june 2011 - bulletin vol 8 no 6

June 2011Volume 8 No 6

Searle Award for Creativity 2011won by Master of Fine Art student, Robert Good

In this issue:

Celebrating our associationwith ABM UniversityCollege, BotswanaFull story on page 27 >>

Innovate – this year’sAnnual Learning andTeaching ConferenceFull story on page 16 >>

sKTP project for SocialEnterprise East ofEngland – the benefitsFull story on page 28 >>

SUN

DAY

6 June

7 June

8 June

9 June

10 June

11 June

12 June

13 June• Triggered, 8.00pm, King’s

Place, London

14 June

15 June

16 June

17 June

18 June

19 June

20 June• Transitions,

10.00am–5.00pm, RuskinGallery, Cambridge









• Anglia Singers concert,8.00pm, Michael A AshcroftBuilding, Chelmsford

25 June

26 June

SATUR

DAY

FRID

AYTH

UR

SDAY

WED

NESD

AYTU

ESD

AYM

ON

DAY

30 May• Anglia Contemporary

Theatre, Food For Thought,7.30pm, The Juction,Cambridge

31 May• MPA Festival Week, music

events from 11.30am,Recital Hall, HelmoreBuilding, Cambridge

• Anglia ContemporaryTheatre, Food For Thought,7.30pm, The Juction,Cambridge

1 June• MPA Festival Week, music






4 June

5 June









1 July• Transitions,


2 July

3 July

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

2 Bulletin June 2011 Volume 8 no 6

Fifth annualUni4U offered13–15 year olds30+ activitiesSee page 21 >>

N E W SRobert Good wins Searle Award for Creativity 42011 Degree Show – 3–10 June 6Groundbreaking digital gallery housed at the Ruskin Gallery 7Joanne Tonkin wins RCN Fellows Student Nurse Award 2011 8FoE lecturer works with refugee students on Thai–Burma border 9EBAC holds employability lecture for student members 10Forensic Science postgraduate student receives award in India 11Freshers’ Week 2011 – planning underway 12CSA Summer School 2011 open for bookings 13Medical Engineering Research Group – conference on osteoarthritis 14Employment Bureau recruitment fairs go down well 15Innovate – Annual Learning and Teaching Conference, 28 June 16Mpowernet receives plaudits from local authority client 17Tony Wright, Director of ISMS – interview 18Local schools’ success in Foreign Languages Spelling Bee 19Tourism and Management students visit Tourism and Leisure Show 20Uni4U 2011 has over 420 visitors 21From Cambridge to Kinshasa – Memelik Education’s work in DRC 22The labyrinth – a space for reflection 23Clinical Physiology student’s sporting success 24

T H E A R T SMusic, drama and improvisation events 30–31Coming soon to the Ruskin Gallery 31

F E A T U R E SUK and international partner institutions news 24Focus on research 25International focus 26–27Staff development opportunities 27Employer engagement 28Green issues 29Joiners, leavers and movers 32

Installation byMaster of Fine Artstudent winsSearle AwardSee page 4 for full story >>

IN THIS ISSUE...

Research by ateam of ourscientists studiesthe toxic effectsof BZPSee page 25 >>

June 2011 Volume 8 no 6 Bulletin 3

Copy deadline for next issue:12.00 noonMonday 6 June 2011Next issue date:Monday 27 June 2011

For all this year’s copy deadline andpublication dates, visit Anglia Ruskin’swebsite, click: www.anglia.ac.uk/bulletin

Articles for Bulletin should be sent by emailor on disc to:

Anne Hamill – Bulletin Producer,Corporate Marketing, International &Development ServicesSt George House, Cambridge Campus

Tel: 0845 196 2300Fax: 0845 196 5831Email: [email protected]

Published monthly by Corporate Marketing, International & Development Services.Contributors are requested to confirm by phone that articles sent by internal post or emailhave been received. All production, sourcing of photography and printing by: Anne Hamill,Corporate Marketing, International & Development Services.

Bulletin is printed on recycled material using vegetable-based inks.

Cover image:

Excerpt from Robert Good’s installation,based on the theme ‘crisis’, that won thisyear’s Searle Award for Creativity.

The 2011 Searle Award forCreativity has been won byMaster of Fine Art studentRobert Good for hisinstallation based on thetheme ‘crisis’. Now in itsfourth year, the Award,initiated by the CambridgeSchool of Art alumnus RonaldSearle to recognise excellencein a range of artisticdisciplines at Anglia Ruskin,

has grown in significance andreputation.

Robert, who also receives a£3000 cash prize, said, ‘I amdelighted to win the SearleAward. I am coming to theend of a two-year Master ofFine Art degree here, whichhas been a great source ofinspiration and a realchallenge to me to make

more ambitious work. TheSearle Award is the icing onthe cake and gives me everyencouragement, as we finishour studies and look ahead,to making exciting new workin the future.’

Commenting on the entries,judge Dr David Ryan, Readerin Fine Art, said, ‘This year’saward attracted a strong body

of work from very different artpractices. One of the hugechallenges of judging thisaward is weighing up thecomparative merits of workcoming from very differentworking contexts andperspectives, and yet this isall part of the fascinatingprocess of seeing how thesevery different disciplines cancommunicate the given

Searle Award for Creativity– Robert discovers that it’s a good year for a crisis!

Cambridge School of Art

� Robert Good, pictured with his installation and award in the Ruskin Gallery, Cambridge.

LEADING NEWS



Come and celebrate thepublication of twobooks by Sara Knight...Full details on page 8

theme. This year was markedby ambitious work, includingseveral complex installations,such as that of the first-prizewinner, Robert Good.’

Robert’s installation is bestdescribed by his statementaccompanying the piece,which reads: ‘A dysfunctional,retro office is piled high withbooks, magazines and prints.Crisis is stacked upon crisis –Solar crisis, Bionic crisis,Indian crisis. A turntable cuesup Crisis by Roger Bantonbehind Crisis by Bob Marley.Manga, vinyl, VHS: in allmedia, from every decade.Half-buried amongst the cluttersits a red emergencytelephone. A hidden Linux box,networked to Google Realtime,

listens for occurrences of theword “crisis” from newsagencies, bloggers and thetwitterati. Each hit rings thetelephone and sparks a printerinto life. The very latestcontemporary crisis fromaround the globe has beenreported and is injected intothe mix.’

The runners-up were first-yearBA (Hons) Illustration studentAnastasiya Rudaya, andRebecca Palmer, who isstudying for an MA inChildren’s Book Illustration.Anastasiya’s entry was a bookdepicting the evolving crisis ofa character’s dependence onsocial networking, whileRebecca’s work was titled‘Identity Crisis’ and consisted

of cards that viewers could useto construct different images.

Visithttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eIhLR3iyO5I&feature=channel_video_titleEnds to watcha video of Robert’s winningentry. Robert’s work was alsofeatured in ‘Location’, anexhibition by four Master ofFine Art students at fourdifferent sites in Cambridge,that ran from 6–8 May. Moreinformation about the‘Location’ exhibition isavailable by visitingwww.thisisrelocation.co.uk.

Jon GreenPress Officer, CorporateMarketing, International &Development Services

In the NewsSend your news items to Jon Green,Press Officer, [email protected] or call onext 4717. To view our latest newsreleases, visit www.anglia.ac.uk.You can also follow us on Twitter,visit www.twitter.com/angliaruskin.

4 May, BBC Look East, DailyMirror, The Sun, HeartCambridgeshireDr Beverley Vaughan and ProfessorMike Cole discuss their researchinto the toxic effects of BZP, whichis a substance now commonlyfound in ecstasy tablets.

27 April, A number of local radiostations including BBCCambridgeshire, BBC Essex, BBCWest Midlands, BBC Suffolk, BBCNorthampton, BBC Norfolk andBBC Three CountiesProfessor Mike Thorne discusseswhy studying for a degree will stillbe good value for money after theincrease in tuition fees in 2012 andsets out the benefits of going touniversity.

27 April, BBC Look EastDr Sean Lang, Senior Lecturer inHistory, is interviewed aboutWilliam and Kate becoming theDuke and Duchess of Cambridge.

21 April, BBC CambridgeshireDr Rohan McWilliam, SeniorLecturer in History, is interviewedabout the Labour Party’s chances inthe local elections.

20 April, The GuardianGayle Daley, Senior MarketingExecutive, takes part in an onlineQ&A and is quoted in an articleabout the marketing challengesfaced by the higher educationsector.

11 April, BBC Radio 4 PMprogramme, BBC Cambridgeshire,BBC online, Time Magazine onlineDr Mark Kennedy, Senior Lecturer inAnimal Welfare, discusses the levelof risk associated with jump racingfollowing the deaths of three horsesduring the Grand National meeting.

8 April, Daily Mail, Metro, BBCEssex, Marie Claire onlineDr Susan Walker, Senior Lecturer inSexual Health, talks about herresearch into attitudes towards themale pill.

� Part of ‘Identity Crisis’ byrunner-up Rebecca Palmer.

� Part of ‘Social Crisis – her story of isolation’ by runner-up AnastasiyaRudaya.

This year’s Degree Show willbe held at the Ruskin Galleryfrom 3–10 June, featuring over200 graduating students froma range of disciplines including,for the first time, BA (Hons)Interior Design course.

Amongst the first cohort ofInterior Design graduates isGeorgiana Dobrican, who hasbeen shortlisted for the YoungInterior Designer of the YearAward. The nationalcompetition is for interiordesign students graduatingfrom UK universities and aimsto showcase their talents to thewider industry. The winningentry will receive a £10,000cash prize and the opportunityto take a six-month paidinternship at the London orManchester studio of Janine

Stone. Georgiana said, ‘When Ientered the competition I didn’thave any expectationswhatsoever, because myproject was incomplete! Itcame as a big surprise actuallyto know I was a finalist. It wasan interesting experience to seepeople from the interior designfield voicing opinions on theworks of newcomers.’

Julie Tostevin, who isgraduating with a BA (Hons) inGraphic Design, has alreadyenjoyed great success whilsthere, including winning thePincPonc 2010 competitionand being highly commendedin the adult category at lastyear’s Penguin Design Awards.She has just entered the RSA(Royal Society for theencouragement of Arts,

Manufactures and Commerce)competition to design a set ofstamps celebrating ‘UK firsts’.Julie’s innovative idea is basedon British design classics, suchas bowler hats and wellingtonboots, making up a costumedisplayed inside a book ofstamps. By peeling away thestamps you undress thecharacter, so both the stampsand the booklet are integral tothe design.

Julie’s latest work, on displayat the Degree Show, is a seriesof ‘Expressicons’ designed toconvey expressions andgestures. She has developed aset of 18 glyphs – that havedesigns for every emaileventuality – to work oninterfaces such as iPhones,iPads, Macs and PC keyboards.She explained, ‘Humancommunication consists of 70%physical expression and only30% verbal communication,and, therefore, in electroniccommunications often the trueexpression and intendedmeaning is lost ormisunderstood. My projectexplores the possibilities offinding a unique visuallanguage, which combinesboth physical expressions withwritten words, to use within aformal professional context –

thus injecting vital clues for arecipient to understand theintended tone of voice, attitudeor state of mind of the writer.’

The 2011 fashion show willfeature more groundbreakingdesign with pieces, such asBecka Church’s ‘A CollapsedForm’, that are both sculpturaland utilitarian. Becka said, ‘ACollapsed Form takes clothingand flat packs them. When thepiece is worn, these sculpturalshapes are maintained and donot react to the movements ofthe body. The pleats createadded volume and alter the fitof the piece. Clothing no longerneeds a hanger, flat packedthey can fit anywhere andeverywhere.’

The Fashion Show will takeplace on Wednesday 1 June,with showings at 6.30pm and8.30pm (entry is by ticketonly).

Entry to the Degree Show2011 is free of charge andthere will be an open day foranyone interested in meetingstaff and students on 7 June.


This year’s Degree Showputs new creative talent in the spotlight

NEWS


� ‘A Collapsed Form’ dress by Fashion student Becka Church.

� Julie Tostevin’s ‘Expressicons’ glyphs, designed to add expression toelectronic communications.

Kuwaiti visitorswelcomed by Faculty ofScience & Technology...Full story on page 11

On 9 May, we opened agroundbreaking digital gallery,housed in the Ruskin Galleryon our Cambridge campus,which is the first of its kind inthe UK. The innovative newgallery will display art in adigital format on highdefinition screens, includingthe world’s first Panasonic103” 3D full HD plasmascreen, which was speciallyimported from Japan.

