Janet Ghanem

Area Director Odyssey Reggio Nurseries, Kids First Group at Odyssey Reggio Nurseries

Speaker

Education has been my life’s work for over 25 years, with more than 15 of those years spent in senior leadership. Throughout my journey, I have remained guided by one belief: early childhood is the foundation of everything.

Throughout my career, I have worked across diverse international contexts, which has strengthened my ability to lead complex teams, align pedagogy with business objectives, and build strong relationships with parents, staff, regulators, and corporate partners. I have extensive experience in:

• Leading and developing high-performing leadership and educator teams

• Driving enrolment growth, parent affinity, and retention

• Embedding high-quality educational frameworks, including Reggio Emilia and IB PYP

• Ensuring compliance with regulatory authorities such as KHDA and ADEK

• Improving staff engagement, retention, and internal promotion pathways

As Area Director for six Odyssey Reggio Nurseries in Dubai, I lead with both heart and clarity, overseeing academic excellence, operational performance, enrolment growth, regulatory compliance, and leadership development across our portfolio. My role is to ensure that each nursery is not only operationally strong, but pedagogically purposeful and deeply aligned with our values.

At Odyssey we are passionate about the Reggio Emilia philosophy and the belief that children are capable, curious, and full of untapped potential. We work closely with our leadership teams to build environments that honour children’s voices, empower educators, and foster strong partnerships with families.

For me, leadership in education is about raising standards while nurturing people, creating spaces where children thrive, educators feel valued, and communities feel connected.

Personal Belief:
“Children flourish when they are trusted, respected, and given the freedom to explore who they are becoming.”