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Faculty Bulletin, December 2009

1. MESSAGE FROM THE DEAN

Click on the link below for the Dean's Message.

2. ACADEMIC STAFF PROFILING

The Faculty is introducing a new system for publishing academic staff profiles to the web.  Over the last 6 months a number of changes have been made to the databases on which profile information is held, and from January 2010 all profiles will be generated from data held on eScholar (publications) and the redesigned Faculty profiles database (biographical and other information).  Staff will be able to manage this data through the University staff portal.

The new system will be launched early in the New Year and significant progress has already been made towards this goal.  Publications data has been migrated to eScholar and updated as part of the Research Profiling Exercise (RPE), and all other data held in the old Faculty profile database has now been migrated to a new one.

The systems for merging this data and formatting it for School web sites are currently being tested through School Research Development Managers (RDMs) and it is hope that this process will be completed by Christmas.

When the system is launched, all academic staff and RDMs will be provided with information on the system and how the data can be accessed and updated.  At that stage colleagues will be able to review those elements of their profile that have not been updated through the RPE.

If you have any queries about the staff profiles system, please contact David Risley at david.e.risley@manchester.ac.uk

3. RESEARCH PROFILING EXERCISE & RESEARCH EXCELLENCE FRAMEWORK

Research Profiling Exercise

In order to prepare for the Research Excellence Framework the University has been conducting a Research Profiling Exercise.  The information collected covers publications, research grant income, doctoral supervision, and optionally, impact and esteem.  In Humanities a review of profiles has been carried out by members of three sub-panels: Panel A for Education, Law and MBS; Panel B for SED and SOSS; and Panel C for SAHC and LLC.  Final moderation will take place at a main Panel meeting in the presence of external assessors.  Feedback on the RPE will be organised at School level when the exercise is complete in the University.

Research Excellence Framework

The Higher Education Funding Council for England has been carrying out its second consultation on proposals for conducting the Research Excellence Framework.  Many features of the RAE are continued, notably the production of profiles of excellence by expert panels organised on a disciplinary basis.  Earlier suggestions that citations should play a major role have now been set aside for most if not all Faculty subjects.  The assessment will be on the basis of output quality, environment and impact.  Explicit inclusion of impact is the main new element.  This is to be assessed on the basis of structured case-studies (one per 5-10 FTEs).  Impacts (economic, social or cultural) are supposed to derive from excellent research and be supported by evidence.  The consultation acknowledges that key problems of timing of impact and of attribution of an impact to specific research have not been fully addressed.

Following a consultation with Schools and discipline areas the Faculty produced a response to the consultation which was consolidated into the University response.  Details of the Faculty and University responses are available by contacting Jared Ruff, Faculty Research Development Manager, jared.ruff@manchester.ac.uk.

4. RESEARCH NEWS - GRANT AWARDS

Congratulations to all those who have recently been awarded research grants, including:

SAHC -

Dr Kate Cooper - ESRC Research Fellowship - £450,367 - Constantine's Dream
Dr Laurence Brown - British Library/Endangered Archives Research Grant - £39,297 - Digitizing the endangered archives of Grenada
Prof Brooke/Ariel Feldman - Royal Society/Newton International Fellowship - £76,500 - Joshua and his text in Second Temple Times
Dr Charlie Miller, Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship - £46,631 - Picasso and Surrealism
Dr Jamie Wood, Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship - £49,89 - Conversion, conflict and community
 
Education  -

£750,000 from the Department for Children, Schools and Family to conduct a major evaluation of the Achievement for All initiative, the PI is Dr Neil Humphrey. The project lasts for 2 years  01/09/09 to 31/08/11.

SED -

Poverty and Development experts Professor David Hulme and Dr Khalid Nadvi have been awarded ESRC grants worth £57,000 and £89,000 respectively to lead  research networks under the ESRC's new 'Rising Powers, Global Challenges and Social Change' programme.

Both are based at the School of Environment and Development where Professor Hulme is Director of the Brooks World Poverty Institute and Dr Nadvi is a Senior Lecturer at the Institute for Development Policy and Management.

The ESRC initiative is part of plans to deepen understanding of the regional and global impacts of the Rising Powers and the economic, political and social implications for the UK.

The research networks are expected to develop funding proposals for the next round of this ESRC initiative.

Dr Nadvi's Project, The Rising Powers and Global Standards research network, looks at the themes of global governance and well being.