Chris Owen, Head of theCambridge School of Art,said, ‘This is a hugelyvaluable facility for AngliaRuskin, the city of Cambridgeand the UK. Whetherstudents are studying fine art,photography, animation orfilm production, theopportunity to exhibit digitalartwork is of paramountimportance in thecontemporary art world. Thisexhibition space is alreadyattracting interest from a widerange of international artists,and we are confident it will

soon become a majorattraction in the cultural lifenot just of Cambridge but thewhole region.’

The new digital technologyalso includes a state-of-the-artBose audio system, and isfully flexible, allowing bothtraditional hanging and digitalviewing, either independently,or at the same time. The areaunderneath the mainexhibition space has beentransformed into aphotography gallery and thereis also an interactive touch-screen information point.

Professor Derrik Ferney, ProVice Chancellor and Dean ofthe Faculty of Arts, Law &Social Sciences, said, ‘Notonly is the Ruskin Gallery animpressive space fortraditional hanging exhibitionsbut it can also be quicklyconverted to a cutting-edgedigital gallery with nine 32”full HD monitors in additionto a 103” 3D full HD video

wall. Its flexibility means thata variety of configurations andcombinations of digital andhanging spaces can beachieved. It has been cleverlydesigned to allow it tocontinue to show 2D workexceptionally well, whilstenabling synergies with newtechnology and connectivityemanating from oursuccessful Cultures of theDigital Economy ResearchInstitute. The space will allowstudents to exhibit in newways and across disciplines,in fields as diverse as fashion,film, photography andcomputer games.

‘We see the new digitalgallery as a bridge betweenAnglia Ruskin University andthe creative industries thatthrive in Cambridge and thesurrounding region.’


AHRCstudentships grantALSS is pleased to announcethat the Arts and HumanitiesResearch Council has awardedthe faculty a grant for eightpostgraduate studentships undertheir Block Grant (CapacityBuilding) route (2011–2014).

The awards are as follows:

2011 – 1 MA studentship inPublishing; 1 MA studentship inChildren’s Book Illustration

2012 – 1 MA studentship inPublishing; 1 MA studentship inChildren’s Book Illustration;1 PhD studentship (three years)in Children’s Book Illustration

2013 – 1 MA studentship inPublishing; 1 MA studentship inChildren’s Book Illustration;1 PhD studentship (three years)in English literature

Professor Eugene Giddens,Faculty Director of Research,thanked those who helpedsecure the awards and said,‘These eight studentships areworth around £200,000 ofdirect research-council funding.They also attest to this council’sbelief in our arts and humanitiesprovision, its quality, and ourresearch excellence in a new-university context. For each yearthat we advertise thesestudentships, our postgraduateportfolio will be brought to theeyes of thousands of potentialapplicants. This award alsostrengthens our case againstany potential attempts to cutour HEFCE postgraduatefunding (which has, otherwise,increased year-on-year).

‘The award is, therefore, muchbigger news than its monetaryvalue would suggest.’

Details of how to apply for thestudentships are available atwww.anglia.ac.uk/jobs.

For more information about theawards please contact SarahJones([email protected]).


� The Ruskin Gallery with digital installations.

Ruskin Gallery takes a leapinto the digital future

Following her nomination (seeBulletin April 2011, Vol 8 No4, page 16), we are delightedto announce that studentJoanne Tonkin has won thecoveted RCN Fellows StudentNurse Award for 2011.Joanne received her award,plus a £1000 cash prize, at aceremony at the Park Plaza

Westminster Bridge Hotel inLondon on Thursday 28 April.

Joanne is in the final year ofher three-year DipHE inAdult Nursing at Fulbournand is living in studentaccommodation atAddenbrooke’s Hospital.

‘It was a fantastic evening andwas a real celebration of nursesand their inspirational work. Iam so incredibly proud to havebeen a part of it,’ said Joanne.‘Without the continued supportof Anglia Ruskin University,through a very difficult time, Iknow I would have neverachieved what I have. I nowlook forward to my final year ofstudies and my initial stepsinto nursing with theknowledge and groundingprovided by Anglia Ruskin andtheir fantastic staff.’

Adult Nursing ProgrammeLeader, Pam Lee, said, ‘This isa truly fantastic achievementfor Joanne, a highly motivatedand very caring student nursewho deserves the recognitionthis award brings. Joanne didreally well to be nominated forthis award let alone win it:from spending time with heryou can see she will make agreat nurse.’

Joanne had been shortlisted forthe award for her reflection ofher first experience of being astudent nurse in 2005 inwhich, while on a placement, aqualified colleague made aserious medication error. She

spoke out about what she sawand, thanks to her intervention,the nurse in question waseventually removed from theregister following aninvestigation by the Nursingand Midwifery Council.However, the incident dentedJoanne’s confidence and sheleft her studies shortlyafterwards. She said, ‘Not onlydid the staff nurse give thewrong drug to the wrongpatient, but also when sherealised, she told the patientnot to speak about the event. Iwas angry that the patientconcerned had approached herdeath mired in legalcontroversy when she shouldhave been with her family.’

The RCN Fellows StudentNurse Award is sponsored bythe Nursing Standard, and itseditor in chief, Jean Gray, said,‘Joanne has demonstratedremarkable courage inreturning to her nursingstudies. Her story serves as aninspiration to other nursingstudents.’


Joanne Tonkin wins the RCN FellowsStudent Nurse Award

NEWS


� At the awards ceremony (l–r): Angela Rippon; Joanne Tonkin, DameChristine Beasley (Chief Nursing Officer of England and Wales); JeanGray (Editor in Chief of Nursing Standard).

SAGE and John Smith’s are delighted to invite you to celebrate thepublication of

Risk and Adventure in Early Years Outdoor Play and Forest School for All

by Sara Knight, Faculty of Education, on Wednesday 15 June, 1.00pm,at John Smith’s Bookshop, Anglia Ruskin University, Chelmsford

Copies of the books will be available at the launch with a special discountof £2 off RRP for each title, available on the day.

Please RSVP to: [email protected]

We look forward to seeing you there for a glass of wine and some nibbles!

The Admissions team aresetting plans in place forClearing 2011...Full story on page 12

Imagine a bamboo hut on theThai–Burma border, two daysjourney through the jungle bytruck from the nearest largetown, Mai Sot (‘home’ ofRambo). Imagine, in that hut,15 Karen refugee studentssitting with 15 solar-poweredlaptops accessing the Belfastcensus and comparing the ethicdiversity of that city with theethnic diversity of the Nu Porefugee camp. Such was theexperience of Anglia RuskinLecturer, Anthony Russell,academic consultant to GlobalBorder Studies (GBS).

Anthony spent most of Februaryin Mai Sot and Nu Po, teaching,researching and planning forfuture modules. GBS is run byMargaret Clarke of DundalkInstitute of Technology (DkIT)and funded by World Education.Niamh De Loughry of WorldEducation is delighted with the

innovative nature of GBS andsees it as a model for futuredevelopments.

GBS, in addition to providinghigher education for teachersand community workers, isexploring the vast potential ofthe worldwide web in makinglocation an educationalirrelevance. Key to this is therelationship betweensustainable energy and learning.GBS uses both solar power andhydro-electric power. At themoment, a diesel generator isused for a few hours three daysa week, but additional solarpanels will greatly reduce thisdependence. Batteries storepower for use at night.

Skype, Moodle and GoogleScholar allow the GBS studentsaccess to both human andwritten resources. GoogleScholar, in particular, is cutting

the ‘hard copy’ deficit. As theacademic consultant, Anthony,who wrote the modules, is infrequent, synchronous andasynchronous contact with boththe students and their teachers,Catherine Daly and JustinaMaslowska. He has conductedassessment, online lectures anddialogue from the UK. Anotherinnovative feature of GBS, giventhe cultural context, is theemphasis on reflection, activelearning and action research, allelements closely linked toAnthony’s work in the Faculty ofEducation.

Whilst away, Anthony was able,with the support of hiscolleagues Ian Tindal andShirley Pickford, to continue hiswork with his online modulesand even to attend theEducational Studiesdepartmental meeting (thanksto Adobe Connect) from under a


� Anthony Russell teaching students at the Nu Po refugee camp.

FoE academic on Thai–Burma border

mosquito net and in hissleeping bag.

Anthony’s exotic experienceformed the basis of his keynoteaddress to academics fromacross Europe at St Mary’sUniversity College, Belfast’sinternational week in early April.

Yes, there were rats, spiders,lizards, open sewers and a verylimited water supply, but Nu Pohas a growing internal economyand people eager to accesseducation through theimaginative use of theworldwide web. Along withMargaret (DkIT) and Niamh(World Education), Anthony isdeveloping the curriculum fornext year.

For more information, [email protected].

The European BusinessAssociation Cambridge (EBAC)is one of the most activestudent societies at AngliaRuskin. Each year thehighlight of the eventsorganised is the annuallecture, when a famousprofessional in the businessworld is invited to give a talkon a current topic. This year

the subject was ‘Employabilityin tough economic times’.

The speaker, Dr Louise Pryor,studied maths and computersciences at the University ofCambridge and also completeda PhD from Yale andNorthwestern University! Shehas worked as a softwaredeveloper, IT consultant,

lecturer and, on top of that, isalso a qualified actuary. Shedelivered the lecture asDirector of the ActuarialStandards at the FinancialReporting Council, her swansong in the role having decidedto move into consultancy.

As Louise has experiencedmoving jobs many times, sheis a suitable person to talkabout employability. She saidthat even though marksmatter, having good grades isnot enough anymore. What agraduate needs to show to theemployer is adaptability andappropriate skills for the job.The message was thatstudents should get involved inextracurricular activities (likeEBAC) and part-time jobs thatwill help them experienceorganisational skills, workingas a team and adaptability.Even with the currenteconomic recession, Louisestill thinks we should look at

the job market in a positiveway. The 20% graduateunemployment figure shouldbe viewed as 80% of themactually being employed. Sheconcluded that the currentrecession is not the problem,as there have been a lot ofrecessions before.

The informative eveningfinished with a useful Q&Asession and a reception wherestudents had the chance totalk further with the speaker.The evening was well attendedby graduate and undergraduatestudents from AIBS as well asother faculties. The eventraised the profile of AngliaRuskin as it was covered bythe local paper, CambridgeNews.

For further information, pleasecontact EBAC’s chairperson,Irina at [email protected], orPaul [email protected].

Employability in tough economic timesNEWS


� The speaker, Dr Louise Pryor, with the Irina Popova to her right.

MA Publishing staff havesecured yet anotheropportunity for MA Publishingstudents that is also to beextended to MA CreativeWriting and MA EnglishLiterature students.

The two-week internship iswith Shakespeare andCompany(www.shakespeareandcompany.com), based in the heart ofParis, opposite Notre Dame.Founded in 1951 byAmerican George Whitman,who stayed in Paris followingthe war, Shakespeare andCompany started as abookshop and has sincegrown into a literaryinstitution. With an annualliterary festival, writing

workshops, a literary prizeand a magazine, in additionto buying and selling books,the internships offers apromising student a uniqueopportunity to get first-handexperience in a wide range ofliterary activities.

Henry Miller, Anaïs Nin,Lawrence Durrell and AllenGinsberg all frequentedShakespeare and Company,and the company is seen as asanctuary for writers, aspiringwriters and artists.

Accommodation is includedduring the internship.

For more information pleasevisit www.anglia.ac.uk/alsspg.

� Shakespeare and Co founder George Whitman’s daughter, Sylvia, andAnglia Ruskin’s Leah Tether.

Annual internship scheme at Shakespeare and Company, Paris

New University Librarylogin and passwordnews...Full details on page 15

Forensic Science postgraduatestudent RaghuraghvendraSundarrajan has recently

received an award for theexcellence of a presentationgiven at an esteemed

international forensicsconference in India.

Raghuraghvendra, whostudied on our MSc ForensicScience Pathway, attendedthe 2nd InternationalConference on RecentAdvances in ForensicSciences, Medicine andToxicology in February thisyear. His oral presentation,based on his research,entitled, ‘Investigating forcerelative to stain size andspatter pattern’, was wellreceived by the conferenceorganisers, who presentedhim with an award ofexcellence.

