Nominations open on Monday (28 January) for the Students’ Union sabbatical officers for 2008-09. Sabbatical officers are full-time paid positions elected by the student body. Collectively they run the Union with support from Union staff and working alongside a number of part-time elected student officers. Nomination forms and more information are available online at www.ussu.info/elections. Nominations close on 13 February at 4pm.
The Postgraduate Open Day will take place on Wednesday (30 January) from 11.30am to 2.30pm. It provides an opportunity to meet academic faculty representing a wide range of taught degree programmes and research subjects, and to talk to current students about life as a postgraduate student. There will be information on accommodation, careers, computing services and sport as well as how to fund postgraduate study. For details and to book, see www.sussex.ac.uk/Units/pgrad/open-days/.
Do you want to spend a year studying in almost any country in the world? Students at Sussex whose study is funded by the Rotary Foundation are holding an information session on Ambassadorial Scholarships, World Peace Fellowships, and Group Study Exchanges. Undergraduates, postgraduates and university teachers welcome. It’s on 31 January at 1pm, in CDEC Seminar Room 2 on the second floor of Falmer House.
An audit of General Teaching Space (GTS) seminar rooms takes place the week beginning Monday 4 February. Student helpers will check on each room and the number of occupants on an hourly basis. They are under instruction to be as unobtrusive as possible and cause minimum disruption to seminars. The Student Systems Office thank staff and students in advance for bearing with any inconvenience caused.
The Vice-Chancellor’s open staff forum for the spring term will take place on Tuesday 12 February, at 2.15pm in Engineering 2 AS3; and on Thursday 14 February, at 11.30am in the Terrace Room, Bramber House.
Nominations are now open for the University of Sussex Teaching Awards, which recognise individuals who make outstanding contributions to teaching and learning. The awards are open to all those involved in teaching, research supervision, and providing academic support for courses approved or validated by the University at any level (foundation, undergraduate or taught postgraduate). For further information, see www.sussex.ac.uk/tldu/1-5-9.html. The deadline for submission of nomination forms is 5pm on Friday 8 February.
A memorial service for Stephen Medcalf, Lecturer and Reader in English from 1963-2002, will take place on Friday 1 February. The service is in the Meeting House chapel at 12 noon, followed by refreshments in the Quiet Room. All welcome.
Paul Feast, who has been a key player in the Estates management team since 1989, is leaving the University to take up a senior position elsewhere. Colleagues and friends are invited to his send-off on Thursday (31 January) at 12.30pm in the Meeting House. RSVP for catering to Michaela Shepherd on ext 3289, E mailto:mjs39@sussex.ac.uk.
R. W. (Bill) Bott, Emeritus Reader in Chemistry, died on 19 January. As a close colleague of and collaborator with the late Professor Colin Eaborn, Bill played an important role in the University from soon after its foundation until his retirement. He was the first sub-dean of the then School of Molecular Sciences and helped to establish the Chemistry library.