People
Essex graduate at Downing Street
Following agreements with the Prime Minister and Deputy
Prime Minister, a former graduate of the University, has been made
Permanent Secretary at Whitehall.
Peter Housden studied Sociology graduating in 1973. He has since worked
as a secondary school teacher before moving into local government, being
made Director of Education at Nottinghamshire County Council and then
Chief Executive of the Council before being seconded to the Audit
Commission. In 2001 he became Director General, Schools at the Department
for Education and Skills, where he worked on raising standards in
England’s 27,000 schools.
Mr Housden’s new role as Permanent Secretary is within the Office of
the Deputy Prime Minister which has responsibility for regional and local
government policy, including the work of regional Government offices and
Regional Development Agencies to promote economic regeneration.
Psychology graduate earns top prize
A recent Psychology graduate has been awarded the
prestigious HTA Whiting Undergraduate Dissertation Prize from the British
Psychological Society (BPS) Division of Sport and Exercise Psychology.
Lizzie Button, who graduated in July, won the award for her
dissertation entitled ‘The process by which perceived autonomy support in
physical education and perceived peer and parental autonomy support in
leisure time influences leisure time physical activity behaviour: An
augmented trans-contextual model.’ The project also received the
Department of Psychology project prize and the highest grade in the year.
Dr Martin Hagger, Lizzie’s project supervisor, said: ‘Competition for
this prize is always fierce and in 2005 there was an increase in the
number of applicants so the fact that an Essex student won the 2005 prize
is an indicator of the quality of work produced by students in the
Department.’
Lizzie receives a prize of £50 and will present her work at the BPS
Annual Conference.
Obituary
Former Registrar Douglas Girvan
Dr Douglas Girvan, the University’s second Registrar, has
died in New Zealand, aged 75. Douglas was one of the outstanding
university administrators of his generation. He was appointed to the Essex
post in 1969 at the early age of 39 after service at Aberdeen, Warwick and
Liverpool.
His time at Essex coincided with student unrest on campus, marked by
demonstrations and occupations. Throughout Douglas remained a calm,
imposing figure, bringing leadership and stability to the administration
and the wider University community. In spite of this experience, support
for students remained close to his heart and was reflected in many of his
initiatives.
He was concerned, too, about staff. Many administrators, myself
included, were profoundly grateful for his kindness and guidance in terms
of career development.
Douglas’s style was a model of economy and efficiency. I never recall
there being more than one piece of paper on his desk at any time and his
incisive memoranda were rarely more than a page. He was an early exponent
of management by ‘walk about’ and it was rare for anyone to be better
informed than Douglas. He had a dry Scottish sense of humour - you had to
watch for the twinkle in the eye.
In 1975 Douglas became Registrar at Otago University, New Zealand,
where he served with distinction for some 20 years. A JP and an active
member of the Dunedin community, Douglas was awarded an honorary doctorate
from Otago in 1994 and the Queen’s Service Order in 1997.
He and his wife, Sylvia, were the warmest and most generous of hosts, a
reflection of their loyalty and support to colleagues. Many will mourn the
loss of a good friend and our hearts go out to Sylvia and the family.
Eddie Newcomb
Registrar and Secretary 1981-1992
Also in the printed November edition of Wyvern:
- VC post for ex-Essex sociologist
- University welcomes new staff
- New members of safety team
- Quoted by Mbeki