The conference was organisedby the Indian Association ofMedico-Legal Experts(IAMLE), which is anindependent non-profiteducational and scientific


� Raghuraghvendra (pictured with his award) and his supervisor,Dr Rahul Pathak.

Forensics students’ ‘excellent’research is rewarded in India

organisation dedicated tobuilding the disciplines offorensic science. IAMLE hasover 500 high-profile patrons,including government officialsand dignitaries from esteemeduniversities, colleges andacademic fraternities fromover 20 countries.

Raghuraghvendra’s researchsupervisor, Dr Rahul Pathak,commented on his success,‘Raghuraghvendra performedhis research work with greatcreativity and enthusiasm. Iam pleased that his work iswell appreciated.’

John MenziesMarketing Administrator,Faculty of Science &Technology

Our Faculty recently had thepleasure of hosting guestsfrom the Kuwaiti Ministry ofthe Interior, who visited ourCambridge campus to learnmore about the latest forensicscience theories andtechniques taught within ourDepartment of Life Sciences.

The delegation of fourministry officials undertook anintensive five-day shortcourse, delivered by staff fromour Forensic Science pathwayand focusing on the subjectareas of drugs and toxicologyand chemical analyticaltechniques. The hands-on

course allowed the group togain valuable knowledge andlearn useful techniques thatthey will be able to apply intheir roles with the Ministry.

Whilst their study wascertainly intensive, thedelegation also tookadvantage of the opportunityto explore some of the famoussights located on the doorstepof our Cambridge campus.

John MenziesMarketing Administrator,Faculty of Science &Technology

Faculty of Science & Technology welcomes Kuwaiti visitors

� Members of the Kuwaiti delegation pictured in our Forensic Sciencelabs with Pro-Vice Chancellor and Dean of the Faculty of Science &Technology, Professor Eamon Strain, and the Head of the Department ofLife Sciences, Dr Sheila Pankhurst.

We are currently planning for Clearing 2011, and would like tosee all our places filled again this year. The Higher EducationFunding Council for England (HEFCE) is not allocatingadditional student numbers this year, so we will not have asmany places to fill. We envisage a similar Clearing event to lastyear (although probably for a slightly shorter period), and hopethat all of you who did such a brilliant job in supporting lastyear’s event will want to be involved again this year.

UCAS Clearing officially commences on 1 July and continuesthrough to September. The main Clearing event will be fromThursday 18 August, when A-level results are released tostudents. Clearing allows us to consider and make offers to full-time undergraduate applicants who are not holding any offers,and plays an important role in ensuring we meet our targets.

We are planning to deliver Clearing training sessions in July:look out for these on My.Anglia. For those who are unable toattend sessions in July, there will be a last-minute session justbefore Clearing commences.

Although Clearing is a pressured period, it is also a veryrewarding one, contributing to our success and giving us theopportunity to make some very stressed applicants very happy!

Pat WatsonHead of UK/EU Admissions, Corporate Marketing,International & Development Services

Postgraduate applications for taught courses are growing – andwe’d like them to grow even more!

This is the time of year when postgraduate and part-timeapplications start to build up, leading to a very busy time overthe summer. UK postgraduate applications for full-time taughtcourses are up slightly compared with this time last year (1242compared with 1205).

In line with our corporate plan, we want to increase ournumbers of taught postgraduate students significantly. We willbe working with colleagues in Corporate Marketing to increasepostgraduate applications and conversions. Gayle Daley isleading a working group to propose strategies for increasingpostgraduate recruitment. If you have a bright idea orsuggestion you would like to contribute, please contact Gayle [email protected].

As part of this initiative, we would like to increase the numberof our successful undergraduate students who progress topostgraduate study with us. To make this less bureaucratic,final-year undergraduate students who want to progress to ataught masters programme can apply via the internalapplication process (if you have any queries about this, pleasecontact Linda Norris on ext 4964).

Pat WatsonHead of UK/EU Admissions, Corporate Marketing,International & Development Services

Freshers’ Week 2011NEWS


It may seem that the week of 12 September is some timeaway, but planning is already well underway. Anecdotalevidence from Freshers’ 2010 was very positive. We weredelighted that the ‘autumn wave’ data from the StudentBarometers also gave us excellent feedback. In particular, thatwe were first in the UK for our international arrivals andwelcome. Our domestic students rated their overall satisfaction86%, with some specific activities achieving satisfaction ratesin the 90% range. Our international students rated their overallarrival experience as 87%, with their University Orientationrated at 86%.

These results are very pleasing but we are keen that wecontinue to improve upon them. In addition, we are mindful ofthe need both to satisfy our students’ increasing expectationsand to prepare them appropriately for university life.

The Welcome Steering Committee is currently meeting monthlyto oversee the planning for our new arrivals. Each faculty andsupport service directly involved in delivering Freshers’ Week isrepresented on this committee, and that representative willcommunicate information to colleagues. However, it is vital that

all staff are aware of the arrangements of Freshers’ Week and,therefore, we would like to encourage everyone to checkMy.Anglia regularly, and our Freshers’ website(www.anglia.ac.uk/freshers), where information regardingInternational Orientation and Freshers’ Week will be posted.

We will also have in place official Facebook and Twitteraccounts and a dedicated Freshers’ email address. We hope toupdate students regularly via these media, enable new studentsto make contact and form friendship groups with each otherbefore they arrive, post handy hints and signpost to essentialinformation. The dedicated email will enable students tocontact us with any queries or concerns they may have.

Further updates will appear in Bulletin as we near Freshers’Week, but in the meantime if you have any queries, please docontact either Lorraine Silk ([email protected]) or me,Belinda Lennon ([email protected]).

Belinda LennonAssistant Director (Information and Advice), Student Services

Clearing 2011 update Postgraduate applications 2011

Cambridge School of Art’sSummer School 2011 is nowopen for bookings. For the newprogramme, Cambridge Schoolof Art has teamed up withcolleagues in the Music andPerforming Arts and Englishand Media departments to offeran expanded range of creativepractice courses. There arecourses available for all levels ofexperience, so whether youwant to improve and exploreyour current creative practice orlearn new skills, we havecourses appropriate to yourneeds. All are designed toprovide creative stimulation anddevelopment, and are taught byour experienced lecturers andcreative practitioners in ourexcellent facilities.

Here’s what our SummerSchool students thought aboutsome of last year’s courses:

Portfolio Development‘Very enjoyable week – havebeen truly inspired’.

‘Lots of excellent information.Structured teaching – variety,pace, expertise. All very good.’

Illustrating Picture Books forChildren‘Excellent feedback andoutstanding opportunity tolearn from the best.’

‘Very informative, tutors – veryenthusiastic and encouraging.They really put 100% into theweek and it was a greatsuccess because of them.’

‘Please, please do it again. Itis a wonderful experience andfantastic to get such high-quality teaching and visitAnglia Ruskin.’

Drawing on Location‘A wonderful combination ofinstruction and practice. Sowell researched by the tutor,with extremely imaginativeprojects and good materials.’

‘Hannah was reallyinspirational and veryknowledgeable. I felt pushedand challenged.’

Introduction to Printmaking‘I got a lot out of the course. Itwas very practical and we

� Illustrating Picture Books for Children: © Marta Altes.

Cambridge School ofArt Summer School

were making prints from dayone. Very enjoyable.’

‘Nick took us through the“secrets” of printmaking whilstallowing us the freedom toexplore and experiment. It’sexcellent to have such aprofessional practitioner as atutor!’

For more information and tobook, please visitwww.anglia.ac.uk/csasummerschool.

The Charles Plater Trust hasawarded Anna Rowlands,Director of Pastoral Studies atThe Margaret Beaufort Instituteof Theology, a grant of morethan £50,000 for a projectentitled ‘Asylum, CatholicSocial Teaching and the BigSociety’. Anna submitted thisproposal on behalf of theInstitute, and in partnership

with Citizens UK, in responseto the Plater Trust’s grantcompetition 2011 theme, ‘Theintellectual endeavour ofrefreshing Catholic SocialThought in dialogue with theBritish context and throughscholarship and writing linkedwith policy formation.’ Theproject has three headlineaims:

• To engage the ‘academy’ inhigh-quality practicaltheological scholarship andwriting on the experiences ofthose forced migrantsseeking sanctuary in the UK,alongside an analysis of keyasylum issues facing UKpolicy makers. This will beachieved through thecreation of an innovative roleof ‘theologian in residence’ atCitizens UK for the durationof one year.

• Through this projectpartnership, to use theresources of Catholic SocialTeaching (CST) to motivateand mobilise the churches toengage their social capital inbuilding relationships oftrust, friendship andhospitality with asylumseeking families.

• As part of the commitmentto CST as ‘transformationalaction’ and practical theology

as ‘action research’, todevelop and pilot a small-scale functioning partnershipbetween state and civilsociety to improve asylumsocial policy for the benefit offorced migrant/asylum-seeking families.

The Plater Trust grant willenable the Institute to employa part-time member of staff forthree days a week during theacademic year 2011–12, torelease Anna to work on theproject.

Archbishop Vincent Nicholsrecognised this year’ssuccessful applicants at aceremony on Thursday 10March at Archbishop’s House.Congratulations Anna!

Esther ShreeveCambridge TheologicalFederation

News from the Cambridge Theological Federation

� Professor John Loughlin (St Edmund’s College, Cambridge, 2011 Winner),Archbishop Vincent Nichols (Chairman of the Trust), Sally Malin (Caritas Social ActionNetwork, 2011 Winner), Dr Anna Rowlands (Margaret Beaufort Institute, 2011 Winner).

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New virtual learningenvironment – plans formore refinements...Full story on page 16


Nearly 100 people packedinto David 14 on theafternoon of Monday 21March to attend the inauguralAnglia Law School CambridgeLaw Careers Day, targeted atall Cambridge Anglia LawSchool students. The speakersranged from a senior partnerat Mills and Reeve, CharlesStavely, through to youngtrainee solicitors such as VickiClark of the regionalcommercial law firm Prettys,who is a recent graduate ofthe Legal Practice Course at

Anglia Ruskin. The speakers,of whom there were 11 in all,gave short addresses abouttheir working lives beforestudents had their chance toquiz them. Also attendingwere speakers from legalpublishers, CambridgeUniversity Press and theCambridgeshire Constabulary.

Tom SerbyAnglia Law School, Faculty ofArts, Law & Social Sciences

On 17 March, ProfessorEmeritus Vernon Trafford andDr Paulette Luff, a SeniorLecturer from the Faculty ofEducation, led a seminar forthe Issues in PostgraduateEducation Network of theSociety for Research in HigherEducation. The title of theirsession was drawn from PeterBurnham whose wonderfullyevocative words, in 1994,captured the Academy’sfeelings about doctoral vivas.Vernon and Pauletteencouraged the seminarparticipants to explorewhether, 17 years on, thesecrecy continues to exist.Drawing upon the smallresearch literature, universityregulations, and personalexperience of 122 vivas, plussupervision and examinations,they set out to demystify the

processes that surrounddoctoral vivas.

The seminar participantsincluded PhD candidates,supervisors, examiners andthose responsible for doctoraleducation and theadministration of higherdegrees in UK universities.They discussed cameos ofactual events, genuinequestions asked in five vivas,and personal accounts, todevelop and challenge currentunderstandings of what reallyhappens in viva voceexaminations.

The photograph (above left)shows the presenters togetherwith Dr Martin Gough, aconvenor of the PostgraduateIssues Network.

Paulette and Vernon will beusing material from thisseminar for a workshop at theforthcoming Annual ResearchStudent Research Conference.For more information, [email protected].

The Medical Engineering Research Groupat the forefront of recent advances and developments in osteoarthritis

NEWS


The Medical EngineeringResearch Group will beholding its fifth biennialconference on 1 June 2011 inthe Postgraduate MedicalInstitute. The purpose of thisone-day meeting is to bringtogether the many researchers,clinicians and medicaltechnologists working on thecauses, treatment andprevention of osteoarthritis.The meeting will allowinterested groups to share andexchange knowledge, networkand develop new researchcollaborations. The meetingwill also provide the

opportunity for attendees topresent their latest work anddiscuss research advances andoutcomes in the area ofosteoarthritis and treatmentmethods. High-quality paperswill be published in the journalComputer Methods inBiomechanics and BiomedicalEngineering.

Confirmed invited speakers willinclude:• Professor Serena Best from

the University of Cambridge,who will be presenting thelatest developments onceramics, composites and

coatings for bone tissuereplacement.

