paulgerhard.eu

Organised and committed communication expert with 8+ years of projects development experience. Seeking a position as a communication specialist to utilize my knowledge in media and education stakeholders’ outreach; print and web projects coordination and internal and external communication skills; to effectively communicate the goals and objectives of an organization.

EUN partnership AISBL (European Schoolnet) – Brussels, Belgium
Information and Communication Officer

Highlights:

• Played a pivotal role in synchronizing concepts, portals, website and managing the development of web applications for large-scale European Union projects including the European e-Skills Week (DG Enterprise), Scientix platform for the teaching of Math, Science and Technology (DG Research) and Peer Learning in Europe/P2V (DG Eduaction&Culture).
• Originated and managed publications of books, brochures etc for several projects including: Electronic Games in Schools (ISFE), iClass (DG-Information Society).
• Planned and deployed an integrated range of e-marketing concepts including the use of web 2.0 technologies, social networking and monitored production and edition of electronic newsletters, to be distributed among 5,000 teachers/ head teachers, policy makers and education stakeholders.
• Authored and edited two books: Learning Management System (iClass, the future of learning) and Peer Learning Methodologies for policy makers, teachers and school inspectors (Learning from each other, The P2V project on ICT and school change).
• Delivered training to 80 teachers for new learning management system (iClass) and organized study visits to EUN partnership for teachers, school leaders and international visitors: KERIS (Korea), NIME (Japan).

Key responsibilities

• Planning, developing and delivering internal and external communications and serving as writer/editor/designer of various publications.
• Evaluating and defining project requirements, analyzing functions, determining appropriate solutions, monitoring coding/testing for new and modified websites, portals, blogs, web application, resource libraries for projects, conferences, competitions, events and corporate website.
• Writing, compiling and editing articles, books, features, press releases and newsletters. Determining the editorial content, cross checking the facts, contributing to matters of design and proofreading all publications material.
• Mentoring interns and colleagues on journalistic techniques, including education, new technologies, innovations and policy making.

European Journalism Centre – Maastricht, The Netherlands
Webmaster and web editor
July 2001 ~ January 2005
July 01 – Mar 02: Joined as an intern later worked as freelance Webmaster and subsequently got employed as Web Editor

Key Responsibilities:

• Responsible for the corporate website editorial and technical maintenance.  Launched two other websites for journalism training institutions and tips for journalists.
• Aided with creation, strategy and development of content for stories and newsletter for European Media News bulletin and stories for magazine ‘Crossroads’- pertaining to new technologies, research, etc.
• Ensured accuracy of information included in magazines, brochures and newsletters.
• Reorganized and formatted content for the architecture of web sites and effective interactive communications.
• Troubleshot the website, developed new modules for web site, web interface designing, database update, added new pages as and when required.
• Designed and developed a number of back end processes aimed at improving the sites overall performance, general effectiveness, usability, and search engine rankings.
• Organized training seminars on eLearning solutions for journalism training institutions.

• Experienced web projects manager from conception, design and technical implementation.
• Publications coordinator: from edition of texts to coordination of design, desktop publishing and link with printing houses.
• Press and media outreach strategies particularly press release techniques and identification of effectiveness of messages.
• Skilled writer on all journalistic techniques: press releases, features, articles, blogs and social web communications.
• Ability and experience to work in multicultural environments in various languages with people from different background and work culture
• Strong communication skills in mother tongue and foreign languages (English/French (mother tongue level), German/Italian (advanced).
• Advanced user of Office Suite (Word templates, PowerPoint expert). Photoshop, Illustrator, Dreamweaver, FTP, Content Management Systems. Basic knowledge of PHP/MySQL, GarageBand (Podcasts).

Université de Bourgogne (Dijon, France), University of Bradford (UK)
Master of Arts Communications ‘Euromédias’
September 2001

Course content: Graphic Communication, Editing, Audiovisual Media, Journalism, Audiovisual Communication, Press (Internship), Mass Communication, Modern Languages

Six month study in England at Electronic Imaging and Media Communication, University of Bradford (EU Erasmus Programme)

Université de Paris X (Paris, France)
Bachelor of Arts Journalism and Communication
June 1999

Course content: Marketing, Graphic Communication, Editing, Public Relations, Journalism, Scientific Journalism, Press Law, Modern Languages.

Secured an internship as one of three best students in science journalism class with Science & Vie Excelsior Publications.

• Produced short and medium-size stories each month on a freelance basis until May 2000.

Blamire, R.; Gerhard, P., Learning from each other: The P2V project on ICT and school change (May 2009, Belgium. ISBN 9789078209904)

Gerhard, P. et alii, The Future of Learning? Results from the iClass project (June 2008, Belgium. ISBN: 9789078209621)

European e-Skills Week: http://eskills-week.ec.europa.eu

Corporate portal: www.europeanschoolnet.org

eLearning Awards: http://elearningawards.eun.org

Blogs: (annual conference) http://eminent.eun.org/blog; (Games in Schools project) http://games.eun.org; (international symposium) http://is.eun.org.

e-Skills Week (2010)
An awareness raising campaign to inform young people, educators and IT stakeholders of the benefits of IT careers as Europe experiences a downfall in young people studying IT topics

Download the e-Skills week logos, poster, buttons and banners (zip file)

My tasks:

• Managing the development/creation of the European Portal at http://eskills-week.ec.europa.eu
• Link with media and European stakeholders active in the area of digital skills, IT industry, Ministries of education
• Graphic identity of the whole project
• Managing a community of stakeholders to populate the website with national and European events
• Creation of a blog, video and audio podcasts

Games in Schools (2009)
Series of reports and handbook for teachers published in the framework of a major study financed by the Interactive Software Federation of Europe on the use of games in schools in Europe.

Handbook for teachers (40 page PDF) – English version
Synthesis report (40 page PDF) – English version

my tasks: coordination of design (design draft), designers, desktop publisher and printer

Peer learning in Europe (2009)

As part of the P2V project which aimed to promote peer learning activities between schools, inspectors and policy makers in Europe, European Schoolnet published a peer learning toolkit: “Learning from each other: The P2V Project on ICT and School Change”.

Learning from each other: The P2V Project on ICT and School Change (PDF, 64 pages) – English

my tasks: co-authored the book, coordination of design (design draft), designers, desktop publisher and printer

iClass (2008)
iClass was a project initiated by DG Information Society of the European Commission to develop a an intelligent Distributed Cognitive-based Open Learning System for schools.

My tasks: Teacher training of the platform, evaluation and production of a manual to be used by teachers

More information: http://insight.eun.org/ww/en/pub/insight/school_innovation/learnenv/iclass.htm

Alexa Joyce (EUN partnership/European Schoolnet), Senior Communication and Business development manager: alexa.joyce@eun.org

Roger Blamire (EUN partnership/European Schoolnet), Senior Manager Policy and practice: roger.blamire@eun.org

Giuseppe Zaffuto (European Journalism Centre), Director of programmes (on leave): zaffuto@katamail.com