KENYAN MINISTER VISITS KEELE

Kenya's Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology, the Hon. Professor Margaret Kamar, EHG, MP, visited Keele last week.

She was welcomed to the University by the Vice-Chancellor, Professor Nick Foskett, Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost, Rama Thirunamachandran and member of Council, Sir Jeffrey James.

During her visit she experienced the Keele Active Virtual Environment (KAVE) in the School of Pharmacy, under the guidance of Professor Steve Chapman, had a tour of the Library, with Ms Jo-Anne Watts, Liaison Librarian Humanities and Social Sciences, and went to the Keele Sustainability Hub where she was shown around by Professor Pat Bailey, Dean of Natural Sciences and Dr Sharon George, Hub Manager. She also met with undergraduate and postgraduate students from Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania in the Earth Observatory at the Hub.

Professor Kamar said: "I have thoroughly enjoyed my visit to Keele University. The KAVE was absolutely amazing – it is very, very unique and I am sure it will prove invaluable."

The Minister is pictured with, left to right, Sir Jeffrey James, Professor Chapman, Rama Thirunamachandran and Myron Odingo, a Kenyan student, who is studying at Keele on the four-year MPharm Pharmacy degree course after winning the sanofi-aventis scholarship.

SORIN BAIASU AT OXFORD

Dr Sorin Baiasu, Reader in Philosophy and Philosophy Programme Director in SPIRE, was invited to launch his monograph, Kant and Sartre: Re-discovering Critical Ethics (Palgrave Macmillan 2011) by the Forum for Philosophical Research at the Faculty of Philosophy, University of Oxford, last week.

In addition to Dr Baiasu, the panel included Professor Alan Montefiore (Emeritus Fellow, Balliol College, University of Oxford and President of the Forum for European Philosophy) and Professor Adrian W. Moore (Professor of Philosophy, University of Oxford and Tutorial Fellow, St Hugh's College, Oxford).

The event was chaired by Dr Pamela Sue Anderson (Reader in Philosophy of Religion, University of Oxford and Fellow in Philosophy, Regents Park College). The panel discussion explored the structural similarities between the practical philosophies of Kant and Sartre, as well as the project of a critical ethics, which is emerging from their virtual dialogue.

TWO CULTURES OR CO-EVOLUTION

The Research Institute for Humanities hosted the interdisciplinary conference Two Cultures or Co-Evolution? Science and Literature 1800-Present last Saturday. The conference organisers, Katie McGettigan, Emilie Taylor-Brown and Jo Taylor (all postgraduate students from the RI Humanities), were supported by funding from Keele's EPSRC Bridging the Gaps initiative.

The conference attracted delegates from across the country to interrogate the relationship between the two cultures, concluding with a lively roundtable session that discussed the state of that relationship in higher education today.

There were keynotes from Professor David Amigoni (Keele) and Professor Sharon Ruston (University of Salford). Professor Joanna Verran, a world-renowned microbiologist, from Manchester Metropolitan University, gave the afternoon keynote, sharing her personal experiences in engaging with colleagues, students and ideas across the subject divide.

A follow-up event will be hosted on Friday 25 May 2012 when Jonathan Lamb, Andrew W. Mellon Professor of the Humanities at Vanderbilt University, will give a talk entitled Scurvy and Nostalgia. The event will take place in the Claus Moser Research Centre (CM0.12) at 1pm.

RUBY WINS TOP CHEF AWARD AGAIN

Ruby Rainey a chef from Keele Hall Kitchen has won the Staffordshire Young Chef of Tomorrow competition for the second year running.

She had to produce a three course menu for two, using of sea bass in the starter and duck breast in the main course, in the competition at Stafford College this week.

Her menu of sea bass, pan-fried served with pickled baby vegetables, herb salad and watercress puree; duck breast with chartreuse of asparagus, stewed kumquats, fondant of  turnip and olivette potatoes and dessert of sugared doughnut, warm chocolate mousse, blood orange jelly and orange and thyme syrup proved to be a winner, beating the other five finalists.

Allan Jones, Head Chef at Keele Hall and Ruby's mentor, said: "In Ruby we have a consummate professional. She is a shining example to all the kitchen team at Keele University."

Peter Walters, Keele's Executive Chef, added: " No-one has won the title twice, so this was a terrific achievement for Ruby proving our commitment to training."

Ruby wins a week's work experience at Simpsons Michelin starred restaurant in Birmingham.

KEELELINK AWARDS

Last night saw the fourth annual Keelelink Awards ceremony in Keele Hall. This year the ceremony, that aims to reward Keele academic staff, learners and partner schools and colleges, saw an additional lunch-time ceremony to celebrate the work of 254 Keele student ambassadors.

Both ceremonies saw performances from pupils from St. Margaret Ward Catholic College, who wowed the audience with street dancing and stunning vocals, the Keele String Quartet and The Keele Panther Cheerleaders. Learners on the A2K scheme are pictued above picking up the their awards, with winner Adele Smart, second left
 
The ceremonies saw Professor Andy Dobson pick up the Keele Academic of the Year award, Computing and Mathematics win School of the Year, Chiquita Taylor named mentor of the year, Andreas Steffensen Ambassador's Ambassador of the Year and Katy Iwasyk, Ambassador of the Year. Key-note speeches from Pro Vice-Chancellor, Kevin Mattinson, in the day, and Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Provost, Rama Thirunamachandran, in the evening,  were followed by a three course meal in Keele Hall Ballroom.

