ICC – the International Language Association
Co-opted Board members
Myriam Fischer
Myriam Fischer Callus studied at the University of Malta and after living some time in South America settled in Germany. She has been working in adult language education since 1980 as a teacher, teacher trainer, course book and materials writer and assessor. She was the Director of English Studies at the Volkshochschule (Adult Education Centre) in Aschaffenburg, Germany for over 20 years.
She was part of the German working group that developed a language portfolio for adults which was accredited by the Council of Europe in 2006. She is a consultant for various publishing companies and has written a series of English language course books for adults.
Myriam acted as the manager of several projects for the ‘Bayerische Volkshochschulverband’ -the umbrella organization of adult centres in Bavaria. Her passion is teacher training. She believes that the quality of language teachers is of utmost importance in a global world of mobility. She has been a key figure in the development and implementation of EUROLTA, both in and outside Germany. In cooperation with the Ministry of Education, she developed a teacher training concept for the training of primary school teachers in Bavaria.
After joining the ICC Board in 2016, she focused on the development and dissemination of EUROLTA, and she served as Co-Chair of the Association alongside Tanja Kovac from 2023 to 2026.
In addition to her involvement in many community projects, Myriam was elected to the advisory board for integration and migrant affairs in Aschaffenburg, Germany. She teaches German to refugees and is involved in the training of voluntary teachers, having written a teacher training concept that has been adopted in several German states.
She believes that it is very important to keep up to date with new trends and to follow the general discussion of language teaching and learning around the world.
Tatjana Kovač
Tatjana Kovac is the Director of Studies at St. Nicolas School in Belgrade, Serbia, where she leads curriculum development, teacher training, and academic strategy. With more than two decades of experience in English Language Teaching (ELT), she has worked as a teacher, teacher trainer, examiner, and recruiter, bringing broad expertise and insight to language education.
She holds a BA in English Language and Literature and an MA in Applied Linguistics, as well as internationally recognized ELT qualifications, including CELTA, DELTA, and FTBE. In 2021, she became a certified EUROLTA trainer, further strengthening her involvement in teacher education and professional development.
Her professional interests include intercultural pragmatics and humanistic approaches to language teaching, with a particular focus on meaningful communication, learner autonomy, and learner-centred methodologies. Throughout her career, she has designed and delivered teacher training programmes aimed at supporting educators in developing effective and reflective teaching practices.
An active member of the ICC since 2012, Tanja has served on its Board since 2021 and served as Co-Chair of the Association alongside Myriam Fischer from 2023 to 2026. Through her work with the ICC, she has helped update, promote and expand EUROLTA teacher training programmes while supporting initiatives that enhance quality language education, teacher development, and professional standards internationally.
Barry Tomalin
Barry is Visiting Lecturer in Information Management and Governance, Public Diplomacy, International Communication and Cultures at the Academy of Diplomacy and Governance at Loughborough University London. He is the author of a number of books on Cultural Awareness and on the teaching of English, including ‘World Business Cultures – a Handbook’ (Thorogood), ‘Cross-Cultural Communication: Theory and Practice’ (Palgrave Macmillan) and ‘Cultural Awareness’ (OUP). He is a longtime member of ICC through his association with International House London and the University of Westminster. His interests are international education, the raising of cultural awareness in language teaching and university and corporate training, and developments in international publishing.
Ellinor Haase
Ellinor Haase studied Romance languages at the universities of Saarbrücken, DE and Madrid, ES, and was subsequently Lecturer at the Institute for Educational Sciences, University of Saarbrücken. She has taught in a variety of language teaching environments in Germany and abroad and managed a large department of modern languages in a major adult education institute in Bochum, DE. From 1993-2001 she worked as Project Director for DVV international (www.dvv-international.de) supporting the re-building of adult education in Romania; from the office in Bucharest, she and her staff cooperated with adult education and cultural organizations in all parts of the country.
She was then Secretary General of the European Association of Adult Education in Brussels, where she initiated and administered a number of European projects related to adult education over a period of six years. During this period she acted as co-founder and, during the first two years, Secretary General of the Lifelong Learning Platform (https://lllplatform.eu/).
Ellinor ran the ICC Head Office in Offenbach during a period of transition in 2012, after the retirement of the former Director and appointment of the new General Manager. She provided all necessary services to the membership and represented the association in a number of current projects. In 2023 she stepped down as chair; she remains with the association for various administrative tasks.
Michael Carrier
Michael Carrier is Managing Director of Highdale Consulting Ltd, based in London, and consults for Cambridge English Language Assessment & other organisations. He has been involved in ELT for over 30 years as a teacher, trainer, author, school director and network director. He has worked in Germany, Italy, Poland, UK and the USA, and lectured in many other countries worldwide.
He was formerly CEO of the International House World network of schools, Executive Director of Eurocentres in Washington D.C., and most recently Director of English Language Innovation for the British Council. He was also formerly an Associate Professor at New School University, New York for the MA in TESOL.
He has written a number of ELT coursebooks and skills books, including the Front Page series, Business Circles, Intermediate Writing Skills and Spotlight Readers. His special field of interest is Digital Learning and the application of technology to Language Teaching, and he was Editor of the Technology section of Modern English Teacher. He is co-editor of Digital Learning, to be published by Routledge Education in 2017.
He is currently serving on various Boards, in addition to the Board of ICC, as a Trustee of the TIRF Foundation in the USA, Governor of International Students’ House in London, and a member of the Advisory Board of OUP’s English Language Teaching Journal (ELTJ).
He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a Member of the Institute of Directors, the Society of Authors, and the Oxford & Cambridge Club.