Ita Sheehy is the senior education officer at United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), responsible for global education strategy and programming for refugees both in emergencies and in situations of protracted conflict. Ita has had a long career in education, moving from elementary school teacher to curriculum developer and college lecturer, interspersed with over 20 years in education programming in lower income countries in the global south. She has worked with grassroots organizations, international NGOs, bilateral organizations and with several branches of the United Nations, most notably UNICEF and UNHCR, in situations spanning rural development, natural disasters and conflict affected situations. The primary focus of Ita's work over the past decade has been on education in situations of protracted conflict, with an emphasis on partnerships, systems strengthening, funding frameworks, and quality assurance. Her current work with UNHCR also includes increased integration of a solutions approach to refugee education and support for education for returnees. Ita is a Fellow of Session 537, Students at the Margins and the Institutions that Serve Them: A Global Perspective, in 2014.