While academic excellence and growth is the core purpose of study abroad, individual and community wellbeing are critical to anyone’s ability to achieve these. Our programming thus includes a strong focus on wellness – check out our Wellbeing Wednesday series.
Safety and security are our first priority. A number of services, including access to London doctors and hospitals, are available for registered students. Our Student Support Office is the key point of contact for students who would like to discuss mental health concern, but all of our staff are here to help!
It is important that students take the appropriate actions to ensure their own health and safety; this is especially true while travelling. Students staying away from their regular London housing are required to complete an Independent Travel Form to provide the Syracuse London staff with emergency information in case of incidents or missed transit connections.
Meet the Student Support Team:
-
Nada SilmanStudent Support
-
Emmanuelle DirixAdvocacy
-
Sharon McGheeHousing
-
Rebecca PollackLearning Support
Nada Silman
About
Nada, our Assistant Director for Student Support, has a BA and an MA in International Relations. She has worked in UK and US Higher Education institutions for over 12 years, including University College London, Hult International Business School, London Business School and, most recently, Kent and Medway Medical School. She brings with her a wealth of experience in student life, programming, and communications.
Nada is very interested in identity politics and the relationship we have with who we think we are. She has a variety of hobbies, with cooking being her favourite of all.
Emmanuelle Dirix
Meet Emmanuelle
Emmanuelle is a cultural theorist who specialises in fashion studies. A graduate from the University of Sussex, Professor Dirix has worked in higher education for eighteen years, lecturing at Central Saint Martins, London College of Fashion, and the Royal College of Art as well as serving as head of critical and contextual studies at the Antwerp Fashion Academy since 2009. As well as teaching “Fashion in Focus” and “Beauty and Diversity in Fashion Media” at Syracuse London, Professor Dirix serves as our Learning Advocate, ensuring every student is able to excel and make the most of their academic time in Britain.
Emmanuelle’s most recent work includes “Dressing the Decades” (Yale University Press) and several academic journal articles for “Film, Fashion & Consumption”, “Fashion Theory Russia” and the journal “Clothing Cultures”. She has curated several major travelling fashion exhibitions including “Unravel” for the Fashion Museum in Antwerp. Aside from her academic practice, Emmanuelle works as a freelance fashion branding and communications consultant for the luxury industry, is a columnist for KingKong magazine, and is regularly contacted by leading international news outlets as a subject expert.
In her free time, Emmanuelle escapes the city by through-hiking, wild camping, and running after a small child.
Sharon McGhee
Meet Sharon
Sharon McGhee is one of our Cultural Immersion Advisers, responsible for housing with the intention of helping students to maximise their learning opportunities through deeper engagement with the city and their local neighbourhoods.
Sharon holds a double B.Sc. in Biology and Maths and a PG Diploma in Education. She is an experienced science and maths teacher in secondary schools, and has previously worked as secretary for the Westminster district of the National Education Union.
Rebecca Pollack
Meet Dr Pollack
Dr Rebecca Pollack is an architectural historian researching memorials and monuments. Her doctoral work at CUNY examined Holocaust memorials and museums in Britain, analysing their forms, content, and locations. She is especially interested in how contemporary debates around monuments to Imperialists and slavers – and, critically, the lack of memorials to the victims of those histories – intersects with public discourse and government use of Holocaust commemoration.
In 2020, Rebecca immigrated to London. She now serves as Student Support Administrator at Syracuse London, helping students navigate their transition to British studies. She is particularly well-suited for the role: while an undergrad at Brandeis University, Rebecca spent her junior year abroad in London. Outside of academia, Rebecca likes to bake, visit English country houses, and watch reality TV.