Dr Irene Macías, Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and Chartered Linguist, graduated from King’s College, London, where she obtained her degree and her doctorate.

Her teaching and research focus on Applied Linguistics, Spanish as a Foreign Language and Contemporary Spain; she has a particular interest in the intersection of culture and language pedagogy, and she is currently working on decolonial approaches to education. 

She works closely with the Centre for Learning & Teaching as an Advisor and Senior Observer for its HEA-accredited Fellowship programme, supporting excellence in academic practice.

Within her department, she has held several leadership roles, including Head of the Hispanics Section and Director of Studies for the International Management and Modern Languages degree programme.

Beyond the university, Irene is actively involved in national initiatives. She is a member of the ELEUK Special Interest Group on decolonisation. She is also the Co-founder and Co-Director of LanGW4, a collaborative languages consortium between the universities of Bath, Bristol, Cardiff, and Exeter. LanGW4 promotes innovation in language education and hosts an annual colloquium focused on advancing modern languages scholarship.