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Welcome to in Focus Update… |
Past Issues << | Issue 264: 04 October 2011 |
Next year all universities will be increasing the tuition fees for their courses and at UEL our undergraduate programmes will be £9,000 a year. Our new Fees and Funding website explains the fees, the funding and the repayments in simple terms to help future students understand how student finance works so they can make an informed decision about going to university. The website gives details about the wide range of scholarships, bursaries and financial support that UEL are investing in to help support our students. To view the new website see www.uel.ac.uk/fees
The Annual Staff Planning Conference will be taking place on Friday 14 October at the Old Town Hall in Stratford, 9am – 2pm. All UEL staff are welcome.
We will bring together staff from across the University to discuss this year’s theme – ‘Inspiring Futures – our students, our staff’ – where we will be celebrating successes from the past year and looking ahead to the future. This will include a look at how UEL is investing in the future of its students and facilities, an overview of the Government's White Paper and a discussion on fees and funding at UEL. The conference will showcase interactive voting technology together with an external speaker. It will be a lively, engaging and relevant event and a great opportunity to explore discussion topics with colleagues and share ideas and recent successes. Refreshments will be available throughout the morning with a hot buffet lunch served after the conference, allowing time for networking and viewing the UEL 'wall of achievement' and a number of stalls.
Guests will be unable to park at the venue. However, there are several parking facilities in Stratford, including at Stratford Campus. The Old Town Hall is located off West Ham Lane, opposite the Stratford Centre (north entrance). For directions visit bit.ly/oldtownhallmap If you would like to attend the conference email your name, position and name of School or Service to strategic.planning@uel.ac.uk or inform your Dean or Director as soon as possible.
An election is currently taking place to assign a member of non-teaching staff to UEL’s Board of Governors. You should have recently received an email from the Electoral Reform Society, with instructions on how to vote. There are three candidates: Neil Cole, Sara Kassam and Sue Parkin. Each has written an election statement which can be viewed via the link in your email. Voting closes at 12 noon on Monday 10 October, so don’t delay!
Last week UEL said goodbye to Graham Curtis, who retired from his post as Pro-Vice Chancellor Learning, Teaching and Student Experience. The farewell party saw many familiar faces from UEL’s past and present, with about 100 members of staff from both campuses turning up to wish Graham well. Graham has played an important role in improving the student experience at UEL, working closely with Schools and Services and heading up the First Week Activities Project Group and Student Experience Programme Board. Vice-Chancellor Professor Patrick McGhee gave a short speech and presented Graham with some gifts. Graham thanked everyone whom he has worked with over his 35 years of service and reminisced about what life was like at UEL when he first started. We wish him well in his future endeavours.
It’s ‘Academic Integrity Week’ this week, and during this time we highlight all aspects of academic integrity at UEL and draw attention to the standards of academic practice that we expect from all members of our community. Text messages, plasma screens and UEL Plus will promote our policy and the academic integrity quiz, which is available via the student UEL Plus Academic Integrity site. So what can you do to support Academic Integrity Week?