• Dr Howard Hillstrom fromthe Hospital for SpecialSurgery in New York, whowill give a keynote speechon the structural andfunctional determinants ofpain in varus kneeosteoarthritis.

The aim is to focus on bothexisting and new scientifictechniques (laboratory- andsimulation-based), which canbe used to link themultidisciplinary and cross-disciplinary areas that

encompass research inosteoarthritis. Medicalengineering and imagingcompanies, such as SummitMedical and Scientific andMaterialise, are sponsoringprizes for the best oral andposter presentations.

On-site registration will bepossible on the day.

For more information, pleasecontact Dr Rajshree Mootanah,Director of the MedicalEngineering Research Group,[email protected].

Inaugural Anglia Law School CambridgeLaw Careers Day

Exposing the best kept secret in highereducation: the viva

� Abigail Trencher, a solicitor at Birketts, Claire Green of Taylor Vintersolicitors, Tom Serby, Senior Lecturer in Law, who organised the event,and Charles Stavely.

Launch of collaborativeonline degree progammewith US instutution...Full story on page 20

The Student ServicesEmployment Bureau teamsorganised two very successfulcross-campus events onTuesday 12 April. Recruitmentagencies from Chelmsford andCambridge were invited ontocampus to offer advice aboutemployment opportunities andto register students andgraduates for temporary workor for permanent jobs aftergraduation. Over 250 studentsattended to meet bothgeneralist recruitment agencies,like Manpower, or specialists intheir field, such as HaysConstruction or RandstadEducation.

The recruiters were veryenthusiastic about the eventand the quality of our studentsand graduates. Alison Power,from Power Resourcing inCambridge, commented,‘Thank you so much for yourkind invitation to attend today’sevent. Power Resourcingspecialises in graduaterecruitment, across a range ofsectors, and we were keen tomeet a wide variety of students

and graduates. We had nearly100 visitors to our stand andwere very impressed with thequality of the candidates.’ InChelmsford, Tony Dalliday,Branch Manager of theChelmsford office of globalrecruitment organisation,Adecco, said, ‘Thanks forinviting us to your recruitmentagency fair. I have to say Ifound there to be a very highcalibre of candidates. I amconfident we have opportunitiesthat will be of interest to manyof your students and graduateswho registered today.’

The students and graduateswho attended were also verypositive about the opportunityto engage with the agencies.‘The event was extremelyhelpful, completely devoid ofany hassle, the ambience wasvery warm, friendly andrefreshing. Thank you to theEmployment Bureau!’, saidSheriff Oladejo, AIBS student.Themba, a Law graduate,commented, ‘The EmploymentBureau provided a fantasticopportunity to meet recruiters

who are active in the jobmarket. In this harsh economicclimate, getting recruiters toour doorstep enables me as agraduate to start beingproactive about my job search.Thanks to the EmploymentBureau who have answeredour needs with this event.’

Jane Murray, Assistant Director,Employability, was delightedwith the strong student turnoutfor the events and the high-profile recruiters who visitedus. ‘The Employment Bureauhas organised two verysuccessful events today.Students and graduates havehad the tremendous benefit ofprofessional recruitmentconsultancies coming to meetthem on campus to give adviceabout the current employmentopportunities in the region,review CVs and arrangeinterviews for both temporarywork and permanent jobs.’Nicola Sexton, Interim Managerof the Cambridge EmploymentBureau, added, ‘TheEmployment Bureau iscommitted to assisting ourstudents in finding workexposure opportunities. Weunderstand the importance ofgaining work experience andwe are passionate aboutproviding our students with theskills needed to securepermanent work aftergraduation.’

Following the success of thesefirst events, the EmploymentBureau is planning to makerecruitment agency fairs aregular event on campus. If youwould like to know more or ifyou have any suggestions forfuture events, please contactSarah White([email protected]) atthe Chelmsford campus orNicola Sexton([email protected]) atCambridge.

Your login andpassword to theUniversity Librarywill changeAfter 18 July 2011, theUniversity Library is changingthe way all staff and studentslogin to the Digital Library. Itwill no longer be necessary touse your old library barcodenumber and password(Library login). Instead, allusers will use their standardUniversity login, as used forall other online services atAnglia Ruskin.

NOTE: If you are a Refworks(bibliographic software) useror have saved importantpersonal preferences (such assaved searches, favourites oralerts) with one of thedatabase services madeavailable through the DigitalLibrary, please note that thisdata will not automatically betransferred when you use yournew login. Users with saveddata will need to take actionto transfer it. In some cases a‘backup and restore’ optionwill be available, in othercases you will have to make anote of your preferences andset these up afresh after youstart logging in with yourActive Directory account.However, to support this, theUniversity Library will provideaccess to your old Librarylogin account for this purposefor the duration of 2011.

Full details of the changeoverwere published on theUniversity Library website inMay, and can be accessed athttp://libweb.anglia.ac.uk/.

Graham HoworthAssistant Director of LibraryServices (Central Division)


� Plenty of interaction at the Chelmsford recruitment fair.

Recruitment fairs are just the job!

Our keynote speakerWe are excited to announce thatour keynote speaker is DavidRobinson OBE (pictured). Davidis the founder of the eastLondon charity CommunityLinks – described by the PrimeMinister as ‘one of Britain’smost inspiring communityorganisations’ – and leader ofthe new Early Action Task Force.Community Links provides awide range of services for30,000 people a year, and itssuccesses influence both policymakers and practitionersnationally. David’s keynote willfocus on ‘Building a sense ofpossibility and excitement:creating opportunities toenhance student learning’. Also,Jude Carroll, from the OxfordCentre of Staff and EducationalDevelopment and a NationalTeaching Fellow, will be runninga workshop on teachinginternational students.

Sharing and disseminatinginformationThe conference includesopportunities for you toparticipate in presentations andworkshops on pedagogic projectsundertaken by our colleagues.Many of these are the outcomesof work undertaken from currentand past Learning and TeachingProjects.

Learning new thingsThroughout the day, there willbe the opportunity to learn

about and experience someinnovative ideas that you can tryfor yourself. They include:

• formative assessment usingWeb 2.0 technology

• exploring and exploiting thetools on the VLE

• specific and generic study skills• student feedback in digital

audio form• using vodcasts for distance

learning

Vice Chancellor’s addressOur Vice Chancellor, ProfessorMike Thorne, will give a keynoteaddress in which he will launchour new Learning, Teaching andAssessment Strategy, and willfocus on some of our strategiclearning and teaching objectivesfor the coming year. Atlunchtime, Mike will presentcertificates to the successfulnominees for our ViceChancellor’s Awards.

Announcement of TeachingFellowship Awards andLearning and Teaching ProjectsAt the conference reception,Mike will be presenting our newUniversity Teaching Fellows, andwill announce the successfulapplicants to our Learning andTeaching Project fund.

RegistrationFor further information anddetails of how to register, pleasesee www.anglia.ac.uk/inspire, orlog on to www.surveymonkey.com/s/InnovateRegistration toregister direct online.

28 June: Put this date in your diary!

Dr Jaki LillyAssociate Director Learning &Teaching Development,INSPIRE

InnovateCreative Ideas on Learning and TeachingAnnual Learning and Teaching Conference28 June, Michael A Ashcroft Building, Chelmsford

NEWS


After running two pilot phasesduring the academic year2009–10, the new virtuallearning environment (VLE) hasundergone considerabledevelopment. For most of lastyear, we used the functionalitiesthat the SharePoint platformprovides more or less straightout of the box, with a speciallycustomised module interface.During this academic year,however, the focus has been ondeveloping the VLE to meet thebusiness requirements thatwere generated by AngliaRuskin users and e-learningexperts.

Much has been achievedalready. Since September 2010,every campus-based modulehas its own module site on the

VLE, and faculty strategies havedefined the minimumrequirements for moduledeliveries. A semester-one auditof VLE modules was undertakenby INSPIRE, and found thatthese faculty requirements –which include the setting up ofthe module homepage anduploading the module guideand module definition form –have been met by almost allmodules. Progress has alsobeen made in using the VLE toenhance learning and teaching,with many modules nowincluding uploaded learningmaterials and resources, as wellas module tutors using theannouncement and calendarfeatures to communicate withtheir students.

The main development focus ofour evolving VLE this academicyear has been to improve theway tutors can use and managethe VLE to enhance its existingfunctionalities, such as thediscussion board and wiki, andto develop some of theoutstanding functionalitiesdefined in the VLE businessrequirements. These include theacquisition and setting up of anassessment engine(Questionmark Perception), aformative submission tool(dropbox) and the embedding ofmedia. The process is ongoing,with some major developments,including a learning path tool,site copier, redefinedpermissions and a studentmanagement or tracking systembeing developed, ready for

module deliveries in the nextacademic year.

Advances on the VLE have gonealongside many other excitingdevelopments, such as theupgrade of classroomtechnologies on both maincampuses, the setting up ofsynchronous onlinecommunication tools usingMicrosoft Live, the procurementof a lecture capture system, aswell as a media server that willallow us to upload audio andvideo and make them accessiblein a similar fashion to YouTube.

For further information aboutour VLE development and otheraspects mentioned in thisarticle, please contact INSPIREat [email protected].

The new virtual learning environment is evolving and maturing

Menelik Education – acharity changing lives inKinshasa...Full story on page 22

Mpowernet’s Higher LevelTeaching Assistant (HLTA)team were honoured at acelebration event for itssupport staff, held byHaringey local authority.Training Development Officer,Colin Sowter, was invited toattend the ceremony, and wasdelighted to meet up with 13of the Haringey delegates whohe had trained as part of thenational three-day preparationprogramme leading to theassessment for HLTA status.

The event focused on othersupport staff, too, includingthose who had achievedNVQs or had gainedqualifications under theSupport Workers in Schoolsscheme, amongst others.Successful participants andtheir providers/trainers wereinvited back for an evening atthe local authority’s maincontinuing professionaldevelopment (CPD)headquarters, near TurnpikeLane in north London.

The evening was also tocelebrate the achievements of,and to say goodbye to, AngelaJackman, Haringey’sWorkforce DevelopmentAdviser, who has been themain impetus behind CPDservices for Haringey staff –Angela was, sadly, takingearly retirement due to therecent government public-

sector cuts. The HLTA team atChelmsford’s Mpowernet(Faculty of Education) hasworked very closely withAngela for the last six or soyears, and we are sad to seeher go.

Angela put up a slide that said,‘Our thanks to Colin Sowter andthe team at Anglia RuskinUniversity for supporting ourcandidates so brilliantly.’


� Pictured are the HLTA group at the Haringey local authority event, with Colin Sowter at the left in the backrow (in a grey jacket) and Angela Jackman (in a grey dress) immediately to his right.

Angela led the presentationsat the celebration, which, forthat section of the evening,included a slot on HLTA. Onthe PowerPoint, Angela putup a slide that said, ‘Ourthanks to Colin Sowter andthe team at Anglia RuskinUniversity for supporting ourcandidates so brilliantly,’which was very gratifying to

Mpowernet honoured at support staffcelebration event

us all! Colin gave a five-minute speech outlining thehard work by all concerned inachieving HLTA status, andwas then presented with abook token by Angela as anextra thank you for all ourteam’s hard work. This was

most unexpected but a lovelytouch! HLTA at Mpowernetreally is a team effort, withColin Sowter and fellowTraining Development Officer,Carole Rowe, delivering allthe training across the Londonregion, very ably supported byChelmsford-based office staff,including Mandy Eccleston,Trudie Green and RaynorSumner.

The government’s public-sector cuts continue to bite,and whilst some HLTAfunding has been removed,Mpowernet is working hard tocontinue to promote thecourses, as it seems there arestill schools and localauthorities that value itenough to want to continuewith it, finding funds fromother sources. So, we weredelighted to hear at theHaringey celebration eventthat co-ordination of CPDservices for support staff inHaringey will now be takenover by Kathy Hall, Angela’scounterpart in neighbouringEnfield. Kathy has been along-time supporter of andbuyer of Mpowernet’s HLTAservices, and is very keen tocontinue this relationship. Infact, Kathy set up, with us, anew three-day HLTApreparation course (thathappened in May), withdelegates from Enfield,Barnet, Haringey, Redbridgeand Havering all comingtogether: with over 25 peopleparticipating, it was oursecond largest cohort ever!

