Digital Education Stakeholder Forum 2025:Tap into Europe's Digital Potential

Chair of EU STEM Coalition

Drs. Beatrice Boots is director of National Dutch STEM Platform - the knowledge, expertise and network centre in the field of technological education and the technological labour market. Cooperation between education and business and regional implementation are central, with attention to setting up sustainable, regional public-private partnerships of education, business and government. Underrepresented groups are an important focus of the approach. She is also chair of the EU STEM Coalition, the most important EU network of national STEM platforms and other association partners.

Board of Directors of European Schoolnet

Jan De Craemer works for the Knowledge Centre for Digital Education (Flemish Ministry of Education & Training). He is currently responsible for stakeholder management and international collaboration of the Knowledge Centre. For more than 25 years he has been responsible for ICT policies and initiatives in Flanders. He represents Flanders to the European Commission Working Group on Digital Education (DELTA). He is also the Chairman and Board Member of European Schoolnet.

Managing Director of European EdTech Alliance

Beth Havinga is the Managing Director of the European EdTech Alliance (EEA) and her own consultancy firm, Connect EdTech. Beth currently serves on the Digitisation Council of the state of Berlin in Germany, on the steering committee of DigiEduHack, and serves on the international advisory boards of CoSN, ISTE, and the Children’s Future Foundation. Beth represents the EEA in the European Commission stakeholder group on Digital Education Content, UNESCO’s Broadband Commission data for learning group, and the Digital Transformation Collaborative. Additionally, she consults to the Council of Europe on the topic of AI and education. Beth is chairwoman of the German standardization committee for Learning Technologies and represents Germany as head delegate to the European committee for standardization of interoperability of learning technologies and edtech. In the past, Beth has taught in schools, managed education software and publishing houses, founded two startups, and worked in over 45 countries to develop digital structures and strategies.

Director Pix

Benjamin Marteau is the director of “Pix”, an online public service designed to assess, develop, and certify digital skills initiated by France. Former General Delegate of the French Conseil national éducation-économie (“National Education-Economy Council”), he also served as Deputy Chief of Staff to the French Minister of Education (2012-2014) and as Parliamentary Assistant in the European Parliament.

Founder and CEO of Code.org

Hadi Partovi, a tech entrepreneur and the CEO of Code.org, has walked an improbable path from his upbringing during the Iran-Iraq war to his current leadership in technology and education. After immigrating to the US, he worked as a software engineer to pay for school, eventually earning a Masters in Computer Science from Harvard.  Rising to executive ranks at Microsoft, he founded startups later   
acquired by Microsoft and News Corp, and subsequently served as an advisor or early investor in companies that became household names such as Facebook, Dropbox, Uber, Airbnb, and SpaceX. 

As founder and CEO of Code.org, Hadi has helped expand computer science education to reach 30% of US students and launched the global Hour of Code initiative that has surpassed 1 billion student  
engagements. Residing in Seattle, Hadi finds enjoyment in skiing, water sports, music, and word games during his spare time.

Deputy Director, National Audiovisual Institute of Finland (KAVI)

Dr Leo Pekkala is a distinguished expert in Media and Information Literacy, with extensive experience in research, higher education, teacher training, and sustainable development across both developing and developed contexts. As the Deputy Director of the National Audiovisual Institute (KAVI) and Head of the Media Education and Audiovisual Media Department, Dr Pekkala oversees the national promotion and coordination of media education and media literacy in Finland. He represents Finland in number of international organisations promoting media literacy.

Teacher at University College Dublin (SELFIE)

Declan Qualter works in initial teacher education at the UCD School of Education. His research interests include teachers' digital skills, AI literacy, and parental involvement in children's digital learning. He has previously served as a member of the European Commission’s SELFIE for Teachers Expert Group and as a regional advisor in Ireland, supporting the implementation of SELFIE in secondary schools. Declan is also an active member of several European working groups and projects on digital education.

Programme Director and Senior Lecturer at Bucerius Law School

Lezel Roddeck is the Programme Director at Bucerius Law School, Germany, where she leads academic strategy and oversees over 60 courses annually. A former practising lawyer, she brings over a decade of expertise in higher education, driving innovation in legal education through curriculum development, strategic international collaboration, and the digital transformation of academic programmes. She directs the Foreign Language Communication Programme, directing the development of cross-cultural legal communication skills in English (Common Law), French, Spanish, Chinese, and Arabic. 

 
An early advocate of digital modernisation in legal education, Ms Roddeck has pioneered the adoption of digital assessment systems, flipped classroom methodologies, and multimedia resources at Bucerius Law School. Her research sits at the forefront of the intersection between law, education, and emerging technologies, with a particular emphasis on explainable artificial intelligence (XAI), data protection, and regulatory innovation. 
She has published widely on these topics in academic journals, edited volumes, and policy reports. Most recently, she contributed to the European Digital Education Hub (EDEH) expert report on Explainable AI (XAI) in education, and serves as a member of the Working Group responsible for updating the Ethical Guidelines on AI and Data for Educators. Through her work, she contributes to shaping European discussions on responsible innovation, transparency, and the future of digital education.  
Ms Roddeck actively participates in EU-funded working groups and expert networks, and regularly shares her work at international conferences focused on AI governance, digital transformation, and the future of education in a digital society

Principal of the Lycée des Arts et Métier (School lead/Guidelines)

Fabrice Roth is the Director of the Lycée des Arts et Métiers (LAM) in Luxembourg, a role he has held since 2018​. With a background as a computer science engineer, he spent over a decade teaching information technology at LAM​, giving him firsthand insight into classroom realities and the evolving needs of digital-age learners. This dual experience as an educator and technologist fuels his dynamic approach to school leadership and curriculum innovation. 

