About The Team
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| Name: | David Kaskel |
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| Title: | CEO and Managing Director |
| Bio: | David Kaskel is managing director and CEO of Languagelab. An experienced entrepreneur and acknowledged expert in virtual worlds, David has been deeply involved with Second Life and related platforms for many years, developing some of the top in-world projects, including Theatron, Greenies and Nowall/Backstage. A graduate of Yale University, David studied for a doctorate of second language acquisition in virtual environments at Kings College, London. |
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| Name: | Shiv Rajendran |
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| Title: | Operations Director |
| Bio: | Shiv‘s experience with virtual world education dates back to 2005. He is a leading educational technologist frequently speaking at conferences on virtual world education. He is involved with the EU funded projects and advises on virtual worlds in academic contexts. He has extensive experience building, testing and managing complex systems both in secure and public (online) environments. Shiv has a 1st class honours degree in Computer Science from Brunel University as well as a Master‘s degree with merit from Kings College, London. |
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| Name: | Tom Symonds |
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| Title: | Business Development Director |
| Bio: | Tom recently joined Languagelab as our Business Development Director. Following 8 years at GE Capital, he worked for leading internet business for a further 12 years, gaining a reputation for innovating and creating disruptive new business models. He led Sky’sinternet business through the dotcom fall out, and in establishing it as one of the UK’s major internet players, transformed the way in which the company interacted with its customers and prospects. Tom has since worked with startup businesses within the field of e-Learning, lending his vast expertise to fund-raising and strategy.Tom is a keen linguist and speaks French and German fluently. |
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| Name: | Jessica Driscoll |
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| Title: | Product Development Manager |
| Bio: | Jessica has a Master’s degree with distinction in Digital Culture and Technology from Kings College, London, and is a Social Anthropology graduate from London School of Economics. She is a fully qualified (CELTA) language professional with experience teaching English as a foreign language in Chile, Indonesia and London. |
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| Name: | Alan England |
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| Title: | Director of Sales |
| Bio: | With over 20 years of international experience, Alan England specialises in the development of corporate relationships for Languagelab. Alan began his career at Hays Plc in the construction industry, before moving to Emap Plc where he worked in the oil and gas, project finance and aviation sectors, both within the UK and abroad. Before joining Languagelab, Alan also spent 10 years working in the Middle East and Africa where he was responsible for setting up operations for the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. |
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| Name: | Louise Hayter |
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| Title: | Marketing Manager |
| Bio: | Louise is reponsible for the marketing, branding and promotional activity at Languagelab. She joined us from a busy consumer marketing agency, previously working in business development and digital marketing. Louise has lived in Italy on several occasions, previously studying in Florence and then working in Padova. There, she worked at a museum and taught English privately, an experience that kindled her interest in English as a Foreign Language. Outside the office, Louise is involved in fundraising and marketing efforts for the charity, Helping Point in India. |
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| Name: | Laura Jeffcoat |
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| Title: | Community Director |
| Bio: | Laura Jeffcoat (known as Lowri Mills “in world”) holds a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts in Theatre, a Master’s in Psychology and is currently working on a degree in Digital Imaging and Design. She worked professionally in over 96 theatre productions and several movies. After being diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis she became severely disabled, losing most of her vision and her ability to walk. While homebound, she went to school online and took one of the first college classes in Second Life. She applies the skills she learned there to welcoming new students to Languagelab and managing our teachers. |
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| Name: | Dong Ling Ma |
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| Title: | Customer Service Manager |
| Bio: | Dong Ling manages our international customer services team who provide 24/7 technical and pastoral support for our worldwide student base. She holds a Pharmacology and Psychology degree from Tianjin Medical University, China. Dong Ling has extensive virtual world technology experience and successfully implements new technical and HR solutions to improve the student experience and customer satisfaction at Languagelab. |