For more information aboutMpowernet and HTLAtraining, please contact ColinSowter [email protected].

You have been working at Anglia Ruskin since February, howhave you found us so far?I’ve attended many meeting and talked to a lot of people! Thereare areas that I need to address as the Director of ISMS butthere are also many positives. I’ve been impressed by howmuch work is being undertaken across Anglia Ruskin toimprove the student experience, including in ISMS. Forexample, ISMS has been heavily involved in our new builds –we’ve delivered three since I arrived! Ensuring there is anappropriate IT infrastructure and modern working, teaching andlearning facilities is key to our future.

I understand you graduated from Anglia Ruskin. What areyour memories of that time?I was a part-time student and an hourly paid lecturer here atAnglia Ruskin University whilst I was IT Manager for the localhealth authority. I then went on to be Director of IT at theUniversity of East London before being appointed Director ofISMS here. I have a lot of good memories and have had somenotable experiences at Anglia!

Such as?Well, I was once responsible (accidentally) for the outbreak of avirus that nearly grounded the whole place. Thankfully, our ITservices have come a long way since then!

And you have a daughter studying here. This must help you tounderstand the student experience.Yes, she is studying part-time for her Masters in Education. It’sgiven me an insight into the current student experience,together with an understanding of some of the areas we needto improve.

You have just completed the ISMS Strategic Plan for2011–12. What can colleagues expect from ISMS in thecoming year?We continue to be very busy delivering new requirements andkeeping our systems live. Some of the changes andimprovements students and staff can expect include are:

• improvements to SITS and management information• enhancements to our virtual learning environment, including

more media content and improved student-to-tutorcommunications

• continued improvements to learning and teaching facilities,including the opening of the new open-access learning zonein Cambridge

• a new desktop featuring Windows 7 and Office 2010• more robust IT services and ‘greener’ IT solutions• a fresh approach to our project management methodology

and delivery, including much closer collaboration withservices and faculties.

We will also continue work to join up systems and provide keyservices online.

Finally, it must be very demanding being responsible for theIT services across the whole of Anglia Ruskin: how do you liketo relax and unwind?I like to watch cricket and American football (my son is areferee), I also try to get to the gym three times a week. I’verecently taken an interest in astronomy, too, and I’m a memberof our local Workers Education Society, which mainly exploreslocal history. I also travel overseas when I can.

Jennifer WoodBusiness Development Manager, Information Systems andMedia Services

Tony Wright,Director ofInformationSystems andMedia Services –interview

NEWS


Find out about thebenefits of thelabyrinth...Full story on page 23

Twelve talented young studentshave won a place in a nationalfinal after demonstrating theirlanguage skills at the Routesinto Languages East ForeignLanguages Spelling Bee. Thecompetition has captured theimagination of over 40 schoolsacross the East of England,with around 4800 Year-7pupils battling it out to spellthe highest number of words inFrench, German or Spanish.

In early April, nearly 100 localwinners – who had won classand school rounds of thecompetition – took part in theregional final at CombertonVillage College near Cambridge.The pupils had to learn 150words for the regional final andthey then had one minute totranslate and correctly spell arandom list of words in theirchosen language.

Our Routes into LanguagesProject Manager, Sarah

Schechter, said, ‘Thecompetition has given thepupils the opportunity to learnthe vocabulary that they needto know in order to improvetheir language competence.The wonderful aspect of theproject is that it attracts andmotivates a broad cross-section of pupils, notnecessarily just the gifted andtalented ones. Learning foreignlanguage vocabulary can bepretty tough, but thecompetition element capturesthe imagination of the pupils.’

The winners of this year’sregional competition were:German – first Jack Wells,Thomas Lord Audley School,Colchester, Essex; second AnnyBush, Thomas Lord AudleySchool, Colchester, Essex; thirdStanley Stefanowski, ChaffordHundred School, Thurrock,Essex; fourth MichaelBarrenger, Colne CommunitySchool, Essex.

French – first Helen Grant,Linton Village College,Cambridgeshire; secondSophie Kennedy, YavnehCollege, Borehamwood,Hertfordshire; third LeanneHarris, Yavneh College,Borehamwood, Hertfordshire;fourth Olivia Haste, LintonVillage College,Cambridgeshire.

Spanish – first Fizza Arshad,Southend High School forGirls, Essex; second EwanJenkins, Comberton VillageCollege, Cambridgeshire; thirdEdward Shelley, CombertonVillage College,Cambridgeshire; fourth StevenVeizi, Gateway Academy,Tilbury, Essex.

All 12 received shields andcertificates, with the winnersbeing presented with a cup fortheir school and a foreignlanguage dictionary donated by


� The winners from the regional finals – back row (l–r): Ewan Jenkins, Fizza Arshad, Anny Bush, Jack Wells,Helen Grant, Olivia Haste and Michael Barrenger; front row: Edward Shelley, Stanley Stefanowski, Steven Veizi,Sophie Kennedy and Leanne Harris.

Oxford University Press. Thenational final, which will takeplace in Cambridge in July, willsee the 12 regional winnerscompeting against pupils fromacross the country.

The Spelling Bee was devisedby Jane Driver, a teacher inthe Language Department atComberton Village College. Thecompetition ran successfully asa Routes East regionalprogramme last year and hasnow been rolled out as anational initiative. Jane said,‘Having seen the difference thespelling bee has made to ourpupils’ confidence andlanguage competence, we’rereally excited that it’s nowgone national!’

Dr Tony Morgan, Director ofRoutes East, added, ‘Pupils ofthis age love to learn andcompete. This project ismaking great waves and givingstudents and teachers lots offun.’

Jonathan Scheele, Head of theEuropean Commission’sRepresentation in the UK, saidof the scheme, ‘With anestimated 11 per cent ofsmall- and medium-sizedbusinesses losing contractsdue to a lack of languageskills, it’s important that weequip today’s children –tomorrow’s workforce – withthe best possible skills tosecure interesting andchallenging jobs. We fullysupport this fun and innovativeway of encouraging youngschool children to learn foreignlanguages.’

Jon GreenPress Officer, CorporateMarketing, International &

Local schools get a buzz from ForeignLanguage Spelling Bee

The Employment Bureaurecently organised a visit forBA (Hons) TourismManagement students fromthe Ashcroft InternationalBusiness School in Chelmsfordto the Tourism and LeisureShow, held at Five Lakes, nearMaldon, Essex. The trip wasorganised as an opportunity forthe students to network withexhibitors to secure potentialemployment opportunities andto start building a personal‘career contacts network’ withprofessionals already working

in their chosen industry. Mostvacancies in the UK are notadvertised, so buildingpersonal networks like this iscrucial for securing life-longcareer opportunities.

The annual event, organisedby Visit Essex, was anotherhugely successful show. Over100 organisations operating inthe tourism industry wereexhibiting, and 2011 sawmore than 1000 visitorsthrough the doors, the largestnumber recorded in the 16

years that the event has beenrunning. Carol Jolly,Membership and BusinessTourism Manager at VisitEssex, is delighted to have hadthe opportunity of workingwith us: ‘Anglia RuskinUniversity took part in theannual Tourism and LeisureShow for the first time thisyear. The event is the perfectshowcase for what Essex hasto offer, and it was fantastic tohave Anglia Ruskin on boardand be part of this prestigiouscounty event. I’m sure thestudents benefited frominteracting with the tourismbusinesses, not just fromEssex, but from all over theEast of England.’

As well as helping the studentsto network directly withemployers at the event, theEmployment Bureau team ofSarah White, Sarah Kempsterand Verity Hyett worked withHannah Myatt from AIBS tohost an exhibition space forAnglia Ruskin promoting theTourism Management courseto visitors and organisations.Sarah White commented, ‘As aresult of our attendance at thisevent, the Radisson Blu at

Stansted has agreed to offer a“behind the scenes” tour forthe Tourism Managementstudents, Essex and SuffolkWater are supporting a studentwith her dissertation next year,and Five Lakes itself is indiscussion with theEmployment Bureau about arange of work opportunities forboth students and graduates,with a particular interest in ourinternational students.’

Sarah White added, ‘Weworked in close collaborationwith AIBS to bring this eventtogether, and particular thanksgo to Simon Evans, PathwayLeader, Tourism Management,and Hannah Myatt, StudentExperience Co-ordinator: theirhelp was invaluable,organising our presence at theshow and supporting thestudents who attended.’

The Employment Bureau teamis keen to support all facultieswith this type of employabilityskills support for theirstudents. Please contact Sarahif you would like to discusshow our team can work withyour students([email protected]).

Tourism Management students –networking for jobs!

NEWS


� Making the most of opportunites at the Tourism and Leisure Show.

We have recently forged astrategic partnership withExcelsior College, in the UnitedStates, to create two innovativedegree programmes, designedto equip graduates with theskills and the competitive edgeto succeed in today’s globalmarketplace. The BA Hons inBusiness Management Practiceand BSc Hons in BusinessTechnology Management will betaught online, and oncompletion successful studentswill obtain both a UK degree

from Anglia Ruskin and a USdegree from Excelsior College.

Jon Bouffler, Director ofLearning Development Services,said, ‘We’re very excited by thispartnership with ExcelsiorCollege, who have a reputationas one of the leading distancelearning colleges in the US. Theflexibility of these coursesmeans that people will haveeven greater options whendeciding to study with us.’

Excelsior College is recognisedas a pioneer in the field ofremote learning. Experiencedonline tutors and coursefacilitators will be in regularemail and real-time contactwith students, making thecourses suitable for peoplewherever they are in the world.

The BA Hons in BusinessManagement Practice is anadvanced business studiescourse, with topics coveredincluding cross-cultural

communications, projectmanagement, entrepreneurshipand business leadership. TheBSc Hons in BusinessTechnology Managementincludes modules on businessstatistics, computer architectureand database management.


Anglia Ruskin launches US collaborative degree programme

See this month’s staffdevelopmentopportunities...Full details on page 27

Our fifth annual Uni4U event,funded by Aimhigher andorganised by the ExternalLiaison Team, took place atthe Chelmsford campus on 2April, with over 420 visitorsgaining an experience ofuniversity life. Aimed at13–15 year olds and theirfamilies from across Essex,Uni4U provided guests withthe opportunity to explore theentire campus and take partin any of the 30-plusactivities on offer.

Each faculty was represented,with activities including asession on Txt tools, aforensic crime scene lab, anaudio tour of the campuslooking at its architecture,and a very popular dramasession. External contributorsincluded Essex Wildlife Trust,Connexions and members ofthe Chelmsford EngineeringSociety.

We are grateful to allcolleagues who gave up their

time on the day, as well as allthe hard work that went intopreparing the excellentactivities that were on offer.The level and quality offeedback we received on theday was fantastic, with 90%of families responding! Thequote below came from aparent a couple of days afterthe event, and we wanted toshare this with colleagues asit really does demonstratehow important the approachof a whole network of staff isto make this activity asuccess.

‘Many thanks for your emailand, indeed, for the day itself.To be honest my weekends arevery valuable, and the idea ofgiving them up to visit auniversity wasn’t at the top ofmy particular top 10 ways tospend a Saturday, so I gotdragged along (mumblingquietly to myself).

‘Parking was very easy, thereception we received was

outstanding – very, veryfriendly – and the day itselfwas very well organised.(I almost found myself smiling– oh heck, I will admit toactually enjoying it andregretting the fact that I neverwent to uni!).

‘Our daughters (13 and 10)had a great time, too, we feltconfident enough to let themwalk around with their friendsto experience the day withoutbeing hidebound by parentslooking over their shoulders.Needless to say that while Iwas hoping to spend no morethan two hours, we stayeduntil 3.30pm. My daughtersand two friends had anamazing day, both are nowdetermined to go to uni, theemails of the work theycompleted were forwarded byemail, and our overall opinionwas a great day.

‘All the students and staffwere very friendly, theenvironment very modern and


� Drama students involved in one of the popular sessions for visitors.

the refreshments were good.So to summarise, thank youfor a wonderful day. You madeus feel very welcome indeed.Our daughters were veryimpressed, as were we.’

This really sums up what wehope to achieve by running anevent such as this, and justgoes to show how valuableyour time and input really is.This event has been run inconjunction with and fundedby Aimhigher for the past fiveyears. Whilst Aimhigherfunding is ending in July,Anglia Ruskin has made clearits commitment to wideningparticipation and outreachactivity in our new AccessAgreement, and we arehopeful that Uni4U willcontinue in the future.

