Joy Qiao

Founder and Chairman

Joy Qiao is the Founder and Chairman of Wellington College China. She founded the group in 2009 and, under her leadership, Wellington China has become one of the most reputable international education groups in China and globally. Joy grew up in Shanghai and earned her BA in Computer Science at the University of Oxford. Prior to her devotion to education, she had extensive experience working in the IT industry in the United Kingdom, Germany and China.

Joy is married to a British husband and they have two teenage sons. Influenced by this, Joy's vision is to create the world's leading English-Chinese bilingual schools, which combine the very best attributes of both British and Chinese education. She views such blended education as being a key contributor towards deepening understanding and appreciation between China and the rest of the world. Bilingualism, cross-cultural awareness and global citizenship will all be highly valued skills in this century when East is meeting West.  

Anthony Zhao

Governor

Hiba Academy Hangzhou/ Hiba Academy Hangzhou

Mr Anthony Zhao is the Chairman of the Management Committee of Zhong Lun Law Firm.

Anthony obtained his LLB from Fudan University, LLM in International Economic Law from Queen’s University (Canada), and LLM in Corporate Law from New York University.

He is admitted to practice law in China and New York State, and previously worked at Paul Weiss in New York and Hong Kong before joining Zhong Lun. Anthony’s practice is concentrated on PE/VC investments, corporate/M&A and capital markets, with extensive experience in a broad range of industrial sectors in China. He has been consistently recognised by major international institutions as a leading Asian law practitioner in the above areas and TMT sector. He was awarded by All China Lawyers Association as a “National Leading Lawyer” and honoured by Shanghai Bar Association as an “Orient’s Best Lawyer”.

He is a member of the Standing Committee of CPPCC Shanghai Pudong New Area Committee, and was as a member of All-China Youth Federation (the Ninth National Congress).

Anthony is married and has one child who attended Wellington College International Shanghai. He is a keen observer of international relations, likes to be a gastronomic traveller and enjoys exploring the creativity embedded in different cultures.

Maya Tarabay Schisano

Governor

Wellington College Hangzhou

Ms Maya Tarabay Schisano is one of the founding members of the Friends of Wellington (FOW), serving as the Events Chair since 2014 and the Chair in the 2018-19 school year. She worked closely with the College to achieve an open, dynamic and inclusive culture.

Maya has a BA in Interior Design, Marketing and Fine Arts from the American University of Beirut in Lebanon and is fluent in Arabic, French, Italian and English. Currently living in Shanghai, Maya has lived in the United States, Lebanon, the United Arab Emirates, Italy and Australia.

She has extensive experience working in the luxury goods industry, and was at one time a global account manager at Prada. Maya also has experience in public relations and marketing, consulting for various Lebanese businesses as well as MSN Arabia and Sabil Water. In addition, she spent some time working as a presenter for the National Broadcasting Network (NBN) in Lebanon.

Maya first became seriously interested in education when her boys first started school at Wellington College International Shanghai in 2014. Recognising the alignment between the College’s philosophy and ethos and her own, she put her energy and focus as a parent into working towards that common goal: a school in which all children can thrive and that her boys are proud to be Wellingtonians.

Andy Yarrow

Governor

Hiba Academy Hangzhou/Hiba Academy Hangzhou

Andy Yarrow has been Chief Executive of Anthem, a UK-based Multi-Academy trust with 16 primary and secondary schools, since March 2017. He spent the previous three and a half years at one of the largest MATs, Oasis Community Learning, as Regional Director for the London and South East Region. Prior to joining Oasis in 2013, Andy was Founding Principal of Chelsea Academy and Headteacher of Hornsey School for Girls in Haringey, London. Both schools achieved outstanding Ofsted judgments under his leadership. Having studied geography at UCL, followed by a PGCE at Cambridge University, Andy started his career as a secondary school geography teacher in London in 1991, moving to Head of Geography in Surrey in 1995, Assistant Headteacher in Hertfordshire in 1998, Deputy Headteacher in Slough in 2000 and headship in 2004.  

