Margaret Jeans

Margaret (Maggie) Jeans (nee James) OBE (born 8 May 1953) is a British woman that has developed the relationship between Britain and the Sultanate of Oman. She has lived in Muscat since 1990. In 2016, Jeans was awarded an OBE on Queen Elizabeth's 90th Birthday Honours for her services to British-Omani relations.
==Education==
Margaret Jeans was born in Swindon, Wiltshire and attended Commonweal Grammar School. She then went on to study Drama at the Birmingham School of Speech Training and Dramatic Art. After completing her Drama studies, Maggie worked for a brief stint at the Swindon Evening Advertiser between 1971-1972. Following this, Jeans began teaching English and Drama at Merrywood Girls School in Bristol for 16 years from 1974 - 1990. Whilst teaching at Merrywood, Jeans entered into higher education on a Part-time job|part-time basis at the University of Bristol, firstly achieving her Bachelor of Education (B.Ed) in 1982, then her Master of Education (M.Ed) in 1987.
==Career==
Jeans arrived in the Sultanate in 1990 with her late husband, Professor William Dampier Jeans (1928 -2015), to join the faculty of the newly established Sultan Qaboos University (SQU). Opening in 1986, Sultan Qaboos University was country's first government university, and according to the Webometrics Ranking of World Universities; the highest-ranking university in the country. She worked at the university as an Education Officer in the College of Medicine where she helped to create the Overseas Elective Programme for medical students. This programme is said to have enhanced the education of students, with many of them now heading departments in hospitals around the Sultanate.
In 1996, Jeans set up Al Manahil Educational Consultancy and In 2000, Al Manahil International LLC now a major importer of books and educational material for the government and private sector, began to represent Oxford and Cambridge University Press throughout the Sultanate.
She has been a coordinator of the British Business Forum Oman (BBFO), in conjunction with the UK Trade & Investment Department (UKTI) for many years. Jeans helped to develop the relationship between the UKTI and Oman, encouraging the exchange of views and opinions about existing and potential business opportunities in the Sultanate, and how best to promote trade between the United Kingdom and Oman.
Jeans also acted as a supervisor for the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) examination centre in Muscat for several years. 
In 2016, Jeans worked collaboratively with Queens College to organise the sixth visit to Oman for a mixed faith group of students, including 22 students from the USA. The group also visited Jordan, Israel, Palestine & Dubai, meeting with senior politicians, ministers and decision makers, in an attempt to understand the challenges of the region first hand. Shabana, Y. (2016). Omani Voices – The Women of the Sultanate. Ibrahim. Retrieved 20 February 2020, from http://www.ildme.org/omani-voices-the-women-of-the-sultanate/. 
She helped to organise the 2018 Scots in Oman Ball, bringing a private Scottish Highland Ball to Muscat, Oman.Scots in Oman! About. (2020). Retrieved 20 February 2020, from https://www.scotsinoman.com/ticketsandhotels. 
Jeans is also an advisor to Polaris Media Management LTD, a Manchester based PR and digital publishing firm as their Oman adviser, helping to create and maintain relationships with businesses based in Oman.
==Palliative Care==
Jeans founded the The Oman Palliative Care (OPC) support group in May 2018, following the death of her husband Professor William Dampier Jeans, from cancer in November 2015.Hasan, D. (2020). OBE awardee pledges to improve palliative care in Oman. [online] Times of Oman. Available at: https://timesofoman.com/article/85892/Oman?page=2 [Accessed 19 Feb. 2020]. Jeans shared her thanks to former medical colleagues from SQU for their support during her husband's final year, making a promise to address the absence of palliative care in Oman.
==Honours==
Jeans was awarded an Order of the British Empire|Order of the British Empire (OBE) in a ceremony with Charles, Prince of Wales, for the 2016 Birthday Honours|2016 Birthday Honours list for services to Oman British relations.
==References==
Category:1953 births
Category:Bachelor's degrees
Category:Master's degrees
Category:Drama
Category:Order of the British Empire
Category:Sultan Qaboos University faculty
Category:Department for Education
Category:Queens' College, Cambridge
Category:2016 awards