Dean's updates
Key news and updates from Professor Keith Brown, Vice-President and Dean of the Faculty of Humanities, will appear on this page, including his monthly Message from the Dean.
Message from the Dean - March 2022
Dear colleagues,
It would be surprising if I did not begin this message with a reference to the war in Ukraine, a dreadful crisis that continues to unfold with no end in sight. The conflict is in a distant place from Manchester and yet it is very present. It is there on our TV screens and in social media, up close, personal and almost tangible. Many of you will have marched, signed petitions, kept vigil, prayed and given time and money in the hope that a route to peace might be found. The war is close to home in other ways, in the Russians and Ukrainians who live in the UK and in this city, and in the staff and students who work and study at The University of Manchester.
In the last week we have successfully removed those students from Russia who were living there on their study year abroad. Thank you to Rachel Platonov and colleagues in SALC who played a major role in this evacuation process. Within our own Faculty of Humanities we research and teach about the history, politics, culture and language of Russia and Ukraine, we have the Humanitarian and Conflict Response Institute which has enormous expertise in understanding such events, while in Politics there are colleagues who research and teach on peace and conflict. The importance of what we do is often overlooked by politicians and the media, but times such as this draw attention to the value of understanding different cultures, politics and international relations, and the processes by which the world might seek solutions to issues that none of us can afford to ignore.
End of all Covid restrictions
It is reassuring to see a sense of normality returning to campus life with the ending of all Covid restrictions. I was on campus at the beginning of this week and it was certainly the most vibrant experience I have encountered since before the outbreak of the pandemic. Nevertheless, our priority as an organisation and as a community remains to continue to keep staff and students safe so please read the latest information on StaffNet to keep up to date and to help keep one another safe. This disease is still a matter of concern and only this week a member of the Faculty Leadership Team tested positive for Covid.
Industrial action
Sadly, we continue to experience further periods of industrial action by a minority of university staff over pay and other working conditions with more strike days being announced for the end of the month. I recognise the right of colleagues to take action, but we are extremely concerned about the impact on our students who have endured so much over the past two years. These students, predominantly young people, do not deserve to be subjected to treatment that risks compromising their education and increasing their anxiety levels. I repeat the plea I have made in previous communications to think very carefully about the impact strike action, or action short of a strike, will have on our students’ education and experience of University. I remind those who have taken strike action to report this by the end of today (11 March). In addition, your School will shortly be asking you to report any missed learning as a result of industrial action.
Manchester graduates in demand
Once again the University of Manchester has been named the most targeted university by the UK’s top 100 graduate employers, according to The Graduate Market in 2022. This is a testament to the commitment of our staff and to the dedication shown by our students, whose experience of university has been different to what they would have been expecting. The Graduate Market is an independent annual review of graduate vacancies and starting salaries at the UK’s leading employers and is carried out by High Fliers Research. It is great to know that since its launch 17 years ago, no other institution has been number one more frequently, or ranked as consistently amongst the top three.
ID Manchester (levelling up agenda)
You may have seen our story at the end of February that shared the exciting news that the ID Manchester project has taken another important step forward, with completion of the legal processes necessary for the £1.5 billion joint venture between The University of Manchester and Bruntwood SciTech to progress. This partnership will enhance, develop and deliver an innovation district that will be at the forefront of global innovation, and in due course I hope there will be opportunities for colleagues from across Humanities to help shape this remarkable venture.
New Vice-Dean for Social Responsibility
I am delighted to announce that we have appointed Professor Dimitris Papadimitriou, currently the Director for Social Responsibility (SR) and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) in the School of Social Sciences as the new Vice-Dean for SR. Dimitris will step into the role when Professor Andy Westwood steps down in the summer. You can read more about the role and hear from Dimitris in our news story.
British Academy lecture series
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of attending our first British Academy (BA) lecture. The Academy’s lecture programme showcases the best scholarship in Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts, delivered by the most distinguished academics in the UK and beyond. This occasion was the first time the lecture series has taken place outside of London and is part of a welcome development by the BA to reach beyond the capital city. The lecture, by Professor David Wengrow of UCL, was titled ‘For an anthropology and archaeology of freedom’ and it explored the idea of freedom within these disciplines. I found the experience particularly uplifting as it is the first in-person event I have taken part in since before the pandemic two year ago. We are delighted to have been selected for this event and look forward to more collaborative activities with the British Academy in the future. Within the faculty of Humanities we have twenty-seven professors or emeritus professors who are Fellows of the British Academy, the highest accolade awarded within the arts and social sciences in the UK.
Thank you to Emma Richmond, Research Communications and Engagement Manager, for coordinating the event, which was supported by our colleagues in the Research & Business Engagement team, the web and digital team, student and internal comms, the AMBS events team and communications colleagues. Thank you all for such a great team effort.
Achievements
Sticking with archaeology, congratulations to Dr Melanie Giles, Senior Lecturer in Archaeology in the School of Arts, Languages and Cultures , who’s book Bog Bodies has won the Current Archaeology Awards ‘Book of the Year’ for 2022. This is the main UK archaeology academic book award, and a huge achievement for Melanie.
Two of our Social Sciences colleagues have been made Fellows of the Academy of Social Sciences. This is a significant achievement and I am delighted that Professor Rob Ford, one of the UK’s leading political commentators and Professor Edward Fieldhouse, principal investigator on the Scientific Leadership Team of the British Election Study, have been recognised in this way.
Alliance Manchester Business School’s Jonatan Pinkse has recently edited a special issue of California Management Review on The Future of Global Supply Chains in a Post-COVID-19 World, a great honour. For over 60 years the publication has disseminated ideas that engage scholars, educate students, and contribute to the practice of management. The special issue contains five articles and an editorial that provide insight into ways to make global value chains more robust and resilient and therefore less vulnerable to global shocks like the pandemic.
I was delighted to read in the last edition of eNews that Professor Francesca Gains from the School of Social Sciences is joining the Local Government Association’s inquiry into how the Government’s levelling up agenda might better strengthen local communities. Her expertise around governance reforms and equalities policies will be invaluable to the steering group.
And finally…
Last week I was asked for a photograph of myself for the BA event referenced above and I suggested using one of the stock pictures we hold on file. I think they date from the same shoot as the one our comms colleagues use for this message. Unfortunately these pictures were taken a few years ago and do not show the increasing hair loss, gathering wrinkles and general wear and tear of the last few years. Unsurprisingly some new members of staff at the BA event had no idea who the old guy was introducing the speaker. This reminded me of Queen Elizabeth I who refused to allow updated images of herself to be circulated in the last fifteen or so years of her life. I think I better get an updated picture taken before someone accuses me of similar delusion or vanity!
Best wishes,
Keith