Andy has been a coach for UCL's NPQH programme and has coached around 100 aspiring and serving headteachers over the past 12 years. Andy also has a considerable interest in international education, having visited schools in over 20 different countries and spoken at school leadership conferences in several, including China.  

Chris Huo

Governor

Wellington College China Hangzhou

Chris Huo works with Fosun International as Senior Investment Director. He leads the private equity investment activities in the UK and European market for the real estate arm of Fosun Group and is responsible for overseas subsidiary businesses from a governance and compliance perspective. Prior to Fosun, Chris spent 10 years with KPMG in the UK where he practiced as an auditor of international businesses, covering a wide range of industries and public organisations including universities and charities. He also worked in the KPMG Corporate Finance division, advising UK-listed corporates and global investment funds in infrastructure and TMT spaces, with respect to corporate reorganisation/ restructuring, strategic review, cross-border transactions and valuation.

Outside of work, Chris has gained experience of governance and wider regulatory issues through his interest in technology and investment. In the field of venture capital investment activities, he acts as a senior consultant for early-stage companies (FinTech, medical device, data analytics and distributed ledger) in the UK. He currently sits on the board of directors of VOGT Stockholm, a Swedish luxury fashion business.  

Chris has 20 years of experience of living and working across Asia and Europe. Very relevant to Wellington China, he was educated in both China and in the UK. Chris has a deep understanding of both parts of the world, making him a natural candidate for working across cultures.

Chris graduated with a BEng (Hon) in Electromechanical Engineering from the University of Southampton in 2008. He then qualified as a chartered accountant with The Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales in 2011. He is married with one child who presently studies at Wellington College International Shanghai.

Jie Zhang

Governor

Hiba Academy Hangzhou

Ms. Jie Zhang currently serves as the Deputy Secretary-General at Westlake University, where she oversees the recruitment and management of international undergraduate students. Before her tenure at Westlake University, Ms. Zhang dedicated over three decades to the public and private education sectors in New York City, USA. Her extensive experience includes roles as a high school math teacher, vice principal, principal, and district superintendent. Notably, she was the first Chinese-American principal of the prestigious Stuyvesant High School in New York City.

Westlake University, situated in the West Lake District of Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, is a non-profit research institution backed by both societal and national support. Founded in October 2018, the university initially focused on graduate education and has since expanded to include undergraduate programs, with a full-time student population not exceeding 5,000. With Jie Zhang's expertise and leadership, Westlake University is poised to enhance its undergraduate education's international standing.

Jie Zhang holds a Bachelor's degree in Electrical Automation from Tongji University in Shanghai and a Master's degree in Applied Mathematics from the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Her children have both pursued successful academic paths; her son graduated from Harvard University, and her daughter from the University of California, Berkeley.

Paul Vanni

Governor

Wellington College International Hangzhou/ Hiba Academy Hangzhou

Paul joined Wellington College International in September 2024 having spent 25 years working across a range of schools in London including the prestigious St Paul’s School and St Paul’s Girls’ School where he was Director of School (Senior Deputy) for seven years. 

In addition, Paul has considerable experience of setting up and leading new schools. In 2018, Paul became the founding Head of Kensington Park School, a co-educational, 11-18 day and boarding school in central London backed by overseas investors. He has since worked with St Paul’s Girls’ School International and their partners on the SPGSI Shengbo project in China. Paul joins us from Dukes Education where he led the successful OFSTED registration of London Park School Clapham. He has significant experience of independent school governorship across both the prep and secondary age ranges. He was for many years an ISI inspector and has been a principal examiner with Cambridge International Examinations.

Paul has a First-Class degree from University College London in Modern European Studies, a Master’s degree in French literature, and a PGCE from Cambridge. He is fluent in French and Italian, and in his free time enjoys hiking, coaching rowing, traveling, and supporting Brentford Football Club.