– Tell your students that it’s Academic Integrity Week, especially new starters
– Use our policy when discussing academic integrity
– Ask your students to take the Academic Integrity Quiz
– Draw your students' attention to the Academic Integrity webpages: www.uel.ac.uk/lta/academic
– Familiarise yourself with the Turnitin process
– Get involved and help make sure that Academic Integrity Week is a success
– Remind colleagues of our policy that this year all modules will be ‘Cite Them Right’ compliant (this includes all module specs and all teaching materials)
– Remind students about ‘Info Skills’, the very helpful learning tool developed by the library which recently won a prestigious library award for its innovative approach to supporting learning. This contains additional information on AI, referencing and plagiarism. See infoskills.uelconnect.org.uk
Acting Associate Dean (Research and Collaborations) Royal Docks Business School – Dr Gil Robinson
Dr Gil Robinson is an experienced organisation studies and management researcher, and received his PhD from London Metropolitan University. He has extensive management experience, both in the public sector and in HE, where he has worked for the previous 15 years. His research and publications are mostly in the areas of equalities and race, where he examines the role of organisations as agents of change when dealing with organisational behaviour issues. Gil was a member of the Stephen Lawrence Committee, where he worked closely with the Home Office on race and diversity matters concerning the Police Service in England and Wales. He has also worked as an HRM consultant in the areas of recruitment & selection and training & development. To contact Dr Robinson email g.robinson@uel.ac.uk
This summer, UEL’s first cohort of undergraduate research interns worked with UEL academic staff on research projects to develop their employability skills and promote a culture of research excellence across UEL. A poster exhibition showcasing their work will take place in the East Building Atrium, Docklands Campus, from 12 noon on Wednesday 5 October to 5pm on Thursday 6 October. The exhibition launch, with a prize-giving and networking session, will take place from 5pm on Wednesday 5 October. If you would like to attend please RSVP to resinterns@uel.ac.uk There will also be a workshop for academics on ‘Engaging Students in Research and Enquiry’ led by Professor Mick Healey, who is recognised as one of the world’s leading authorities on the link between research and teaching. It will take place from 12.30 – 3pm, in EB.1.63, Docklands Campus. If you would like to attend the workshop please RSVP to liz.williams@uel.ac.uk
UEL’s Knowledge Dock was rewarded for its hard work and business spirit with the ‘Customer Focus Award’ at the Docklands Business Club Awards at a ceremony held in Canary Wharf last Thursday night. Karen Wilton, Knowledge Dock Conference and Events Executive, said “I’m thrilled that we have managed to land this fantastic award. This clearly recognises the crucial role the Knowledge Dock has played in supporting east London’s business community at such a turbulent time. I’m just so pleased that our hard work and determination has finally paid off.” For more about the Knowledge Dock see www.uel.ac.uk/knowledgedock
Green Impact, the staff competition to find the greenest UEL department, is re-launching this month. Using an online workbook, teams across the University fulfill a number of criteria in areas such as energy efficiency, recycling, biodiversity and community engagement to gain points towards Bronze, Silver and Gold awards. To find out more, come along to our drop-in Q&A sessions (lunch provided): Monday 10 October, 12.30 – 1.30 pm, EB.1.41 (at Docklands) and Tuesday 11 October, 12.30 – 1.30 pm, RB.1.01 (at Stratford). For catering purposes, please let the Environment Team know if you intend to come by emailing greenthing@uel.ac.uk. More information is also available on the Green Thing website via www.uel.ac.uk/greenthing/greenimpact.htm
UEL's School of Arts and Digital Industries celebrated the success of its fashion industry placement programme yesterday with an event at the University's fashion school. The event featured speakers from some of the industry's biggest companies, including Diesel and Hallett Retail. For the full story see bit.ly/fashionshowcase
Childreach International, a charity created at UEL by UEL students, has won a prestigious award for its Fundraising Team. Held at the Lancaster Hotel in central London last Wednesday evening, the Third Sector Excellence Awards ceremony recognised achievement in registered charities, not-for-profits, social enterprises and campaigning groups. Childreach International – which began life at UEL’s former Barking Campus and later moved to the Knowledge Dock – offers UEL students opportunities for placements on international development courses. The students, who studied International Development with NGO Management, started the charity in 2004 with assistance from UEL’s International Development Programme Team. To find out more about Childreach International see childreach.org.uk
Jeff Ellis, a lecturer in the new School of Arts and Digital Industries, is the sound designer and composer for a film that has just been awarded Best World Cinema Narrative Feature at the Hell’s Kitchen Film Festival in New York. To find our more about Jeff's involvement with the film, Lost in Italy, see bit.ly/filmaward
The Acupuncture Clinic is up and running, and is available for staff use Monday to Fridays (10am – 1pm and 2pm – 5pm) except Wednesday afternoons. The Clinic can be found at 46 The Green, Stratford Campus. The treatments remain free of charge for UEL staff and students this semester. All bookings can be made by contacting clinedu@uel.ac.uk or the Clinical Reception on 020 8223 4620; for consultations contact the Clinic Director Dr Tianjun Wang on t.wang@uel.ac.uk or 020 8223 4557.
Sustainability and Sport by Jill Savery and Keith Gilbert is the first book of its genre and is timely because of the great interest shown by the International Olympic Committee and LOCOG in providing a sustainable 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. Sustainability and Sport is a synthesis of contemporary insights and expertise offered from a novel collection of 34 practitioners and academics in the field, who continue to play key roles in the expansion of sustainable solutions for major sport events, sport organisations and society. Contact Keith Gilbert, Professor in the School of Health, Sport and Bioscience, on k.gilbert@uel.ac.uk for further details.