Nicola LumbAimhigher DevelopmentOfficer, External LiaisonTeam, Corporate Marketing,International & DevelopmentServices

Uni4U – a successful event

My name is Sally, and Istudied for my degree atAnglia Ruskin University(when it was CCAT) back inthe 1980s. I then worked atAnglia for a total of 14 years,in two very different jobs,with time in between them,between 1984 and 2006.

Two years ago, I found outabout a remarkable charity,Menelik Education, which isthe brainchild of TheodoreMenelik-Mfuni, the charity’sfounder and director. Thecharity works in theDemocratic Republic of Congoand is involved in educationalwork with children from theages of three to 19, withuniversities, communitygroups and health clinics. Aswell as running the charity,Theodore is an AssociateChaplain at the Cambridgecampus in a non-religious

pastoral role. He set thecharity up in 2006 aftervisiting his family in Kinshasafollowing the war. He was sohorrified at what he saw –70% of children not attendingschool, girls in particular;huge poverty, lack ofcommunity cohesion – that hereturned to Cambridgedetermined to do somethingand help to begin to make adifference.

I am now a trustee andvolunteer fundraiser for thecharity. I first went out toKinshasa in the summer of2010 and will be going outagain this June, on bothoccasions working as avolunteer running a summerschool for local children in anarea of extreme poverty, manyof whom do not attendschool. I am a completenovice as a teacher, have an

O level in French and do notspeak Lingala, but had thetime of my life last year. Thechildren were a delight, full ofwarmth and energy and keento learn. We taught hygiene,letters, numbers and animalsand general greetings inEnglish as well as art. Theteaching was a mixture offormal ‘chalk and talk’ plus atremendous number of rowdygames, singing and dancing.Exhausting but veryrewarding. The classroomswere basic – ceilings fallingdown, dust floors, brokenbenches and no teachingresources whatsoever. Thetoilets were far from hygienicbeing situated in the middleof the playground, which inthe heat made them less thanpleasant to be near and putthe children at risk of illness.Despite all this, we workedvery hard and, as the days

went by, more and moreparents and children becameaware of our activities andcame along to join in, so thatwe ended up working withover 100 children! It was veryhumbling to see how little thechildren have and howthrilled they were to be givena tiny notebook and pencilwith which to write.

The charity’s aim is not tothrow money at the situation,but to provide the tools,encouragement and supportfor individuals, schools andclinics, to take responsibilityfor their own futures.Partnerships have been madewith three local schools andstudents are supported backinto school, resources havebeen given to the schools(computers, etc), and teacher-training programmesdeveloped in conjunction withour partnership college in theUK, Impington VillageCollege. A resources centrehas been established at ourKinshasa HQ, providing ITtraining and an internet café,which is now becoming self-financing. A local clinic,which links into one of thebasic clinics at one of ourschools, is being suppliedwith equipment, andvolunteer medics are able tospend time working there.This summer, the first CitizensAdvice Bureau will be set upwith the assistance of a groupof undergraduate andpostgraduate lawyers from theUniversity of Cambridge’sLawyers Without Borders. Weare also working to encouragedisabled students into ourmainstream schools. Disabledchildren are not given anyformal education as they areconsidered a curse and are

From Cambridge to Kinshasa– the journey of a lifetime

NEWS


� Menelik Education’s aim is to help the Kinshasa community by providing the wherewithal to take resposibilityfor their own future.

Find out about Musicand Performing Art’sFestival Week events...Full details on page 30

The labyrinth is an ancientimage appearing across theworld in many countries,cultures and faith contexts.Unlike a maze, it has a singlepath to the centre and outagain, and you can always seewhere you are going. Thenarrow path offers a meditativewalk: an experience thatquietens the mind and maylead to fresh insights.

The labyrinth at Anglia Ruskinin Chelmsford came into beingthrough a conversationbetween Dr Debbie Holley,Principal Lecturer, Faculty ofEducation, and the Chaplain,Rev Tony Cant. Debbie, anaccredited Labyrinth Facilitator,thought it would be a great giftto our Uni, and spoke to Tonyto see if he could make ithappen. Through a series ofvery positive conversationsbetween Tony, Estates and theSurveying Department, thelabyrinth appeared on the lawnoutside the Marconi Building inthe last teaching week beforethe Easter break.

Aidan Garbutt, Senior Lecturerin the Built Environment,arranged for four of hisstudents to mark out the basicshape of the labyrinth, whichthey found to be a veryenjoyable experience. DaveReynolds and Yvonne Parkerfrom Estates then arranged forthe final marking out to bedone.

On Tuesday 12 April, Debbieand Tony facilitated a labyrinthworkshop. Ten people attendedand offered time and space forreflection through the

experience of a labyrinth walk,with opportunities to learnmore about this extraordinaryand beautiful resource. Thesession included anintroduction to labyrinths in anhistorical, contemporary andeducational context. Discussionof its possibilities in highereducation drew on work fromthe creative campus initiativeat the University of Kent andelsewhere. Developing the useof labyrinths as a resource canhelp to:• support student writing and

other aspects of student life• reduce stress and anxiety• deepen reflection and

creativity.

Following the introduction,there was a facilitated labyrinthwalk on the newly laid outclassical labyrinth.

Professor David Humber, ProVice-Chancellor and Dean ofthe Faculty of Health & Social


� Workshop participants walking the labyrinth.

� The Surveying students (l–r) Anthony Davis, Lewis Clark, Joseph Ames,Robbie Ware, with Senior Lecturer, Aidan Garbutt.

Care, walked the labyrinth. Hesaid, ‘I think university is aplace that should changepeople and see them developin ways that can often surprisethem. It certainly did that forme, and I think the labyrinth isone of those quirky ways thatcan bring change to people,and is welcomed as a part ofour experience here.’

At present, our labyrinth is atemporary one, but it may wellreappear at our annual PhDresearch students conferenceon 17 June that Debbie will bepresenting at.

The labyrinth is a joint projectbetween Chaplaincy, theFaculty of Education andStudent Services. Please don’thesitate to contact Tony([email protected]) orDebbie([email protected])should you require any furtherinformation or help.

The labyrinth

ostracised from theircommunities. Finally, we aimto support women who wishto set up their own businessesand have supported, amongstothers, a young lady who hasset up her own dressmakingbusiness in the city. In anywork that we do(construction, etc) we aim toinclude the local community,giving them jobs so that theyare able to earn money tofeed their families or sendtheir children to school.

Inevitably, in this currentclimate, raising the funds toenable this work to take placeis incredibly difficult. We runour own fundraising events,which are hugely varied –from food and music eventsto running workshops. We relyon the interest and support offriends plus our own personalresources. The charity’s staffdo not take any salary at allfor our work and all moneyraised goes directly to thepoint of greatest need as wecontrol it all, and it does notget lost in any corruptbureaucracy.

There is a great deal that hasbeen achieved and a greatdeal more to do. Theodorebelieves in win-winrelationships, and aims tomake contact with all ofAnglia Ruskin’s faculties witha view to developingpartnerships that will benefityour students as well as thecommunity in Kinshasa – dovisitwww.menelikpartnership.orgto see some of the charity’swork.

Sally Jackson-NottFormer student and employeeof Anglia Ruskin University


Third-year Clinical Physiologystudent, Annalisa Bellamy(second from the left in thepicture above), has once moreexcelled in national bowlscompetitions. Annalisa was theskip (captain) of a ladies foursteam from Spalding BowlsClub in Lincolnshire, who wonthe senior ladies national fourstitle in the national indoorbowls competition. Annalisa is23, and her team’s ages were17, 18 and 25: their combinedages meant they were theyoungest team to win thecompetition by about 80 yearsas well as being the youngestteam ever to win the title.

The Ladies National Fours winmeans that Annalisa’s teamwill be representing England inthe Senior British IslesChampionships next March,which will be taking place inWales.

Annalisa was also part of theLincolnshire Ladies team of 24players who went on to win theAtherley trophy. In this nationalcompetition players representtheir whole county, so playersfrom different clubs inLincolnshire are selected. Inaddition to this, Annalisa was

also selected for a NationalU25 and a senior trial foroutdoor bowls, which bothtook place in May [while thisissue was being produced].

Annalisa said, ‘Perhaps thesenior trial has been down tothe National Fours win, andalso because I was part of apair that beat theCommonwealth Ladies Pairsteam who went on to win thegold medal last year! I wasasked to play against them in apractice game that was heldthree weeks before they wentoff to represent England inDelhi.’

This year’s victories addthemselves to an impressiverecord of achievements. Annahas bowled since she was 9and started representingEngland at 16. She wasselected for the England LadiesUnder-25 squad this year forthe seventh consecutive year,and went on to win the U25British Isles Series in January.

Jonathan SeckerRecruitment andCommunications Manager(Acting), Faculty of Health &Social Care

University CentrePeterborough (UCP) student,Josh Plant, is fighting fit andproving this in all that hedoes, including his success inrecent high-profile judocompetitions.

Earlier this year, Joshcompeted in a Judo BritishTrial at Sheffield’s EnglishInstitute of Sport, in which hetook away a bronze medal.This took Josh from theEngland Squad to the under-20s GB squad, which is anamazing achievement. Joshhas been doing judo from theage of five and has competedlocally, nationally andinternationally from the age ofeight.

He is currently studying BSc(Hons) Sports Coaching andPhysical Education at UCP, iscompletely committed to thecourse and finds it veryfulfilling and enjoyable.

Josh said, ‘Even though Ihave achieved some of my

goals, I feel driven andencouraged to go for higherachievements. I would behonoured to represent myuniversity and my country injudo, and hopefully set anexample to others that you doget rewarded for effort, andthat fitness is not onlyrewarding but is fun. I have toattend compulsorycompetitions and compulsorytraining, which I have to doon top of my normal fitnessand judo club attendances.These are to enable me tofulfil my contracts to theGreat Britain Squad and theEngland Squad.’

He added, ‘I thoroughly enjoymy course at UCP. I am fromLeicester, so not local toPeterborough, but everyonehas made me feel verywelcome. The tutors are agreat support both with theacademics of my course andmy club commitments.’

Josh’s other successes includebeing selected for the GreatBritain Squad, the BritishJudo Association (BJA)England Squad, British JudoCouncil (BJC) NationalChampionship squad andbeing a member of the BJCNational Squad. He alsoholds a Level 1 coachingaward in judo and is a 1stDan black belt in both BJAand BJC associations.

Louise PriceRecruitment and Events Co-ordinator, University CentrePeterborough

Sporting successfor ClinicalPhysiology student

Degree studentfights his way tothe top

INSTITUTIONSUK and international partner

NEWS

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Research carried out by someof our scientists has revealedthe serious long-term healthrisks associated withBenzylpiperazine (BZP),dubbed the ‘new ecstasy’.

BZP was a popular legal highbefore it was reclassified as acontrolled substance inDecember 2009. According toDean Ames, the ForensicScience Service’s drugsintelligence adviser, thedesigner drug has replacedMDMA as the main ingredientin ecstasy tablets. ‘It’s a raredrug now, MDMA,’ said Ames.‘There are hundreds ofthousands of tablets incirculation in the UK that looklike ecstasy tablets, but whichactually contain piperazines (aclass of compounds thatincludes BZP). The tablets arestill being sold as ecstasy, andbecause they have an effect,young people may think theyare taking ecstasy.’

Our research, led by ProfessorMike Cole and Dr BeverleyVaughan, is the first of its kindto examine the healthimplications of takingpiperazines, and will help toeducate medical staff as to themost serious symptomsassociated with their ingestion;namely liver and kidneydamage. ‘The market for andabuse of clandestinelysynthesised designer drugs hasincreased significantly over thelast decade, and this has beenaccompanied by an increase inthe number of reports of deathand serious illnesses related tothe ingestion of thesesubstances,’ said ProfessorCole, whose preliminaryfindings were presented at theAmerican Academy of ForensicSciences’ annual conference.‘Before our research, there hadbeen no systematic study ofthe toxicity of these drugs, andthis is needed if we are to treatdrug users effectively andinform people of the potential

Anglia Ruskin scientists are first tostudy toxic effects of BZP

Focus on

RESEARCH


hazards associated with takingthem.’

The data produced byProfessor Cole and Dr Vaughanprovides clear evidence of thecellular cytotoxicity of BZP andits synthetic by-products atlevels likely to occur followingtheir ingestion. It also indicatesthat, in general, the liver, thesite of detoxification for thebody, is most sensitive to theactions of these drugs.

