of Italian luxury fashion brand INNIU. She is a visionary finance professional with extensive technical knowledge in international luxury fashion industry that she previously worked for Burberry, Dolce & Gabanna and Balenciaga. Ms. Cheung has been appointed as the Non-Executive Director of Wellington College International China Management Ltd since 2016.

Lydia has more than 20 years of financial management experience in the United Kingdom and Greater China. Her expertise anticipates strategic investment, optimize capital structure, budget control, implement financial recommendations to achieve business objectives and enhance sustainable long-term shareholders value and profitability.

Lydia graduated at Queen Mary College (University of London) with a BSc. (Hon) Statistics and also holds a MBA degree from Oklahoma City University, USA. She practiced as an auditor in London after graduation. Lydia is primarily based in Hong Kong. Relocated to Shanghai in 2008 for luxury brands working and living across China, Hong Kong, London and Italy. She is married with one daughter who is a graduate of The Wellington Academy UK and is currently starting her Postgraduate in Luxury Brand Management.