For the latest on our activities visit the news releases section of our website www.uel.ac.uk/news
Sustainability: A Manager's Guide to Business – Giselle Weybrecht: Wednesday 5 October, 1 – 2pm (EB.1.41, Docklands Campus)
Giselle Weybrecht, author of Sustainable MBA – The Manager’s Guide to Green Business, will provide an overview of sustainable business and what students can do about it during their programmes and in their future careers. Questions will be answered on how to turn sustainability talk into action for the benefit of your business or the organisation you work for and society as a whole. Contact m.watson@uel.ac.uk for further details.
School of Psychology External Speaker Programme: David Pilgrim (University of Central Lancashire): Wednesday 5 October, 1pm – 2pm (AE.1.01, Stratford Campus)
All staff are welcome to this talk entitled ‘Some limitations of the biopsychosocial model’. For further information please contact Mary Spiller via m.j.spiller@uel.ac.uk or see www.uel.ac.uk/psychology/research/conferences.htm
‘The Effects of Inequality and Poverty on Schools: Warnings for the UK from the USA’: Tuesday 11 October, 5 – 6pm (ED.2.02, Stratford Campus)
David Berliner, Regents Professor at Arizona State University, will be speaking at the Cass School of Education and Communities. All staff are welcome. Please RSVP to Marg Malloch on 020 8223 4402 or m.e.malloch@uel.ac.uk
University Futures: A public discussion: Tuesday 11 October, 1.30 – 5pm (Bloomsbury Suite, Friends’ House, 173 Euston Road, London NW1 2BY)
Hosted by UEL, the Campaign for Social Science and Times Higher Education, University Futures brings together academics, policymakers and activists to address questions of widening participation and funding in the HE sector. For further details see www.uel.ac.uk/lss/newsandevents/events
School of Psychology External Speaker Programme: Terry Honess (Cardiff University): Wednesday 12 October, 1pm – 2pm (AE.3.18, Stratford Campus)
All staff are welcome to this talk entitled ‘Admitting evidence of a defendant’s previous conviction and its impact on juror deliberation’. For further information please contact Mary Spiller via m.j.spiller@uel.ac.uk or see www.uel.ac.uk/psychology/research/conferences.htm
Doing justice or meddling in transitions? Universal jurisdiction and Spanish prosecution of crimes committed in Rwanda and DRC: Wednesday 12 October, 3.30 – 5pm (Room 110, Duncan House)
Rosa Ana Fernandez Alija, Lecturer, University of Barcelona. This event is co-hosted by the London Transitional Justice Network. Refreshments provided, all welcome. For further information visit www.uel.ac.uk/chrc or contact Johanna Herman on j.herman@uel.ac.uk
PSF Showcase: Tuesday 18 October, 4.30pm (EB.1.03, Docklands Campus)
All staff are invited to afternoon tea to hear the experiences of colleagues who have become Fellows of the HEA through our CPD Route, to hear initial evaluations of research being undertaken into UEL’s Professional Standards Framework, to share colleagues’ good practice and to meet other Fellows. Please RSVP to Dallas Davis: d.j.davis@uel.ac.uk For more on the PSF process see www.uel.ac.uk/apse/professional/framework.htm
Migrant workers and camel jockeys: a look at exploitation in the Gulf: Wednesday 26 October, 3.30 – 5pm (Room 110, Duncan House)
David Keane, Lecturer, Department of Law, Middlesex University. Refreshments provided, all welcome. For further information visit www.uel.ac.uk/chrc or contact Johanna Herman on j.herman@uel.ac.uk
Gender-based violence in war and the question of accountability: the case of Bosnia: Wednesday 9 November, 3.30 – 5pm (Room 110, Duncan House)
Maja Korac, Reader, School of Law and Social Sciences, and Olga Martin-Ortega, Senior Research Fellow, Centre on Human Rights in Conflict, School of Law and Social Sciences (UEL). Chair: Johanna Herman, Centre on Human Rights in Conflict, UEL. For further information visit www.uel.ac.uk/chrc or contact Johanna Herman on j.herman@uel.ac.uk
The Centre of Excellence for Women Entrepreneurship (CEWE) Conference: Thursday 17 November, 9am – 4.30pm (Honourable Artillery Company, Moorgate)
Registration is now open for the CEWE Conference and networking session. The event will bring together women entrepreneurs and their supporters to share knowledge, experiences and challenges. This is an excellent opportunity to develop your networks! Early bird discount applies if you book before 5pm on 30 September. Please see www.uel.ac.uk/cewe/conference.htm for more information and to book now.