‘Cells derived from the liver andkidney were exposed to BZP –its starting materials and itsimpurities – at concentrationsthat reflected a dose for a userof these drugs. The cells wereexamined to determine whethersignificant changes hadoccurred, including apoptosis(cell suicide) and necrosis (cellmurder),’ explained ProfessorCole. ‘It was found that BZPitself is toxic to the kidney,whilst the starting material,piperazine hexahydrate,

showed toxicity only in theliver. In general, the studyshowed that water-solubledrugs, impurities and mixturesare toxic to liver cells, whilstcompounds and mixtures thatare fat-soluble are toxic to thekidney. Mixtures of drugs andimpurities, synthesised toreflect street samples,produced a variety of toxiceffects, depending upon thecomposition of the mixture –but all were significantly toxic.

‘The work is important becauseit begins to provide anexplanation of why people whohave taken these drugs exhibitthe symptoms that they do inA&E rooms. It also shows thatdifferent batches of drugs willhave different effects becauseof the different proportions ofdrug and impurity in thematerial, and that users areexposed to toxic mixtures ofdrugs for which both the short-and longer-term effects will notbe known and cannot easily bepredicted.’

Addictions expert SarahGraham, who is aspokesperson for thegovernment drugs helpline,FRANK, said, ‘BZP is not safe– it is an entirely syntheticparty drug that mimics theeffects of ecstasy and speed. Itis a stimulant that can raiseyour blood pressure and maylead to a fit or heart attack.You never know what you aregetting because the chemicalmake-up continually changes,and mixing the drug withalcohol can increase the risks.’


� Our scientists involved in the BZP research (l–r): Dr Lata Gautam, Miss Petra Chovancova, Professor MikeCole, Dr Beverley Vaughan and Miss Mya Fekry.

INTERNATIONAL FOCUS


The first Anglia RuskinUniversity South AsiaCounsellors’ Conference tookplace on 15–17 April. Morethan 50 student counsellorsfrom across India and SriLanka gathered in the coastaltown of Chennai in India tolearn more about what we offertheir students. Colleagues fromacross Anglia Ruskin werepresent to talk in more detailabout world-leading research,showcase our state-of-the artfacilities and provide thedelegates with a flavour of the‘Anglia Ruskin StudentExperience’.

Our students from the BScFilm and TV Productionpathway helped put together a

series of videos for each facultyand a personalised messagefrom Professor Mike Thorne forthe conference. One of ourstudents from MSc CreativeMusic Technology alsoproduced a unique sound trackto go with the films exclusivelyfor the conference. Thedelegates were able to speak tosome of our current studentsvia live video conferencing withCambridge. Our students werebrilliant ambassadors, addingcredibility to the messages thatAnglia Ruskin University andthe locations we are based in,are great places to live, study,work and play. The delegateswere very appreciative of thecreative use of technology togive them a feel for our

campuses, even though theywere several thousand milesaway, something, we were told,that has not been done in Indiaby any UK university.

All this was only possiblebecause of the excellentteamwork across variousdepartments and thecolleagues who went aboveand beyond the call of duty:colleagues from ISMS and theInternational Office who camein on a Saturday morning;security staff who allowedextended opening hours for thefilm editing suites inCambridge, on weekends; andfaculty marketing staff whobrought together a range ofresources, most of the time atvery short notice.

Delegates completed aperception survey before andafter the event. Researchrankings and quality ofresearch are key criteriastudents in India considerwhen selecting a university.One of our key communicationobjectives for the conferencewas to impress upon delegates

that we are home to world-leading research, and wesucceeded. The chart, belowleft, shows the delegates’perception of our researchprofile before and after theconference. In the survey priorto the conference, 18% ofdelegates also told us that they‘did not know’ whether we hadstate-of-the-art facilities offeringa world-class environment forstudents. After the conference100% of the delegates agreedthat we did, with 33% of themagreeing ‘strongly’. Another keyaspect that influencesrecruitment in India is our linkswith industry – perceptionimproved from 65% whoagreed that we had strong linkswith industry to 90% after theconference.

With all of this and the supportof many colleagues back at ourcampuses, we are lookingforward to a large increase inour student recruitment fromSouth Asia this September,making a big contribution toour corporate plan targets.

We now have 52 activelyengaged student counsellorsacross India who are promotingAnglia Ruskin University moreenergetically. A series of webseminars and marketingprogrammes has been createdto keep up this momentum andto ensure that this knowledgetranslates into many moreIndian students deciding tocome to study with us!

If you would like to know moreabout our activities in theIndian sub-continent or getinvolved in some way, pleaseemail Austin Brown, RegionalDevelopment Manager (SouthAsia), [email protected].

Conference in India gains us 52 newambassadors!

Anglia Ruskin University has world leading research

Pre-conference Post-conference

� Our colleagues and the student counsellors, gathered together at the conference in Chennai.

June and July’s development sessions7 Jun Financial Awareness Rivermead 9.30am–4.30pm8 Jun Memory – How to Improve your Memory Today and Forever St George House, Cambridge 1.30–4.30pm10 Jun Introduction to SITS:Vision Cambridge Campus 10.30am–12.30pm10 Jun Extracting Data from SITS:Vision Cambridge Campus 1.30–3.30pm17 Jun Introduction to SITS:Vision Rivermead 10.30am–12.30pm17 Jun Extracting Data from SITS:Vision Rivermead 1.30–3.30pm21 Jun Excellence: Serving you Right: Core Skills Rivermead 9.30am–4.30pm19 Jul Staff Induction Conference St George House, Cambridge 9.30am–1.30pm

If you would like to book a place on a staff development session,you will need to email the following information [email protected]: your name; job title; faculty or supportservice; location; telephone extension number and email address;the title of the workshop; the date of the workshop; your linemanager’s name and email address. Please note, before placingyour booking, you must secure your line manager’s agreement forthis training. If a session is fully booked you can register yourinterest by emailing [email protected].

We would like to celebrate ourrecent association with theAcademy of BusinessManagement (ABM) inBotswana.

In March, the opening of theABM University College inGaborone was a doublecelebration, since it coincidedwith the successful validationevent of ABM’s second campusin Francistown, the Gaboronecampus having been approvedpreviously, in July 2010.Botswana’s Acting VicePresident, Mr PonatshegoKikilikilwe, said that the newbuilding represented a majorbreakthrough in thedevelopment of highereducation in Botswana. Thenew college in Garborone,which has two laboratories, 18lecture rooms and a 160capacity auditorium, will berunning final-year BA and BSc(Hons) top-up programmes forAshcroft International Business

School in BusinessManagement, Marketing,Human Resource Management,Tourism Management as well asAccounting and Finance. Thesame range of programmes willalso be offered in Francistown.

The college’s mission, to be acentre of entrepreneurship andinnovation, echoes that of AIBS.Together with Botswana’sActing Vice President andMinister of Energy, Minerals andWater Resources, and LyndonJones, Founder Chairman of theAssociation of BusinessExecutives, and the Minister forLabour, our Deputy ViceChancellor, Professor LesleyDobree, was guest of honour atthe opening where she gave aspeech recognising theimportance of the relationshipbetween Anglia RuskinUniversity, the Association ofBusiness Executives and ABMUniversity College.

Celebrating links with Botswana

STAFF DEVELOPMENT


� After the celebration event: (l–r) Penny Hood, Peter Worker (DeputyHead of Quality Assurance, Academic Office), Professor Lesley Dobreeand Daisy Molefhi ABM Executive Director.

Ashcroft International BusinessSchool staff are delighted toextend the AIBS portfolio toinclude South Western Africa.

Penny HoodDirector of InternationalPartnerships (Chelmsford),Ashcroft International BusinessSchool

For the most up-to-date information about training anddevelopment opportunities please see HR Online, atwww.anglia.ac.uk/hr.

If you have any queries regarding any staff development sessions,please do not hesitate to contact the training team [email protected].


Social Enterprise East ofEngland (SEEE) is a networkmembership organisation thataims to support, represent anddevelop social enterprises,charities and businessesoperating in the third sectorthroughout the East ofEngland. Thanks to aknowledge transfer partnership(sKTP) with AshcroftInternational Business School,SEEE has developed a highlysuccessful social mediastrategy that is benefitinghundreds of social enterprisesacross the region. The projectinvolved the exchange of skills,research and experiencesbetween Anglia Ruskin andSEEE to enable innovative newproducts, services andstrategies to be developed. Thepartnership also involved theemployment of a high-calibregraduate, Cilie Lennartz-Nuttall, to facilitate the transferof knowledge: Cilie wasexpertly supervised by theBusiness School’s Andy Bradythroughout the project.

The project was one of only afew sKTP projects to be fundedby the Technology StrategyBoard, which was establishedby the government in 2007and is sponsored and fundedby the Department forInnovation, Universities andSkills (DIUS), recognising theimportance of knowledgetransfer to economicdevelopment and wealth

creation, and aiming toaccelerate business innovation.

As part of developing SEEE’ssocial media strategy, theproject team created a wiki (acommunity website that allowsthe creation and editing of anynumber of interlinked webpages via a web browser) forthem. The SEEE wiki wascreated from a widelyrecognised need for access toinformation and knowledge inthis prospering sector. A keyaspect of SEEE’s role is toensure that members are keptup to date with topical news(via the website andnewsletters); the wiki’s functionis to act as a long-term storagearea for reports, policydocuments, reviews of booksand other publications,biographies and anything elsethat is of interest to socialenterprises and those whowork with them.

Although the technical basicsof the wiki had been put inplace, it was only with thework done by Cilie on the sKTPthat a systematic process wasdesigned and implemented.She broke down thecomponents of the process intothree main areas: knowledgegathering, ensuring that thewhole SEEE team, staff anddirectors, was feeding relevantinformation to Cilie;transforming the knowledgeinto accessible articles, reviews

and summaries; and, finally,disseminating the knowledgevia communication channels,such as the magazine, the e-newsletters, and social media.Michele Rigby, CEO of SEEEsaid the effects of this newprocess had been considerable:‘We’ve seen an increase of150% in the number of pageson the SEEE wiki, and amarked improvement in thequality of all the articles.’ Thestrategic approach topublicising this resource hasled to the site gaining 38,023visits from practitioners andresearchers from across theglobe.

Two equally important strandsof the sKTP were thecommissioning of new researchinto social enterprise and therefreshing of SEEE’s e-communications with itsmembers. Researchcommissioned by Cilie includedtwo pieces on the Big Societyand an innovative study offamily-run social enterprise.Meanwhile, members of SEEEnow receive two e-newsletters,Comment, which focuses onnews tailored to their needs associal enterprises, and InTouchExpress, a more general round-up of what’s happening in thesector. Cilie particularly enjoyedthe challenge posed by hervaried role: ‘There is a bigdifference between how peopleinteract with the wiki and withthe newsletters, and the role

has given me an insight intotailoring the content and styleof communications to differentaudiences.’

Andy Brady, the academicsupervisor on the SEEE sKTP,said that he had beenimpressed with the speed andextent of Cilie’s development:‘When she came into the role,Cilie had no experience ofsocial enterprise and, as aresult of the sKTP, she hasdeveloped a real understandingof the subject. The SEEE wiki,in particular, is a testimony toher hard work and capability.’

Simon Daly, KnowledgeTransfer Manager, added, ‘Youcan’t do today’s job withyesterday’s methods and hopeto be a successful business inthe future. Thanks to ourBusiness School thisknowledge transfer project hasbeen able to help make a real,measurable difference to themany social enterprises in ourregion in this difficult economicclimate. It is a great example ofhow partnership working canhelp create a Big Society!’

For further information onKnowledge TransferPartnerships, please contactSimon Daly, KnowledgeTransfer Manager, [email protected] orcall ext 3173.

Partnership projectwith SocialEnterprise East ofEngland to transferknowledge

Employer

ENGAGEMENT

� Cilie Lennartz-Nuttall.

Calling all cyclists!Keen on cycling or would like toget started? Read on…

Anglia Ruskin has two BicycleUser Groups (BUGs) that are agreat way to network amongstother cyclists. We also post outinformation, such as cyclingnewsletters, updates oninitiatives, such as cycleschemes and staff and studentdiscounts at local bike shops.To join the mailing list, pleasevisit:for Chelmsfordhttp://lists.anglia.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/bug-contacts.for Cambridge/Peterboroughhttp://lists.anglia.ac.uk/mailman/listinfo/bug-members.

