Our Governors
Vice-Chair: Mrs Barbara Elliot MA (Cantab)
Barbara became a Governor in 2021 and has a long association with St Columba’s College. Her four sons attended both the Prep and Senior School and she herself taught Spanish and French at the Senior School from 1995 to 2001. A Cambridge graduate, she was appointed Head of Modern Languages at St Albans High School, going on to be Deputy Head and then Acting Head. In 2005, she moved to Highgate where she enjoyed fifteen years as Headmistress of Channing School, an independent school of almost 1000 girls aged 4 – 18. She is now working in recruitment, helping schools appoint senior leaders. In her spare time, she enjoys creative writing, travelling, running and spending time with her grandchildren. Barbara is a member of the Education, Strategy and Policy Committee.
Br Joseph Holthaus, MA
Brother Joseph Holthaus joined us in September 2020 and serves as Dean of the College. As Dean, he is the liaison between St Columba’s College and the Brothers of the Sacred Heart of the Province of the United States. He works with Senior Management and the Governors to maintain the ethos and foundational charism of the Brothers. Brother Joseph was born into a military family in Syracuse, New York and as such grew up residing in seven domestic and international cities. His responsibilities as a Brother include new faculty charism formation, institutional advancement and administrative roles with the Brothers’ schools, as well as province leadership. Brother Joe holds a BA in Secondary Education from Spring Hill College in Alabama, and an MA in English from Notre Dame University.
Mr Oli Adams BA (Hons)
Oli joined the Board of Governors in 2019, and he attended both the Prep and Senior Schools from 1986 to 1997. He was heavily involved in Music at the school, playing in the orchestra and singing in the choir. His proudest moment was probably receiving a standing ovation for his performance as Julie Jordan in Carousel as a boy soprano. He left St Columba’s to study Modern Languages at the University of Exeter, inspired by his love of Latin. After a ten year stint in various sales and marketing roles at the FTSE 100 Company, Pearson; and eight years as Brentwood School’s Director of Communications, Admissions & Development, he now works in the marketing department of the Education and Training Foundation, supporting the professional development of further education teachers and leaders, with a particular focus on T Levels and apprenticeships. He lives in a village south of Bishop’s Stortford with his wife Nicola, two children, and two Cavalier King Charles spaniels. His parents have lived in Chiswell Green since 1966. Oli is a member of the Finance and General Purposes Committee.
Br Ronald Hingle S.C., B.S., M.Ed.
Brother Ronald became a Brother of the Sacred Heart in 1982. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics Education from Loyola University in New Orleans, and a Masters’s degree in Catholic School Administration from Boston College. Brother Ronald has been involved in the field of education for thirty-six years, teaching maths and religion in high schools throughout the southern part of the US, serving as an assistant principal, principal, and school president in several schools. He has also served as Vocation Director for nine years. The Brothers elected Brother Ronald to serve as Provincial of the Province of the United States, of which St Columba’s is a part, in October 2013. He has been a member of the Brothers’ leadership team since 2000 and became a member of the Board of Governors in the fall of 2018.
Mr Bradley Hutchinson LLB (Hons)
Bradley joined the Board of Governors in 2017. He was at St Columba’s for 10 years, attending both the Prep and Senior schools, and was Head Boy from 2003-2004. He went on to study Law at Bristol University and has worked in numerous legal and commercial roles, both in the City and in-house. Bradley is passionate about developing positive workplace cultures and the benefits such cultures can have to people’s professional and personal lives. He is also a keen musician and sportsman, having been part of Saracens and Bristol Rugby Academies. Bradley is a member of the Education, Strategy and Policy Committee.
Br Ivy LeBlanc SC, BS, MEd, MPS
Brother Ivy became a Brother of the Sacred Heart in 1967 and has been a member of the Board of Governors since 2009. As well as being steeped in the Charism of the Brothers, he has a Bachelor’s Degree in Accounting from Louisiana State University, a Master’s Degree in Educational Administration from Tulane University and a Master’s Degree in Theology from Loyola University of New Orleans. After thirty-one years in school ministry as teacher, Assistant Principal, Principal and President, he served seven years as Provincial of the New Orleans Province of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart. He now serves on the Provincial Council and as Treasurer of the US Province. He is also the Executive Director of the Brothers of the Sacred Heart Foundation and directs the Coindre Leadership Program.
Mrs Nicola Lloyd BA(Hons), LLB
Nicola joined the Board of Governors in 2019. Her twin boys joined St Columba’s College in Prep 3 and are now in the Senior School. Nicola has over 30 years experience as a lawyer in the oil & gas and shipping industries. She has been the lawyer responsible for major liquefied natural gas projects across the world, including Egypt, Trinidad and the US. Nicola retired at the end of 2020 from her position as General Counsel at GasLog Ltd, a US public company where she brought in a Company Secretary and team of lawyers and was responsible for corporate governance & compliance as well as the contracts for the Company for a period of six years. During that time, Nicola also set up a forum for Women in GasLog to discuss unconscious bias, gender diversity & inclusion to support the progress of Women in GasLog and to purposely strengthen the chain of female leadership. Nicola has experience of being a Governor as she joined Bernards Heath Infant & Nursery School in 2010 as LEA Governor and went on to become Chair of Governors at that school in 2012. Nicola is a member of the Finance and General Purposes Committee.
Mrs Ruth Loveman
Ruth joined the Board of Governors in 2022. She has extensive knowledge of both St Columba’s, through work and her sons attending the Prep and Senior, and education in general; having inspected over thirty schools as a Reporting Inspector of educational quality and compliance for ISI. Ruth began her career thirty-five years ago at Haberdashers’ Girls’ School, before moving to be Director of Studies at Manor Lodge School in Shenley. In 2007 Ruth moved to St Columba’s College and spent twelve years as Head of the Prep School and a further three years as Executive Teacher and Coach, being responsible for the schools move to co-education. She is interested in all aspects of education and enjoys sport having played lacrosse for England back in the 1990s. Ruth is a member of the Education, Strategy and Policy Committee.
Mr Stephen Watson BA, FCA
Stephen became a member of the Board of Governors in 2012. Stephen is an Economics graduate from the University of Kent and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. Following a decade with Price Waterhouse, working in London, Milan and St Albans, he has spent the last twenty years as Finance Director of a number of professional services firms based in the City of London. Stephen is currently Director of Finance at Dentons UK & Middle East LLP, an international law firm. He is married with two sons, both of whom are Columbans, having spent fourteen years at the school. Stephen chairs the Finance and General Purposes Committee and the Audit Committee.
