Student orators

Guests at two of this February’s ceremonies will be addressed by a student orator: teacher, author and Lecturer Francis Gilbert and Courtney McLaughlin, graduating with an MA from ICCE.

Francis Gilbert

Francis Gilbert was educated at Sussex University, Cambridge University and completed an MA in Creative Writing at the University Of East Anglia. In the 1990s he taught in a variety of comprehensives in London, giving up teaching in 1998, but resumed his teaching career in 2001. Shortly afterwards he became a Head of English, a post he held for six years before stepping down to devote more time to his family and writing.

He published Working The System - How To Get The Very Best State Education For Your Child in 2009 and a novel, The Last Day Of Term in 2011. He has published a number of study guides, and completed his PhD thesis in Creative Writing and Education, ‘Who Do You Love? The Novel of my Life’ at Goldsmiths in 2015. He is currently a Lecturer in Education in our Department of Educational Studies.

Francis has written extensively for the national press, and appeared as a commentator on all the major TV channels and radio stations. His speech to the Goldsmiths graduation ceremony on Wednesday 17 February focuses on the themes of 'joy' and 'connections' – the two most important things Goldsmiths has natured during his years here.

Courtney McLaughlin

Courtney McLaughlin is graduating with Merit from the MA in Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship, Media and Communications pathway. Prior to moving to London, Courtney received a BA in Communication Studies from Simon Fraser University in Vancouver and started her own communication and design business while living in Berlin. An actively engaged student and former debating champion in her native Canada, during her year at Goldsmiths she served as a student rep,participated in Global Entrepreneurship Week, and addressed a number of external conferences.

Courtney is currently pursuing a business start-up with classmates from her Goldsmiths course. The business focuses on entrepreneurial development and education in London and is a recent recipient of the Goldsmiths Innovation Award.

In her short address to the afternoon graduation ceremony on Thursday 18 February, Courtney will look back on her "intense, challenging and rewarding" Goldsmiths experience as a year where she met her business partners, best friends, mentors, and became part of a network that spans the globe.