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Who are we

Katy Steventon - Director of the Rugbeian Community

Katy joined the Rugbeian Community in May 2021 having spent the previous 11 years working for the British Army on Communication, Community Engagement and Recruitment projects. Her background is in campaign focussed marketing, mostly for the public sector, and is a data-driven marketeer with a passion for strategy. Katy has won numerous awards for her campaigns including Best Use of Social Media, Best Public sector/Government campaigns, Best Outdoor Campaign and Best Graduate Recruitment Website.

Katy also acts as 2IC of the Combined Cadet Force at Rugby School and holds the Cadet Forces Medal for Long and Efficient Service. Her 6-year-old daughter attends Bilton Grange Pre-Prep School. She is a keen skier and a below average gardener.

Laura Fairbanks - Director of Development

Laura joined the Rugbeian Community in June 2023, having spent 15 years working in fundraising for the Higher Education sector. As Principal Gifts Officer at the University of Warwick, she secured several significant philanthropic gifts from alumni and friends in the UK and overseas. Prior to her time at Warwick, Laura was Head of Philanthropy at the University of Birmingham (also her alma mater) where she led the fundraising team and played an important leadership role in two multi-million-pound campaigns.

Outside of work, Laura has two young children and enjoys spending lots of time with them outside, running, spinning, walking, and listening to classic rock or 90s pop music. 

Kate Chernyshov – Associate Director of Development and Rugbeian Community

Kate joined the Rugbeian Community Team in 2021 filling a short-term vacancy as the School emerged from lockdown. Seduced by the magical combination of a fantastic bursary programme and outstanding schools, Kate has stayed at Rugby to play a key role in fundraising campaigns. Kate has more than twenty years of experience in school fundraising, for Lord Wandsworth College’s unique bursary programme, and at her alma mater, the King’s School Canterbury where she led the fundraising campaign for the Malthouse Theatre.

Kate is a fluent Russian speaker and enjoys cycling, sailing, singing hymns loudly and demanding merchandise.

Tim Day - Head of Alumni

Tim Day was educated at Rugby (T 83-88) before spending a gap year on the staff at Holmwood House, Colchester. He subsequently read Classics at the University of Liverpool and trained as a teacher of Classics with Mathematics at the University of Nottingham. Tim taught Classics at Norwich School for 13 years where he was Housemaster of a day house, Head of cricket and 1st XV rugby football coach.

Tim moved to Rugby in 2006 as a teacher of Classics before serving as Housemaster of Michell from 2009-2022. Now Head of Alumni and Deputy Director of Admissions, Tim enjoys his role in the recruitment of Arnold Foundationers and local children through bursaries generated by the Lawrence Sheriff bequest. 

Tim remains an active all-round schoolmaster, refereeing rugby, umpiring hockey and cricket and supporting the army section of the CCF, where he has earned the Cadet Forces Medal. A lifelong prop forward at many and various clubs, Tim focuses more on his refereeing these days, while his other major interests are record collecting and supporting county cricket, primarily as a Leicestershire CCC committee member.

As part of the Rugbeian Community team, Tim supports many and various Rugbeian Society events and is the President of the Bilton Grange Society. He looks forward to assisting with the development of alumni activities at all the schools in the Rugby School Group.

Evan Lack - Data and Research Manager

Evan joined the Rugbeian Community team in May 2017 after 19 years in higher education fundraising at Oxford University. Evan was curious to see how schools development would differ, so seized the opportunity to combine his love of research and data geekiness here at Rugby.  

Evan missed his calling in life to work for GCHQ or become a spy, so is thrilled that he gets to indulge his professional inquisitiveness here instead and therefore play a pivotal behind-the scenes role in Rugbeian Community activities.  

Away from a computer, Evan is a keen birdwatcher, aviation enthusiast, landscape and nature photographer, weather watcher/storm chaser, astronomer and UFO conspiracy theorist. Otherwise, Evan loves being a ‘dad’ to his two dogs and is still beaming with pride that his eldest was Mini Poodle British Flyball Champion in 2016.  

Abbie Barns – Development Officer

Abbie joined the Rugbeian Community team in June 2021 from her previous role as a credit controller at a pharmaceutical company. Prior to this she attended the University of Sheffield where she completed a Batchelor of Science in Geography before moving back to her hometown of Daventry.

Outside of the office Abbie can often be found on top of a hill in the Peak District or gallivanting all over the UK meeting friends from university.

Liselle Dixon - Rugbeian Community Liaison Officer

Liselle joined the Rugbeian Community team in February 2022, after 14 years working in schools, initially creating and running science events, facilitating leadership courses and finally recruiting and training graduate teachers. She believes the most wonderful part of any job is encouraging, witnessing and supporting the progress of students, colleagues and trainees.

Previously, working as a supervisor in business travel for a good many years enabled her to see many very exciting places, but having two sons, both currently at university, has led to less exploration for the time being.

Liselle loves swimming, skiing, sailing, kayaking, but is just as happy travelling either to a swanky hotel or a tent in a field to sit in the sunshine with a good book. Liselle's highlight of the year is when she supports on the school Duke of Edinburgh expeditions.

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CONTACT US

Rugbeian Community Office

✉ Email us

+44 (0) 1788 556 139

© Rugby School 2022

Charity Registration Number 528752

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