Colleagues,
As we move through this first semester I know it’s been a busy time for staff and our students, the campuses are buzzing with activity and noise. I would like to update you on some highlights of the work I have been doing over the last few weeks.
Internationalising our work
In October I travelled to New York, where I met some ‘newly found’ graduates at an alumni event. It was a truly memorable experience – each person was incredibly passionate about Edinburgh Napier, and the opportunities that studying with us had provided to each of them. A computing scientist, a software engineer, a magazine editor, a mental health nurse, a budding actor, a creative copywriter - we shared experiences and career journeys, all with a common link and anchor in the University.
I visited Brooklyn College (BC), one of our student exchange partners
(currently a small programme with the School of Arts & Creative Industries) where I met the Provost and other staff. They are keen to grow our exchange programme and I believe that many of our students would relish the opportunity to spend time at BC. The College is one of a group of institutions that make up the City University of New York (CUNY), a University with over 275,000 degree students and 250,000 students on continuing education courses. Talking about student experiences, Bill (the Provost) reflected on the significance and importance of individual interactions and building community, a perspective I felt we would all share. During my time in New York I also met with graduates who have been long-standing supporters of the University. There is now a sizeable group of alumni who are keen to establish and run a North American Alumni Association, something I am keen to support.
I travelled by train to Washington DC to speak at the ISEP (International Student Exchange Programme) conference where I shared a platform with the President of a University in Canada and the ex-Chancellor of one of the state universities in the USA. We were an ‘all woman’ panel talking about the role of women in leadership in Higher Education. It was a lively session with great interaction from the conference attendees. We agreed (more or less) that while we have a way to go, we have made progress in building women’s leadership at all levels of the HE system. Our collective wish for the future? That such discussions would become unnecessary.
Universities and Funding
In my role as Convener of Universities Scotland I am leading discussion
with the Scottish Government on the Higher Education sector budget settlement for 2018/19 and beyond. There are very many aspects to the discussion – a very tight fiscal environment, protected areas of spend (e.g. health), government commitments in a range of areas and of course the UK settlement to the Scottish Government through the Barnett formula. My fellow principals and I continue to profile the contributions of the sector to inclusive economic growth, our interaction with business, our commitment to widening access, our international reach, our research and impact on the cultural life of our communities. We will know the outcome of the budget discussion in mid-December.
Widening Access to Higher Education
You may have noticed that Universities Scotland has published a paper – ‘Working to Widen Access’ which highlights 15 actions and one recommendation that all 19 Higher Education Institutions in Scotland have signed up to. We are fully committed to making the First Minister's commitment, that by 2030 students from the most deprived 20% of backgrounds should represent 20% of entrants to higher education, a reality. It’s a significant challenge, not least because of the attainment gap that exists between those leaving school that come from the most deprived backgrounds and those from the least. During this year we will be working on these actions and I will keep you posted on progress; I appreciate the support and work of colleagues across the University in making this happen.
Graduations
What a wonderful day and a half I had soaking up the celebrations of over
1,000 new graduates as they received their degrees. It struck me how each of our graduations has its own ‘personality’ (some noisier than others!) but all are truly joyful occasions. We also welco
med a group of highly distinguished honorary graduates - Neil Rackham (a world-renowned expert on sales and a visiting professor with us), Louise MacDonald, CEO of YoungScot - a wonderful champion of young people, encouraging and enabling their voices to feed into policy that will shape our future; and Sally Brown, a distinguished academic in Higher Education pedagogy. All are now part of our alumni family and will be enthusiastic supporters of and contributors to our work.
Christmas Party
A reminder that the staff Christmas Party at Craiglockhart Campus is fast
approaching! This started out as the regular Christmas party for Gerry Webber’s teams, but having heard how good these get-togethers were, all of ULT decided to join in!
Friday 1 December
Craiglockhart Campus
5-9pm
There will be party food, a DJ, photo booth, and most importantly the opportunity to relax with colleagues and refresh before the Christmas rush begins. So do join us. You can register here.
Get in touch
As always please get in touch with any questions or feedback you have for me at principal@napier.ac.uk or ext. 6401.
I have until recently timetabled blocks of individual appointments for any staff who wish to talk to me and I have always enjoyed these and found them very useful. This academic year I will schedule these on request, so please contact me at the above email address or email Claire Biggar if there is something you wish to discuss with me or update me on.
Kind regards,
Professor Andrea Nolan