The Conference Office has relocated to Beverley Farmhouse.
The following members of staff have moved to the new location:
Kevin Stuckey will remain at Tanglewood.
Students have spent two weeks living and studying within the University’s European Centre’s in both Brussels and Paris as part of 50th Anniversary Scholarships.
Students had the opportunity to participate in academic sessions as well as cultural activities within two iconic European cities. In Paris, students resided in the Montparnasse district, where celebrated artists such as Picasso had his studio. For two weeks they immersed themselves in French culture by exploring the city’s art, architecture, film, drama, writing and philosophy.
Addressing the theme ‘Revolution’, students benefited from a daily format of interconnected lectures and excursions guided by academic specialists. They also visited a wide range of cultural and historically significant sites which included the Grand Palais, Musee Rodin, and the Gardens of Versailles.
The theme in Brussels, ‘Europe and the World’, was tailored to complement the Brussels setting. Students benefited from dynamic academic sessions on international migration, European Neighbourhood Policy, globalisation, and climate change, as well as taking part interactive simulation exercises on the European Union, and lobbying.
With 2014 marking the 100th anniversary of the start of the First World War, students also visited the Ypres, Flanders, where some of the most intense fighting took place. Here, students learned human cost and political impact of the First World War and discovered how it helped to shape Europe today.
Throughout the Summer Schools students were able to study and interact with other Kent students who are outside of their usual programme of study. In doing so, they were exposed to different approaches to the same subject as they debated and discussed with each other.
For many students, the Summer Schools were a unique experience, which allowed them to gain analytic and intercultural skills, with one student describing their programme as a ‘beautiful, original experience, one for the memory books.’
The Summer Schools were made possible thanks to the generous contributions of internal departments and the Student Projects Fund.
Dr Paul March-Russell, from the Department of Comparative Literature, is playing a key role in LonCon, the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention, in London from 14-18 August.
The World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon, is an international event for the entire science fiction community, including fans, writers, artists, editors, academics and dealers. The first Worldcon was held in 1939, and it has been held annually since 1946. This is the third time London has hosted the event.
Paul, who is editor of Foundation: The International Review of Science Fiction, writes: ‘I am delighted to be involved in Loncon3 because it will be a rare opportunity to meet so many people engaged in sf and fantasy. LonCon3 promises to be one of the largest Worldcons ever – it’s a testimony to the vitality of British sf, and its place in world culture. Fittingly, the theme of this year’s academic programme is “Diversity”.’
Paul will be chairing three academic panels and participating in two roundtable discussions over the weekend, including ‘Religion, Spirituality and the Occult in Literature’, ‘The World at Worldcon: The State of British SF’ and ‘Why Are Alien Languages Inherently Human? An Experiment’.
LonCon, taking place at the Excel Centre in London docklands, can be booked for single days or all five days, with discounts for those aged 26 or under. For details, see the loncon3 webpage.
The Centre for English and World Languages (CEWL) would like to invite staff and students at the University to an evening of Japanese culture and tradition.
The evening will be hosted by students from Kogakkan, Nihon, Musashino and Kobe Universities in Japan who are currently studying with us. It takes place on Wednesday 20 August from 5pm in Darwin Conference Suites 2 and 3, on Canterbury campus.
You will have the opportunity to try your hand at calligraphy and origami, play some Japanese games and take part in a traditional Japanese tea ceremony.
We would like students/staff to book to confirm attendance in advance via https://survey.kent.ac.uk/atasteofjapan.
If you have any questions please email Amy Moses.
To celebrate Gulbenkian’s first bOing! family festival (30/31 August) we have a special 20% staff discount for two performances.
The performances are:
University staff can book £4 tickets for both these shows (published price £5). The offer is available online only until WEDNESDAY 27 AUGUST and easy to claim:
1. Go to www.bOingfestival.com
2. Select the show and number of tickets you would like.
3. Before payment you will be prompted to enter a code. Input BOINGSTAFF (all caps) to claim the discount. There are loads of ticketed and free events at bOing! so please join us for a fantastic weekend of fun!
For more information, contact Dave Yard.
A tumultuous weekend of creativity is planned for the bOing! festival, taking place at the Gulbenkian at the end of August.
In a preview of what’s to come, Liz Moran talks to Dan Harding about the range of events taking place across the weekend, the challenges of putting a festival together, and why children and families are important to the programme.
Read the interview here on the Music blog.
Kent’s Centre for Health Service Studies (CHSS) has been awarded £30,000 to research NHS service development.
The investment has been made by NHS Thanet and NHS South Kent Coast to look into how they can best take forward integrated care agendas for their service users. The study will be conducted over the course of a year and is likely to include rapid reviews of the evidence-base and evaluation of pilot schemes.
CHSS undertakes high quality research into a wide range of health systems and health services issues at local, national and international levels with the aim of improving the links between research, policy and practice. The project is being led by Reader in Applied Health Research, Jenny Billings.
For more details go to the CHSS Current Research webpage.
The latest edition of KENT staff magazine is now available to download as a pdf. You can also view it on issuu.com.
This issue includes a feature on our congregations in July – including new honorary graduates such as Harry Hill and Sandi Toksvig – and installation of Gavin Esler as our Chancellor. There’s also a round-up of who’s won which Green Impact awards this year, the Vice-Chancellor’s keynote role with the Aurora leadership development initiative for women and a profile of our first University Archivist Ann MacDonald.
All the images within this issue are available on Kent’s Flickr gallery.
We welcome feedback on the magazine and suggestions for future issues – please get in touch with the editorial team at kentmagazine@kent.ac.uk.
Darwin Bus Stop will be closed from 18 August until 15 September for alteration works in connection with the development of the new Cornwallis East building.
All other bus stops across the campus will remain in operation during this time. Please refer to the University’s Transport map for other locations.
For more information, please contact the Transport team in the Estates Department: transport@kent.ac.uk or 01227 823609.
The 50th anniversary team is offering tea, cake and a seat on a comfy sofa in exchange for your stories and memories of working at Kent.
If the sun is shining, the team will be outside the Registry (by the side entrance to the Visitors Reception) on Wednesday 6 August from 12.30pm to 2.30pm (we’ll be inside if it’s raining!). All staff are welcome so please come along to say hello and bring any photos, films or university publications that you are happy to share – it’s also a great opportunity to show off your achievements! The pop-up tea room will also appear in Medway in the coming weeks.
Throughout the anniversary year, we will celebrate the people who have helped make Kent a top 20 university that’s regarded highly by its students. We want to share your stories and achievements from our first 50 years with the global Kent community in publications and on the new 50th website set to launch in September.
The year begins with an opening ceremony on 1 October in Canterbury and 2 October in Medway. Over 60 projects are planned and the array of different activities taking place will give staff, students, alumni and the wider community the chance to be involved at all of Kent’s campuses in the UK and its centres in Paris, Brussels, Athens and Rome.
For more information, contact the 50th anniversary team.