The Human-Rights Compliance of UK Anti-Terrorism Legislation in the Light of Domestic and International Case Law: Wednesday 23 November, 3.30 – 5pm (Room 110, Duncan House)
Carmen Draghici, Lecturer, School of Law, City University. For further information visit www.uel.ac.uk/chrc or contact Johanna Herman on j.herman@uel.ac.uk
See Events Calendar for a full listing: www.uel.ac.uk/marketing/support/eventscalendar.htm
UEL awarded funding for new Back to Netball (B2N) Sessions
UELSports, in partnership with the London Borough of Newham and OPA Netball Club, has recently been awarded England Netball funding to support two new Back to Netball sessions for staff, students and the local community. Thanks to this funding all sessions will be offered FREE of charge in 2011, with a small charge from January onwards. The grant will also be used to subsidise the costs associated with the Back to Netball tournament on Wednesday 23 November 2011.
Training each week takes place indoors at Kingsford School (Beckton) and Sarah Bonnell School (Stratford) from 5.30 – 6.30pm, on Monday and Wednesday respectively.
These sessions form part of the UELSports Try a Sport 365 programme which aims to get people back into a sport and encourages individuals to try a new sport for the first time. For further information on netball training, the tournament or the Try a Sport programme, please email Claire Smith on c.e.smith@uel.ac.uk or visit www.uel.ac.uk/sports-365
Our brand-new timetable is available online; all sessions will be starting this week.
Please see www.uel.ac.uk/sports/activity/physical.htm for more information.
Joining a UEL sports club this academic year couldn’t be easier. For only £60 UEL staff have access to over 20 sports clubs, access to national governing board coaches, weekly training sessions and insurance cover whilst participating.
To join a sports club, do any one of the following:
– email c.smyth@uel.ac.uk for a one-off deduction from your salary
– call into the UELSports office and pay Emma Jenkinson in person. The office is located in RB.2.06, Stratford Campus
– pay in person at the Cashiers' Office, located on the North Building ground floor on Docklands Campus.
For more information on membership please contact c.smyth@uel.ac.uk
Welcome to the Green Thing, a regular section full of info on environmental projects, tips and ideas for staff at UEL. Visit our website www.uel.ac.uk/greenthing or get in touch via greenthing@uel.ac.uk We’d love to hear from you!
Environment Team
Facilities
Sound fishy? Wondering what the 'catch' is? London is bidding to become the world's first Sustainable Fish City, and UEL signed a pledge this spring to do its bit towards making it happen. We have already banned all Marine Conservation Society 'red list' fish from our catering outlets, and we are working on including more 'green list' fish on the menus. Sustain, an organisation campaigning for better food and farming, visited Stratford Campus today over lunchtime to promote the Sustainable Fish City campaign, and will be at The Edge at Docklands on Thursday 6 October from 12 – 2 pm. To enter the competition for the £50 voucher and to learn more, visit: sustainweb.org/sustainablefishcity/uni_competition
During First Week the Environment Team organised several cycle-related workshops and events. More than 15 students benefited from this, taking part in basic cycle maintenance workshops and touring the area around the Olympic Park and its neighbouring green spaces by bicycle. More information about other First Week events is on our website: www.uel.ac.uk/greenthing/Freshers2011.htm
In other cycle-related news, the London bicycle film festival starts this week. The programme is available at bit.ly/bicycle_festival
… that UEL offers interest-free loans to purchase public transport season tickets? Find out more and read about other green travel incentives by visiting www.uel.ac.uk/greenthing/incentives.htm
Please send comments or contributions for in Focus Update to: infocus@uel.ac.uk
To contribute a UEL news item please supply a headline (c. 10 words), short paragraph (c. 50-100 words) with a call to action (email / web link or phone) together with a photo.
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© 2011
