Winter Graduation and Special Award Ceremonies

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Over 550 students, together with their families and friends, gathered in the Gardner Arts Centre last week for the winter graduation ceremonies. The students, most of whom were candidates for masters' degrees or doctorates, received their awards from Lord Attenborough, who was installed as Chancellor at a special ceremony on Thursday 28 January.

Three people closely associated with the University were awarded honorary degrees at the ceremonies. Michael Toynbee, who has been Treasurer of the University since l987 and has played a very active role in areas such as treasury management, received the degree of Doctor of the University. The honorary degree of Master of Arts was conferred on Norma Binnie, who resigned from her role as General Manager of the Gardner Arts Centre last year. During her time as general manager the Gardner's reputation as the leading contemporary arts venue in the South East went from strength to strength.

Professor Margaret McGowan, former Senior Pro-Vice-Chancellor, was awarded the degree of Doctor of Letters. Margaret retired from the University in l997, although she continues as a Research Professor and is currently working on an ambitious interdisciplinary project entitled The Vision of Rome in Late Renaissance France to be published later this year.

The graduation ceremonies were followed, on Friday evening, by a Special Award Ceremony for certificate and diploma students attended by over l80 students. Among them was a group of Body Shop employees - pioneers of a ground-breaking partnership between the University and the multinational chain. The students have completed the first, and only, academic course in Advocacy and Empowerment in the UK. The Body Shop is the first company in the country to formally train its employees in the subject of advocacy, a practice which has been popular in US workplaces since the l960s. The practice of advocacy - representing and supporting people through situations of conflict, especially in work or community situations - has now become widespread in the UK. There are few formal schemes which aim to train people in how to be advocates and the CCE course is the only one in the country to offer certification and an academic approach.

Another successful CCE student at the ceremony was Ana Achucarro who received a Diploma in Landscape Studies. Ana first heard about the course when a friend showed her an advert in her local paper and encouraged her to apply. Undertaking a diploma course has been hard work for Ana. She is a parent of four, one of whom has special needs, but she pronounced it well worth the effort. "In fact, I feel a brilliant sense of achievement," she said. "Also one of the great joys of the course was the fact that it was multidisciplinary - the element of science and geology in the course filled a real gap in my background." Undaunted by the further work involved, Ana has now enrolled on the part-time degree in Landscape Studies -together with half her fellow students from the Diploma course.

Those receiving Postgraduate Diplomas at the ceremony included members of staff, Richard Price, Staff Welfare Officer, who received a postgraduate diploma in Counselling and Sherry Ferdman, convenor of Social Sciences in CCE. Sherry, who received a Postgraduate Diploma in Continuing Education is pictured (left) together with her husband, Vice-Chancellor, Alasdair Smith.

An additional feature of the evening ceremony was the presentation of the Alumni Society Fellowships. The Fellowships are awarded for services to the University, to the community or to distinguished alumni. This year's recipients were Michael Hawkins, recently retired Director of Student Services; David Kenelly, who has worked in the library for over 30 years, in recognition of his services to staff and students, and to alumni Brian Davies, Chief Executive of the Nationwide Building Society and Tez Quirke, Clerk to the Governors of Wye College and Vice-Chair of the Alumni Society.

The evening culminated in the presentation of the Whistler Prize for the best student essay in the fields of local or natural history, geology or archaeology. This year the prize was won by Diana Mortimer for her essay on Research Design for a Field Survey of a Rural Parish based on Firle in East Sussex.