Professor Hulme's project is called, Beyond the BRICs: The Emerging Middle and Global Poverty Reduction.

Other grants include:

£382k from EU to Iain White, Joanne Tippett & Adam Barker for Smart Resilience Technology, Systems & Tools (SMARTeST)

£4.5k from British Academy to Yin-Fang Zhang for Regulatory Framework of the Electricity Sector & Sustainable Development in China

£343k from ESRC to Michael Hebbert for Climate Science in Urban Design: a historical and comparative study of applied urban climatology

£413k from AHRC to Ralf Brand & Andrew Compton for Multi-faith spaces: symptoms and agents of religious and social change

£1.5m from DFID to Stephanie Barrientos for Capturing the Gains: economic and social upgrading in global production networks and trade

£7.5k fro Nuffield Foundation to Rorden Wilkinson & Uma Kothari for The forced movement of colonised people and its impact on state development in the Seychelles

LLC -

PI: Professor Stephen Hutchings
Co-PI Professor Vera Tolz
Funder: AHRC
Award amount: £426,395

The project addresses Russian state television's approach to ethnic tension, combining the complementary expertise of specialists in, respectively, post-Soviet media studies, ethnicity and Russian nation building, and post-communist grassroots xenophobia. It will contribute to our grasp of an urgent issue in transition countries, and to the study of the contemporary media's role in fostering community cohesion, explaining how one of the world's most complex societies confronts the dual impact of globalisation and decolonisation.

Professor Stephen Parker, Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship (£119,618)
Professor Hoda Elsadda, Leverhulme Research Fellowship (£41,044)

SOSS -

Ed Fieldhouse, Nick Shryane, Nick Crossley, Yaojun Li along with Alan McKane from the School of Physic and Astronomy and Bruce Edmonds from the MMU have been awarded £2,612,259 from the EPSRC in their recent Complexity Science in the Real World programme.

Nicola Phillips and John Gledhill have each been awarded a Leverhulme Major Research Fellowship with a value of around £137K each.

5. TEACHING & LEARNING NEWS

The Faculty has been making good advances in its review of Teaching and Learning and the implementation of recommendations for improvement.   At the recent OPR the faculty was able to present a strong position with respect to progress especially with personalisation, academic advising and feedback issues.  However, schools are still developing enhancements to the Learning Experience and this should be seen very much as a work in progress.  Schools within the faculty have engaged enthusiastically with the need to improve the student experience, although it is acknowledged that there are many challenges, such as class size, facilities, available staff and so forth to address.

It is clear from the poor NSS results that the University has many areas where there is need for improvement, although it should be noted that the Faculty has some areas of good success with the NSS.  A Faculty Feedback Framework has been in place since February to begin to improve on one of the weakest elements of the NSS.  At University level an Assessment and Feedback Group has been established to develop a framework for the whole of the University and to investigate ways of improving the way we assess our students to develop an approach that is clearer, more transparent and equitable than present.  Assessment practices and feedback are closely linked.  The university has also begun a full scale review of all UGT and PGT degree regulations alongside the review of assessment and feedback.
 
Engagement with the student body is a vital part of the review process  focus groups at the university level are providing essential and key insights into student perceptions, needs and views.  At school level the engagement of student groups (in addition to traditional staff student liaison groups) is seen as a positive action amongst the students.  Strengthening a sense of identity, closing feedback loops to ensure all students (and staff) are aware of changes and actions, responses to questionnaires, and engagement in the enhancement of the learning experience are seen as an essential aspect of improving the Student Experience.

6. DISTINGUISHED ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

Professional Support Staff (PSS) Member of the Year

This is a new category of Distinguished Achievement Award introduced this year which will recognise the contribution of PSS staff.  All categories of PSS staff are eligible.

Up to five awards will be presented each year and judges will be looking for outstanding performance against one or more of the values of the PSS, namely:  Professionalism, Teamwork, Open to Change and a Commitment to Continuous Improvement.

Nominations for the Award can be made by any member of staff and should be accompanied by a supporting statement which is no longer than 500 words. 

Nominations should be sent to Deborah Black, Secretary to the Awards and Honours Group, Deborah.black@manchester.ac.uk, by Friday 12 February 2010.

Any queries should be directed to Deborah Black.

Teacher, Researcher, Undergraduate Student and Postgraduate Research Student of the Year and General Distinguished Achievement Award

For details of these awards, including information on the nominations process, criteria and deadlines, go to:

http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/acaserv/distinguishedachievementawards/

All nominations must be made in the strictest confidence.

