Kent Law School Professor, and Dean for Medway, Nick Grief, and Shona Illingworth of the School of Music and Fine Art, have been awarded £1,500 from the University’s Public Engagement with Research Fund (PERF) to consider the case for and against the recognition of a new human right.

Their project, entitled ‘The Airspace Tribunal’, will consider a new human right to protect the freedom to exist without physical or psychological threat from above. The PERF grant will support the project’s first high profile hearing in London next year. This forms part of a major research project called Topologies of Air, commissioned by the Wapping Project.

The Airspace Tribunal will involve representations from diverse fields including international law; human rights; earth and life sciences; technology; cognitive neuroscience; cultural studies; sociology; art; architecture; politics; theology; philosophy; environmental studies; and economics. It will incorporate lived experience and NGOs, uniquely integrating public engagement and interdisciplinary debate.

Professor Grief teaches Public International Law and EU Law at Kent Law School. His research interests include air and space law and human rights, especially the right to protest, conscientious objection to the payment of taxes for military purposes and the use of international law by protesters in UK courts. He also practises at the Bar from Doughty Street Chambers.

Shona Illingworth is a Reader in Fine Art and an artist who works across sound, film, video, photography, drawing and painting. Major works using moving image and/or sound, take the form of gallery based and site specific installation. Her work combines interdisciplinary research (particularly with emerging neuropsychological models of memory and critical approaches to memory studies) with publicly engaged practice.

PERF  supports high quality public engagement – sharing the benefits of research with the public – and is open to all academic staff at Kent.

Last week Elsemieke Van Osch graduated with a MA in International Migration with Human Rights Law from Brussels School of International Studies at Canterbury Cathedral along with around 100 of her peers.

‘Elsemieke wrote an excellent dissertation – probably the best I have seen since we started the master’s in Migration in 2006,’ said Dr Amanda Klekowski von Koppenfels, Academic Director and Senior Lecturer in Migration and Politics who acted as supervisor for Elsemieke’s dissertation.

‘She addresses an important topic, doing so with nuance and compassion. The dissertation is exceptionally well-written and draws on impressive fieldwork.’

On discussing her research, Elsemieke said:

‘My dissertation analysed the various patterns of exclusion and inclusion experienced by undocumented families as a consequence of their legal status. Empirically grounded in ethnographic fieldwork among a community of undocumented families in Brussels, I argued that contradictory patterns of exclusion are experienced outside and within the intimacy of their family’s home in various dimensions. While these fathers, mothers and children, their homes and networks, are inherently part of the local communities they inhabit, the “border” of the nation-state is experienced on a daily basis. Following the streets and local institutions that mark the footsteps of their everyday lives, I aimed for the acknowledgement of the complexity of their daily realities and sought a re-conceptualization of the nature of citizenship – and, its flip-side: “illegality”- that takes into account this complexity.’

Ambassador John Macgregor was Dean of the University of Kent’s Brussels centre from 2007 to 2009. On his departure he established a prize which is to be awarded, by the Brussels Board of Examiners, to the student with the best taught postgraduate performance on any programme at the Brussels School of International Studies.

Elsemieke has donated her prize money to the social organisation that supports the undocumented families which she wrote about in her dissertation.

‘I am very grateful that the two local NGOs – Pigment vzw and Samenlevingsopbouw Brussel (Meeting) -provided me the opportunity to participate in their project with these families. Their endless efforts to support these families in so many aspects of their lives provides them hope and stability. They will be able to use this award for their current efforts to finance the costs of school bill, books and other learning material for over 50 families.’

We’re holding an all-staff event so we have the opportunity to share with you. We’ll cover the Programme background, timelines, what’s coming next, talk through the impact of business change and discuss what to expect from new processes and the new student management system.

And we’ll hold time for discussion and questions.

There are two chances to join us, at either Canterbury or Medway:

• 14.30 – 16.00, Wednesday 13 December, Grimond Lecture Theatre 3
• 14.30 – 16.00, Thursday 14 December, Medway Building Room 2-28

In order that we can ensure there is a place for everyone, please respond to this Doodle Poll if you plan to attend.

KentVision is a Business Change Programme, undertaken by the University to support improvements in student lifecycle administration and student experience.

KentVision will involve refining our business processes, implementing the Tribal SITS product across enrolment to congregations, integrating admissions with enrolment to congregations and decommissioning the student data system.

From September 2018 KentVision will be used for an array of administrative activities across the complete student lifecycle, including everything from student, programme and module look ups to registering students, viewing module diets, entering and viewing marks, approving PGR supervisory meetings, processing scholarships and more.

Students will also use KentVision to enrol, choose modules, access their timetables and view personal information, PGR progress reviews and their marks.

https://sharepoint.kent.ac.uk/sites/KentVision/_layouts/15/start.aspx#/SitePages/Home.aspx

KentVision@kent.ac.uk

Colleagues are invited to attend the Learning & Teaching Network session titled ‘Focus on Quality (Medway)’ taking place on Wednesday 6 December, 13.15-14.30 in Medway Rochester R2.09.

The 2017 Higher Education and Research Act (HERA) creates a new regulatory environment with the Office for Students (OfS) is at its heart. Its aim will be to secure student success by providing risk-based regulation for teaching excellence, social mobility and informed choice in higher education. With the advent of subject level TEF, Dr Louise Naylor will consider the changing role of the NSS and other TEF metrics in establishing teaching excellence.

Dr Silvia Colaiacomo will discuss the process, report and recommendations of the Assessment and Feedback Audit, which was carried out by the University’s Academic Audit Committee in March 2017. As part of the recommendations, some applications and resources developed through the EQUIP (Evidence-Informed Quality Improvement Programme) project will be illustrated, by looking at examples focussing on how to improve assessment and feedback.

Nik Duncan will discuss inclusive design principles and Kent Inclusive Practices (KIPs). KIPs enable academic and professional services departments to embed simple but effective adjustments that can improve the learning environment for all students, reduce the need for retrospective adjustments and lessen the additional workload required to implement individual Inclusive Learning Plans (ILPs).

Participants will be encouraged to share ideas and suggestions about future Medway forums. These can be submitted at the point of registration – see below – for sharing on the day.

To book a place/register, please email cpdbookings@kent.ac.uk

The staff and student Travel Plan Survey 2017 is now open. Complete the survey and enter your University of Kent email address for your chance to win £100 cash card to use at the catering outlets on campus, or one of 100 hot drinks vouchers.

Let us know how we can improve travel to, from and around our campuses. The data from the survey helps shape various reports including the University Travel Plans and the Movement and Transport Strategy which feeds into the Canterbury campus 50 year Masterplan.

This is your opportunity to let the Estates Department know how we can improve travel to, from and around our campuses. Have your say on buses, cycling, parking, the Campus Shuttle and more.

The survey takes between 5-10 minutes to complete. There is also a “finish later” option if you need to return to complete the survey. The survey closes Friday 8 December 2017.

The staff and student Travel Plan Survey 2017 is now open. Complete the survey and enter your University of Kent email address for your chance to win £100 cash card to use at the catering outlets on campus, or one of 100 hot drinks vouchers.

Let us know how we can improve travel to, from and around our campuses. The data from the survey helps shape various reports including the University Travel Plans and the Movement and Transport Strategy which feeds into the Canterbury campus 50 year Masterplan.

This is your opportunity to let the Estates Department know how we can improve travel to, from and around our campuses. Have your say on buses, cycling, parking, the Campus Shuttle and more.

How long does the survey take?
The survey takes between 5-10 minutes to complete. There is also a ‘finish later’ option if you need to return to complete the survey. The survey closes Friday 8 December 2017.