Supporting our community – my role as a trustee for ALT
By Matt Cornock, University of Leeds
Trustees’ Week falls on 3-7 November this year. As part of the celebrations, ALT is recognising the invaluable work of our trustees. ALT’s trustees set our direction and are responsible for ALT’s strategy and the overall performance of the Association. During this week, we will be publishing articles by Keith Smyth and Matt Cornock.
I have been a member of the Association for Learning Technology (ALT) since I started my career and as I’ve changed roles and institutions, and focused my career in different areas, I’ve always been grateful for being able to be part of the ALT community. I became a trustee as I wanted the opportunity to shape the organisation that reflects my both professional identity and the values that bring the community together. Each month, as a trustee group, we provide feedback on activities being undertaken by the ALT team and ALT community, and provide direction on both financial and strategic matters. In my contributions I draw upon experience working in both higher education and professional learning settings, aiming to reflect the interests of members, the charity and with a view of the future of the education sector.
One aspect of ALT that I have a lot of enthusiasm for is the Certified Membership (CMALT) peer-assessed professional accreditation. Over the last five years we’ve welcomed over 1,000 portfolio submissions, including at Associate level for those new to careers in applied educational technology and Senior level for those with leadership and sustained impact. CMALT is a valuable development experience and as such I’ve completed three portfolios over the years, with each reflecting my own stage of professional development.
I have also assessed a large number of portfolios from a wide range of individuals. It’s because CMALT is both distinctive in recognising the unique contribution of expertise in the effective use of educational technologies, and that it welcomes a broad range of candidates, from formal education and professional learning contexts, that I find it incredibly valuable to be an assessor. I learn so much!
Each trustee at ALT takes responsibility for at least one area of activity. I lead the CMALT Committee, which is formed of CMALT holders and assessors. Our remit is to develop CMALT and ensure it remains both robust and relevant for our professional sector. Responding to the community, we’ve seen positive feedback from the CMALT week earlier in the year, with individual informal chats with CMALT Assessors being highlighted by candidates as particularly useful. We’re keen to continue to support those, so keep subscribed to the ALT Members Newsletter for future dates. The committee is also refreshing the guidance by providing examples of portfolio structures and rubrics to enable greater understanding of the criteria for both candidates and assessors. We will also be starting up a refreshed series of supporting CMALT webinars in 2026, but if you’re new to CMALT there’s an introduction from me available to watch.
If you have any feedback on CMALT or want to find out more, please take a look at the CMALT guidance or email cmalt@alt.ac.uk.