When students return to the University of Northampton this month, they will be welcomed by newly appointed Vice-Chancellor, Professor Anne-Marie Kilday, who is hopeful her first few months in the post will see student life finally getting back to normal.
As she embarks on her new role, she is excited by what she calls ‘the amazing opportunities’ in both the University of Northampton, and in the town itself, to create opportunities and inspire positive change, particularly with the evolution of the new campus, which has still to reach its full potential having been opened just months before the country went into lockdown.
“The pandemic hit everyone hard and I feel so sorry for the students who have had such a difficult and disrupted couple of years, but hopefully this will be the year when we get back to normal and begin to really build on what we have here and engage with the local community, including the business community, to push on to where we want to be.”
Professor Kilday, who was previously Pro Vice Chancellor for Student Experience and University Community at Oxford Brookes University, has taken up the position vacated by former Vice-Chancellor and Chief Executive Officer Professor Nick Petford, who stepped down in July after 12 years.
Her previous position followed 12 years of progressing through various promotions from Principal Lecturer through to Dean, before initially joining Oxford Brookes as a Lecturer in Early Modern History. She is a Professor of Criminal History and has submitted to every Research Excellence Framework since the start of her career – something she plans to continue as part of her role in Northampton.
Her initial focus as Vice-Chancellor will be on leading the development and implementation of a new strategy and vision for the University of Northampton, particularly through driving initiatives around equality, diversity and inclusion.
“We need to raise our profile,”
she said.
“Culturally, the university does some amazing things, but we don’t really tell anyone about it. I want that to change, I want the university to grow in confidence and give itself permission to show off a bit.
“It’s a university with a lot of ambition and we can take a lead from the current conversations about the value of a university education and make sure we’re giving students the foundations for the future. Passion about your subject and a love of learning is vital, because that is what gives you momentum and drive to study, but we also need to think about applicability and what that degree is going to mean in terms of future prospects and employability.
“We already have good relationships with businesses and organisations like the NHS Trust, and those are really important because they give students opportunities to meet with potential employers, to keep up with cutting edge technology and changes within their chosen field, and secure work placements that are of real value. Similarly, businesses can benefit from contact with both students and teaching staff, to shape the future and widen their own experience. It’s a mutually beneficial relationship and one we need to keep working on.”
While the University of Northampton already draws a significant proportion of its students from the local area, Professor Kilday says she wouldn’t be surprised if that continues to grow, with the financial pressures expected to hit everyone over the next few months making students more likely to want to remain in the family home while they work towards their degree.
“We have seen growth in the number of international students in recent years, and have students from across the UK, but it’s going to become increasingly tough for many to afford student life away from home. Our high proportion of students from the local area gives us a good cross-section of backgrounds and experiences and I think that’s very important.
“The teaching staff are amazing and there’s a focus on a student-centred blended learning, rather than sitting in a lecture theatre listening to someone speak. We believe in an active teaching, and for that, face-to-face time between students, and between students and teaching staff, is vital. The pandemic forced us to adopt remote learning, and that works for some people, but it’s also important to find a balance that works for everyone – using the technology we have available to allow remote learning and still maintaining that close interaction as much as possible.
“It’s exciting to be involved at a time when the University of Northampton has a chance to position itself as a changemaker, to be part of social change and social improvements, to think about what it wants to be, and pursue its ambitions, locally and globally.”
Find out more about the University of Northampton at www.northampton.ac.uk