Cambridge Cycle ChallengeresultsWe would like to say a bigthank you to everyone who tookpart in the Cambridge CycleChallenge recently. Collectively,the organisations in Cambridgecycled over 225,100 miles!Although we did not make theleader board this year, we stilldid well with 5.2%participation from colleagues inCambridge, 504 trips and2060.4 miles logged, equatingto 39,689 calories burnt and260 kg of CO² saved!

Bike Week 2011This year, National Bike Weekis taking place from 18–26June, which is the biggestnationwide cycling event in theUK. Get the date in your diary.Details of events happeningduring the week will be postedon My.Anglia.

Cycle lockersAt our Chelmsford campus, wehave installed 15 new cyclelockers in Sawyers stairwell,and 40 new helmet lockers at

the bike racks outsideTelecoms. These lockers havebeen paid for using the £2000match funding we won withachieving our Gold Travel PlanAward from Essex CountyCouncil. The lockers areavailable to staff and studentson a first-come, first-servedbasis, and require a £20deposit (fully refundable onreturn of your key). For moreinformation and to enquireabout availability, pleasecontact the Facilities Helpdeskon ext 6464 or email [email protected].

First Corporate Travel ClubFirst Group have introduced aCorporate Travel Club (CTC) tohelp employees make significantsavings on the cost of a monthlyticket: staff can already receivea discount on season ticketswith First Buses, but the addedadvantage of this scheme is thatyou can purchase tickets overthe phone and they are posteddirect to a designated address

each month. The CTC also givesprotection against ticket- andfuel-price inflation for 12months. For more informationon the scheme, please visitwww.anglia.ac.uk/travel and seesupporting documents underChelmsford travel.

Don’t forget, staff can receive upto 10% discount with NationalExpress and First CapitalConnect season tickets. We arealso part of Cyclescheme, wherestaff can receive between 30%and 50% off the cost of a newbike! Visitwww.anglia.ac.uk/travel formore information.

ISO 14001 environmentalmanagement system standardWe are currently preparing forour external surveillance visitaudits for ISO 14001 at the endof July. These will be carried outby IMS International, a UKAccreditation Service-approvedcertification body that providesthird- and second-party external


GREEN ISSUESCycling, commuting andenvironmental management

audits. We have been visitingvarious faculties anddepartments over the past twomonths, conducting our owninternal audits. We would like tothank everyone for their co-operation, and the results so farhave been positive. We willsoon be contacting those whohave been selected by IMS forthe external audits. For moreinformation on ISO 14001,please visit the environmentalmanagement section on ourwebsite atwww.anglia.ac.uk/environment,or [email protected] [email protected] any questions.

Contact usAs always, we welcome anycomments, compliments orsuggestions – email us [email protected].

Sarah JohnsonEnvironment and UtilitiesOfficer

Music and drama events

Full details about the artists and programmes are available from the FestivalDirector, Alan Rochford ([email protected]), ext 2353. Programmesmay be subject to change (artists, starting times, etc). Visitors are advised to

check in advance. See www.anglia.ac.uk/mpaevents.


It is 20 years ago that the AngliaSingers first came together tocelebrate with a carol service heldin the Central Baptist Church,Victoria Road South, Chelmsford(the initiative involved staff andstudents and was recorded byEssex Radio for transmission onChristmas Day). What wassupposed to be a ‘one-off’ wasrepeated the following year, andthereafter the Singers, under thebaton of Professor Chris Green,decided to give a summer concertat Danbury Palace (then part ofthe Anglia Polytechnic Universityestate). So this small group ofenthusiasts has continued to meetduring the year with concertsgiven throughout Essex, andraising hundreds of pounds eachyear for many charities. TheSingers have also played a majorrole when the Christmas carolservices moved to ChelmsfordCathedral.

Now, the Singers celebrate their20 years with a number ofconcerts in 2011. The summerevent, ‘Thank you for the music’,will be very special. It is beinggiven in the atrium of the MichaelA Ashcroft Building in Chelmsford,so taking the Singers back to theirhome. On Friday 24 June theyperform at 8.00 pm for the HelenRollason Cancer Charity. ProfessorChris Green was a colleague ofHelen when he was Vice-Chair ofEssex Radio, and she was amember of the news team beforeshe left to work for the BBC. Theconcert will be compèred byGraham Bannerman of BBC RadioEssex, and will feature the folkduo Silbury Hill, and TequilaSwing, jazz musicians from thePlume School, Maldon.

The concert is being supported bythe Anglia Arts Council, withsponsorship from Anglia RuskinUniversity. It is hoped that manystaff will come and giveencouragement to the Singers.Tickets cost £5 (under-16s free)and can be purchased fromJames Dace and Son, BroomfieldRoad, and from the AngliaTicketline (01245 350988) or onthe door.

Concert programme

Concert performances are given by students currently on the Music and Popular Music degree pathways. Names markedwith an asterisk (*) are Popular Music students.

Tues 31 May 11.30am Emma Brown (flute), Karolina Ignatowicz (violin), Claire Rowley (flute)2.30pm Rachel Hains* (flute), Darcy Lloyd-Miller* (voice) with Mike Sands Jazz Ensemble5.00pm MA Music Therapy Student Recital8.00pm Anglia Ruskin Jazz Voices

Giorgios Nicolaou, Dimitra Tzanakaki, Louise Smith and Petros Malialis, withChris Ingham (piano), Robert Rickenberg (double bass) and Peter Mansfield (drums)

Wed 1 June 11.30am Christos Stylianou (jazz piano), Emma Reeve* (voice), Mateo Oxley* (voice),Patrick Alder* (drums)

2.30pm Nathan Revell (guitar), Carmen Robles* (voice), Steve George* (guitar)5.00pm Anglia Ruskin World Music Ensemble (Directed by Jon Banks)8.00pm Theodora Burrows (soprano), Jessica Pont (oboe), Veronique Rocka (violin),

Emma Hiles (percussion)

Thur 2 June 11.30am Julia Vaughan (viola), Sarah Shek (piano), Mateja Kaluza (violin),Jack Cherry (double bass)

2.30pm Rob Newsome* (guitar), Jonathan Stanford* (guitar/vocals),Josh Jansen-Bowen* (drums)

5.00pm Composition Workshop (Directed by Kevin Flanagan)8.00pm Louise Byrom (voice), Della Paice (flute), Iakovos Loukas (bass guitar),

Peter Mansfield (percussion)

Fri 3 June 10.30am Music for Media: Curator – Julio d’Escrivan(at Screen 3, Arts Picturehouse, Regents Street, Cambridge)

1.00pm Anglia Ruskin Gospel Voices (Directed by Jacinth Mhende)Jazz Ensembles/Popular Music Student Bands (Directed by Kevin Flanagan)

4.00pm Justin Marshall and The Undulaters

Department of Music and Performing Arts • Festival Week 2011 • Director, Alan Rochford

Anglia Contemporary Theatre, Mon 30 May & Tues 31 May, 7.30pm, The Junction, Cambridge

Monday 30 May to Friday 3 June, Recital Hall, Helmore Building, Cambridge campus

A week of assessed concerts and theatre given by Anglia Ruskin music and drama students

Admission to all performaces is free (except Anglia Contemporary Theatre at The Junction, Clifton Way, Cambridge,on Monday 30 May and Tuesday 31 May at 7.30pm)

THE ARTSCome and celebratewith the Anglia Singers

Food for thought – mouth-watering and brain-tickling recipes

Is your mouth as filthy as Gordon Ramsey’s when you are busy in the kitchen? Is fish really the answer to your brain’sdietary needs? Does the proof always lie in the eating of the pudding? Why is music the food of love? Who said thatchocolate is better than sex? And is it really necessary to leave the kitchen if you can’t stand the heat?

If you’ve ever dreamt of death by chocolate, philosophised about your ideal dinner guests or simply enjoy the smell ofa well-prepared meal, join us for a taster of our favourite recipes on an evening of two helpings.

Two evenings of devised pieces by third-year BA Drama students.

Tickets: £10 (concessions £7; Students £5)Available from The Junction Box Office, 01223 511 511, [email protected], www.junction.co.uk.

Ruskin Gallery exhibitions

Full details of all exhibitions at the Ruskin Gallery can befound at: www.anglia.ac.uk/ruskingallery


Transitions • Ruskin Gallery • Monday 20 June–Thursday 7 July • Private View: Thursday 23 June, 5.00 pm

Triggered • King’s Place, London • Monday 13 June • 8.00 pm

Somewhere betweenimprovisation andcomposition, art andscience, lies Triggered – adance-music-digital

performance that builds onthe Cage–Cunninghamlegacy of interaction betweenmusic, dance andtechnology.

Dancers initiate music byinteracting with free-standing and suspendedsculptures. Sound andmovement evolve in response

to feedback, producing asophisticated, highly chargedperformance.

Composers: Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Tom Hall, RichardHoadleyChoreographer: Jane TurnerDancers: David Ogle, AnnPidcockSpecial guest performers:Sam Hayden and JonathanImpett

Tom Hall and RichardHoadley are affiliated toCoDE and the Department ofMusic and Performing Arts,and CoDE has generouslyprovided sponsorship for theperformance.

For more information and tobook, visit:www.kingsplace.co.uk/whats-on-book-tickets/music/triggered.

Transitions explores theextent to which teenageengagement in online socialnetworks offers new realms ofimage construction andemotional expression acrossthree very different buttechnically sophisticatedcultures: USA, UK andChina. Transitions looks atthe role of desire/desirabilityin image creation and how itis projected online and howmodern teenagers swap andchange between virtual and‘real’ selves, irrespective ofhistorical or culturalinfluences. Features video,sound and slide projection.

Sarah JonesFaculty Marketing andRecruitment Manager, ALSS

� Tom Hall, Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Richard Hoadley and Jane Turner.

JOINERS LEAVERSThis monthly listing is to help keep readers up to date with who’s joined and who’s left recently. The entries are organisedalphabetically by faculty or support service, followed by the joiner’s or leaver’s name, job title and, if relevant, department or unit.Movers are listed alphabetically by name.

• Academic Office:Patricia Clegg, Senior Assessments Administrator, Assessmentsand Conferments

• Arts, Law & Social Sciences:Aysu Sagun-Kentel, Lecturer, Cambridge School of Art

• Ashcroft International Business School:Cilie Lennartz-Nuttall, KTP Associate;Chris Loughlan, Senior Lecturer;Paulo Votino, KTP Associate

• Education:Donna Ashton, Receptionist, Dean’s Office

• Estates & Facilities:Rebecca Bridges, Residential Assistant

• Health & Social Care:Di Cleaver, Programme Administrator, Faculty & DepartmentAdministration;Claudia Prothero, Senior Lecturer, Mental Health

• HR Services:Caroline Crick, HR Administrator

• Science & Technology:David Hughes, Senior Lecturer, Life Sciences;Joseph Washington, KTP Associate, Computing & Technology

• Student Services:Emma Carroll, Student Adviser;Helen Collins, Administrator;Val Gower, Learning Support Assistant


• Academic Office:Kerry Wood, Performance Improvement Manager, StrategicPlanning and Policy Unit

• Corporate Marketing, International & Development Services:Alex White, Admissions Officer, Corporate Marketing

• Education:Natasha Chandler-Patel, PA/Administrator, Educational Studies;Caroline Mayes, Receptionist, Dean’s Office

• Estates & Facilities:Leanne Goddard, Residential Assistant, UniversityAccommodation Services;David Pippard, Chef, Catering & Events;Benjamin Rey, Residential Assistant, University AccommodationServices

• Health & Social Care:Amy Li, Research Assistant, Family & Community Studies

• Information Systems & Media Services:Donna Bee, Project Manager, Programme Management/ProjectsOffice;Tom Stacey, KTP Associate, Programme Management/ProjectsOffice

• Learning Development Services:Amy Fawkes, Administrator, Higher Skills@Work

• Research, Development & Commercial Services:Julie-Anne Hogbin, East of England Low Carbon InitiativeCo-ordinator

• Science & Technology:John Somner, KTP Associate, Vision and Eye Research Unit

• University Library:Emily Dixon, Shelving Assistant

june 2011 - bulletin vol 8 no 6

Documents

mpa festival week

recital hall

freshers week

student members

ruskin gallery

t u r e suk

r t smusic

international focus