Recently, Kenneth Vella graduated with a PhD in educational research and development from the University of Lincoln in the UK.
Vella’s study analysed leadership progression in Maltese schools, with emphasis on Church secondary institutions in a context of enclosed succession.
This research delved particularly into how Church schools in Malta develop their lay leaders from within their own schools.
In this phenomenological research, using document analysis, interviews and a questionnaire, perceptions were gathered from five case study secondary schools, about middle leadership as a career stage, the roles of middle leaders and development opportunities.
Vella is headmaster of Mater Boni Consilii St Joseph School Paola, a part-time lecturer at the University of Malta and a member of the executive committee of the Malta Society for Educational Administration and Management (MSEAM).
His doctoral study and course at the University of Lincoln was carried out following the award of a Malta government scholarship scheme grant.