Professor Lorna Fox-O’Mahony has been appointed as our new Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Designate). Here she tells us more about the role and about her priorities for the next strategic plan period.
It is a privilege to be appointed to the role of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Designate) at Essex. When I first came to this University, I was struck by what it means to be a University for the real world. Our University’s commitments to improving people’s lives, to human rights and social justice, and to transformational education drew me to Essex, and I have been proud to work with colleagues in the last four years to seek out new ways to advance our mission.
My own academic mission is motivated to put people at the centre of property problems, especially people in positions of marginality and vulnerability; seeking out solutions that advance social justice through law and policy. I am proud that so much of what we do at Essex is focused on creating positive impacts for real people, and that our emphasis on fostering a curious, inquiring, critical and challenging ethos – powered by a research mind-set – equips our students with the power to make a difference in the real world.
Next strategic plan period, 2019-2025
This is an exciting moment for us, as we begin to look ahead to the next strategic plan period, 2019-2025. Under the current plan, the University has gone from strength to strength. We set ourselves some ambitious challenges: to achieve excellence in education and research, consistently, across all our departments, while growing our student numbers; to improve our financial sustainability while significantly growing our academic staff base and developing our campuses. And, with every fresh challenge that faces Higher Education, to seek out opportunities for the University of Essex to grow, to thrive and to advance our mission in research and in education.
Many of our successes have resulted from our commitment to building strong partnerships. Across the University, we have seen how seeding new collaborations and sharing good practices helps us to deliver on our ambitious goals. Working in partnership with our amazing Students’ Union, we have focused our energies on what really matters for our students: a transformational education experience that supports our students in earning good degrees, being prepared for the future world of work and getting ready to make a difference in the world around them. And beyond the University, we have built strong relationships with local, national and global partners who share our values and our commitments to transformational education and research that improves people’s lives.
Developing our mission into new areas
As we start to think about our next strategic plan, I am looking forward to talking with members across our community about how we can go forward to build on these achievements, to develop our mission into new areas, and to deepen our existing strengths. I am proud of the work that we have done already, from the renewed focus we have placed on critical thinking, skills, and employability for our students, to closing the gender pay gap. But we know there is a lot more that we can do, and that we need to do.
I can’t think of a time when the world has needed our Essex Spirit more. I feel very fortunate to have found my home in Essex, and to be on this mission with colleagues, students and supporters who share a vision and commitment to be the change we want to see in the world.