7. MEDIA NEWS

The Faculty of Humanities has featured widely in the news.  A highlight has been some major coverage of an archaeological excavation at Easter Island co-directed by Dr Colin Richards by national and international newspapers and broadcasters including the Independent and USA Today.

A report published by the Sustainable Consumption Institute was covered by many outlets including the New York Times and the Guardian  alongside separate announcements by Sir Terry Leahy and David Cameron at the same event.

Professor Karel Williams' report on the banking sector has been praised widely in the press and Dr Matt Goodwin has appeared on many outlets - including BBC Two's Newsnight - to discuss the BNP, the Far Right and the rise of the English Defence League.

Professor Julian Thomas' role in the latest excavation of Stonehenge was also reported by Associated Press across the United States.  An interview with Dr Andrew Russell with Associated Press was also covered in many US outlets and Professor John Harris's comments on dope tests for students was also reported in national outlets  including the Independent and BBC Online.

Do you have a news story? Email the Humanities Press Officer Mike Addelman at Michael.addelman@manchester.ac.uk

8. SKILLS TEAM NEWS

The Faculty of Humanities programme for transferable skills training for the current academic year is now underway.  It offers a range of workshops and events for postgraduate and early career researchers which can be booked through the training calendars 

PGR - http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/acaserv/pgresearch/training/calendar/

Early career researchers - http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/acaserv/pgresearch/training/researchdev/calendar/

A programme of supervisor awareness workshops is also available. For more information email Humanities-training@manchester.ac.uk

9. OTHER SCHOOL NEWS

Arts, Histories & Cultures -

Manchester students clinch new role for Queen's composer

Manchester music students have become the envy of the nation's young scholars, by appointing one of the world's leading composers as patron to their society.

Sir Peter Maxwell Davies visited The University of Manchester on 26 November 2009, to mark his new role at The University of Manchester Music Society.  The students played a concert in his honour. Vaganza, The University of Manchester's new music ensemble, performed at the concert, which took place at the University's Martin Harris Centre.

Salford born Maxwell Davies, who is a University of Manchester alumnus, was appointed Master of the Queen's Music by Buckingham Palace in 2004 - the 21st composer to take on the role since it was created in 1625.  At the University he met students, listened to their compositions, gave a master-class, as well as hearing them perform one of his most important pieces from the 1960s, 'Ecce Manus Tradentis'.

Education -

From Linda Varley -

The website of the Stockport and District Normandy Veterans was launched on Sunday 8th November following a Remembrance Service at Our Lady and the Apostles Church at Shaw Heath, Stockport attended by the veterans.

The accounts of the experience of 28 local Normandy Veterans have been collected over a period of the 5 years for The University of Manchester archives and I made the decision this year, as part of the 65th commemoration of the invasion, that my records should be accessed by the public, rather than be kept within the academic community of the University.  Consequently, with the help of two research assistants, I have put them on to a website, for anyone to access.

The accounts cover the whole breadth of the Campaign, from those on Mine-sweeper duty on the night of 5th June; those whose ships were involved in the 'flattening of Caen' through the naval bombardment of 6th June; men who landed on the beaches (3 on D-Day itself) and those whose roles covered a range of areas, (including cook, a diver for the Mulberry Harbour, engineers, drivers, artillery men, a field nurse and backup support in the UK) until the official end of the campaign in late August 1944.  There are even accounts of those who heard about the invasion as a P.O.W. in Germany and a long range weather forecaster in the Azores as well as those who were involved in the burial of bodies after the war in the Commemorative cemeteries.

The men themselves talk about their roles as being small cogs in a big machine; they are aware that the cook & the motor mechanic were as important as frontline troops.  And all of them understand that they are part of a shared history.
The website can be accessed at http://www.stockportveterans.wordpress.com

10. CAR PARKING CHRISTMAS ARRANGEMENTS

For information

For all general enquiries please use carparking@manchester.ac.uk

11. FORTHCOMING EVENTS

Events are listed at:

http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/aboutus/events

Notification of events

Information on forthcoming events should be submitted online:

http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/aboutus/events/submit/

Notification of bulletin items

Items for future issues of the bulletin can be submitted online via the following link:

http://www.humanities.manchester.ac.uk/humnet/aboutus/announcements/submit

or by sending an e-mail to Laura.Dobson@manchester.ac.uk

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