As Director, Roth has spearheaded the launch of cutting-edge short-cycle higher education programs (BTS) to align education with industry demands. Under his leadership, LAM introduced new BTS programs in Game Design, Game Programming, the Internet of Things (IoT)​ and lately in Applied Artificial Intelligence, making the school a pioneer in these high-tech fields. In 2019, he also established the TalentHub incubator on the LAM campus​ – a unique collaborative space that brings together students and startups. Through TalentHub, young innovators work side by side with ed-tech entrepreneurs, bridging education and enterprise in daily practice and fostering a strong culture of entrepreneurship among students.   

Beyond his school, Fabrice Roth contributes actively to national digital education reforms. He participated in initiatives like AI4T (Artificial Intelligence for Teachers), which empower educators to understand and leverage AI tools in secondary education. He also launched the “Du bass prett!” (“You are ready!”) in 2022​, aimed at preparing students in preparatory tracks for the future through hands-on learning experiences and cultural projects.  
A proponent of innovative pedagogy, Roth champions hybrid learning models that blend online and in-person teaching, ensuring learning remains flexible and resilient. He frequently advocates for integrating real-world projects and entrepreneurial thinking into the curriculum, believing these approaches equip students with critical 21st-century skills. 

Roth’s commitment to youth development extends into the community. He serves as a board member of Fondation Sommer, a prominent Luxembourg foundation dedicated to promoting youth education and culture​.  
As a thought leader, he engages with wider audiences through social media and professional networks. On LinkedIn and Facebook, he regularly shares reflections on digital innovation in education, discusses data privacy and ethics in the use of educational technology, and highlights successful school–industry collaborations. Fabrice Roth’s professional journey reflects a passion for bridging traditional education with future focused innovation.

Senior Research Analyst, IEA (ICILS)

Dr. Mojca Rožman is a Senior Research Analyst in the Research and Analysis Unit (RandA) of IEA. Her research interests include questionnaire development and psychometric analysis, focusing on scaling of questionnaire, and test data. She led the scaling, analysis and reporting tasks, as well as co-leading questionnaire development for the International Computer and Information Literacy Study (ICILS) 2023. Dr. Rožman was joint editor and author of the ICILS 2023 Assessment Framework and Technical Report and a contributing author to the ICILS 2023 International Report.

Lead Educational Manager at We School

Letizia Sbarbaro, 30, is the CEO of WeSchool, Italy’s leading company in educational innovation, with over 260,000 teachers and 1.7 million students. Since 2019, she has been working on the design and development of training courses for teachers and educational projects for students, aiming to bridge the gap between education and the world of work, and to help young people become more motivated individuals, more aware professionals, and more engaged citizens. 
She holds a degree in Philosophy from the Catholic University of the Sacred Heart in Milan, where she also collaborates as a teaching assistant in the courses of Philosophical Anthropology, Ethics, and Moral Philosophy.

University of Technology, Warsaw

Karolina Skalska is a third-year Aerospace Engineering student at Warsaw University of Technology. She is the Chairman of the International Affairs Committee, where she actively supports and integrates international students within the university community. She was also one of the coordinators of the ENHANCE Smart City Challenge, which brought together students from across Europe to collaborate on innovative solutions for urban challenges. Beyond the Students' Union activity, she is also the President of the SKAP Motostudent team at WUT.

President of E-Civis

Ana-Maria Stancu is the Founder of RoboHub - an excellence center in AI & Robotics, and the CEO of Bucharest Robots. With a strong background in civic engagement and digital inclusion, she promotes robotics education for all, especially vulnerable groups. She advocates for ethical, inclusive tech policies both on a national and European level. Through RoboHub, she empowers children and teachers to shape the future with technology. Ana-Maria Stancu

Girls Go Cirular Ambassador + guardian (GGC)

Aanvi Tandon, 14, is a passionate environmentalist who began advocating “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle” in primary school. With Girls Go Circular, she promotes circular economy practices and co-created a recycling game app. A confident speaker and student leader, she represented Girls Go Circular as a panellist at DigiEduHack Main Stage Event in 2024, by speaking at school events, and by leading workshops, to inspire peers toward sustainability and responsible innovation!

Digital Contact Point, Dutch National Agency 

Before joining Nuffic (the Dutch National Agency for Erasmus+), Virginia van der Ster- van der Wel was the Project Manager and Senior Policy Advisor for Global Engagement in HEI for 16 years, where her core business was managing and monitoring international cooperation and ensuring that the mobility goals in the institution’s strategy were accomplished. Projects which Virginia managed were mostly linked to digitalization, such as “Erasmus without Paper” (paperless administration) and setting up multiple Virtual International Cooperation (VIS) projects. During her time in Higher Education, Virginia was also an elected Steering Group Member of the EAIE’s Expert Community Mobility Advising for six years (from 2016-2022). 

During her current role as Digital Contact Point, Virginia was member of the Steering Group on Digital, in which she contributed to the strategic framework for digitalisation.  

Finally, Virginia is also member of the European Digital Education Hub, in which she was the Squad Leader for the Squad for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and an active member of the Squad for Sustainability.