A message from Ümit Kemal Yıldız - new Chair of SEED School Board

29 Oct 2025

Ümit Yildiz has been elected as the new Chair of the SEED School Board, receiving 33.9% of the total vote.

Ümit was nominated by Steve Jones and seconded by Sadia Habib and stood alongside Anna Hughes (Geog) and Nuno Pinto (PPEM) in what was a strong and committed field of candidates and a very close election (please see results below). We are grateful to all three nominees for their willingness to stand and for the thoughtful manifestos they shared.

The election ran from Monday 13th October to Monday 27th October 2025 and was open to all SEED staff members.  

As Chair, Ümit will have overall responsibility for the School Board’s business. The Board provides a forum for staff voices to be heard in the School’s executive management and strategic development. A handover between Ümit and our outgoing chair, Miri Firth, will be arranged. 

Ümit shared this message with colleagues:

"Thank you very much for electing me as the next Chair of the SEED School Board. I am truly honoured by your confidence in me, and I look forward to working with all of you.

I hope our future board meetings will be lively, collaborative and productive - leading to positive, meaningful actions for our school community. Please stay in touch and feel free to share any ideas or agenda items you’d like to see discussed. 

Collectively, we can make our school board an even more effective and engaged part of our governing structure.

Finally, I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to our outgoing Chair, Dr Miri Firth, for her outstanding work and dedication over the past three years. 

See you all at the next board meeting.  Ümit Kemal Yıldız"