Per June 1st, 2023, Mirjam van Leeuwen, secretary director of the Dutch Education Council will be the next EUNEC president. She is appointed for a 2-year term. She takes over the presidency of Manuel Miguéns, secretary general of the Portuguese education council.
Earlier this year, Leen Van Heurck, secretary general of the Flemish Education Council, was appointed as the new secretary general of EUNEC. She took over this position from Mia Douterlanghe, the former secretary general of the Flemish Education Council.
Mirjam van Leeuwen:
"EUNEC is a valuable network for cooperation and knowledge sharing across the borders of countries and education systems. It is very honourable for me to have been appointed as president. I look forward to working with the other members to further strengthen our network and share insights on developments affecting education in all our countries"
Leen Van Heurck:
"Bringing different perspectives together becomes more important than ever in a world where politics increasingly want to decide alone. More than ever, advisory councils must play their role to safeguard the democratic process. That requires members to stay on top of these things, but at the same time it also requires listening to each other's perspective. In EUNEC, we learn from each other how to do that effectively. We are also committed to create a strong network so that we can strengthen our own advisory work by always keeping in mind the broad view of the international education world"
Manuel Miguéns handed the two women in charge a Barcelos Rooster as a gift. This Portuguese figure symbolizes faith, honesty, justice and luck. This way, he put his faith into the new leadership of the network.
We wish both Mia Douterlungne and Manuel Miguéns the best of luck in their next chapter and a wonderful retirement.