Pictured above are the 17 Keele Ambassador STARS, who have been ambassadors for at least two year and are leaving the University this Summer.

PLANNING FOR STUDY ABROAD

It has been a busy week for the 148 Keele students planning to study abroad next year with the final pre-departure meeting taking place for the first semester and year-long students, to which parents were invited. This ended with a BBQ for incoming and outgoing students and the promotion of the tuition breaks and NAFKU scholarship for US and Canadian students.
 
Dr Annette Kratz, pictured above left, visited Lulea University of Technology, where Robert Llewllyn is studying Physics and Geology. He explained that his experience had changed his outlook on his studies, as the Swedish system requires him to work  in study groups with fellow students. He has organised a farewell dinner for all international students, seen the northern lights and taken his grandmother to spend the night in the Ice Hotel. Lulea and Keele have been exchanging administrative staff over the last three years in the areas of Quality Assurance, Accommodation Services, Vice-Chancellor's Office, Finance and Human Resources and Teaching Support in KMS. These have all been valuable opportunities for staff and we look forward to these activities developing further.

Hilary Wilson, from the University of Maryland, visited Keele to view the campus and find out how to send more Maryland students to Keele. She met with Charlotte Denton (American Studies and Politics), who will be studying at Maryland in August, and Dylan Singleton, who has been at Keele this semester. She also met Jon Parker, Politics Subject Tutor, and Jody Harlowe, the Institutional Co-ordinator  for Maryland.

VIENNESE WORKSHOP

Professor Robert Ladrech participated in a two-day workshop in Vienna on 'European Democracy and the Role of Euro-Parties'.

The workshop was the first meeting of a new workgroup set up by invitation by the Foundation for European Progressive Studies, the think-tank affiliated with the transnational Party of European Socialists (PES), the organisation to which all centre-left parties in EU countries belong.

Professor Ladrech's contribution centred on the potential co-ordination contribution the PES could play in light of the politicisation of the EU in domestic politics  as a consequence of the euro-zone crisis and the election of Francois
Hollande in France, especially the calls for a growth agenda.

The role the PES could play in co-ordinating social democratic party positions for the 2014 European Parliament elections was a particular feature of his paper.

KEELE OBSERVATORY 50th ANNIVERSARY

Keele University Observatory celebrates its 50th anniversary with a special programme of talks in the Westminster Theatre, tomorrow (Saturday, 19 May, 2012), featuring Professor Allan Chapman, as well as representation by the European Southern Observatory, which also celebrates its 50th anniversary this year.

There will be the launch of the publication of Ron Maddison's booklet on the history of Keele Observatory. Ron Maddison will be coming over from Florida to speak at the event and do some booklet signing. This is followed by a "Sun and Star Party" at the observatory. See here.

The event is free but  those wishing to attend need to reserve a ticket. The talks start at 1.30 pm.

NEW ACADEMIC APPOINTMENT

School of Nursing & Midwifery:

Mrs Sinikiwe Simbani has been appointed a Lecturer in Nursing & Midwifery and was previously a Staff Nurse with the Derbyshire Health Foundation Trust.

NEXT WEEK

Award winning author and poet, Lavinia Greenlaw, will be giving a reading of her poetry at Keele on Monday (21 May), as part of the University's Poetry Live! 2012 series.

Lavinia Greenlaw is Professor of Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia. She has published four collections of poetry, most recently, Minsk and The Casual Perfect. Her first novel, Mary George of Allnorthover, won France's Prix du Premier Roman Etranger.

Poetry Live! readings take place in the Chancellor's Building at 7pm. Tickets are £5 (concessions £2.50).

THE BOYS EXHIBITION

A new exhibition that brings together the work of three well known and influential Staffordshire artists was opened by former Minister of Arts, Mark Fisher, pictured, at Keele University Art Gallery this week.

"The Boys" – which runs until Thursday, June 7 – features the work of Arthur Berry, Enos Lovatt and Jack Simcock, who died just before the exhibition opened. 

MAY DAY – MAKING AN IMPACT

The Careers and Employability team, with the help of local employer, Regent and Victoria Theatre, delivered a fantastic event for students focusing on employability skills. 

Vicky Power from the theatre offered an employer's perspective on graduate applications.  The students were encouraged to warm up their voices in preparation for interviews and assessment exercises by Andy Davies from the Human Resources team at Keele. Dining etiquette was demonstrated by Alan Searle, Front of House Manager, Keele Hall, and the students were further prepared for their future careers with workshops on networking, dressing for success and making a good first impression. 

The event was held at the Keele Sustainability Hub and was part of Careers and Employability's 'Two Weeks in May' series of events, helping students prepare for graduate employment.

FROM THE ARCHIVES

Forty years ago -

The planning and building of a shopping precinct on the University campus has been approved by the University Council. Costing roughly £90,000, it will include two banks, a general store, a bookshop and a launderette. 19 May, 1972.