Senate Elections

Nominations are sought for one member of permanent academic staff to stand for Senate. We welcome nominations from academic staff at all stages of their careers, and in particular from members of our Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic staff, who are under-represented at Senate.

Fifteen of the current elected members of Senate will remain in office in 2024-25; nine in non-professorial posts, six in a Professorship.

Electors must, at the date of the election, be permanent members of the academic staff, have a contract of employment commencing at least 20 working days prior to the call for electoral nominations and whose contract extends to at least 31 July 2025 (Ordinance 18). Should a ballot be necessary, ballot information will be sent by email on Thursday 22 February 2024 to all those who are eligible to vote.

The vacancy

The vacancy arises following the completion of term of Marcin Rudy.

Nominations

A nomination form must be signed by the nominee and by two electors, one of whom must be from a department/school different from that of the nominee. Nominees are requested to give a brief biography and statement in support of their nomination, in not more than 350 words, on the pro forma on the second page of the nomination form. Nominees for election to the Senate must be full or part-time members of the permanent academic staff.

Deadline

The closing date for nominations is Wednesday 21 February 2024. Nominations must reach elections@essex.ac.uk by 5pm on that date.

Date of election

Should a ballot be necessary, ballot information will be sent by email on Thursday 22 February 2024 to those who are eligible to vote.

The date of election shall be Monday 11 March 2024.

To support the election process and enable colleagues who are interested to find out more about how the University makes academic decisions, how Senate works and what it does, a Senate Information Event will take place on Thursday 8 February, at 2pm in Room 4.722 (Senate Room). Open to the whole staff community, and not just those who are eligible to stand for election, this provides you with an opportunity to learn about what Senate is and how it works, hear from current Senate members about their experiences, and have the opportunity to ask questions and network informally with colleagues. 

Please register by emailing senate@essex.ac.uk. The event is designed to be held in person, but if you are based at our Southend or Loughton campuses, a zoom option can be provided. Enquiries can also be made to senate@essex.ac.uk

2020-2024

• Marcin Rudy – East 15

2021-2025

• Professor Thankom Arun - Essex Business School
• Professor Winifred Eboh - School of Health and Social Care (1)
• Dr Emily Jones – Essex Law School (2)
• Dr Rick O’Gorman - Department of Psychology
• Professor Róisín Ryan-Flood - Department of Sociology

2022-2026

• Professor Hannah Gibson - Department of Language and Linguistics
• Dr Raynee Gutting - Essex Pathways
• Dr Laurie James-Hawkins - Department of Sociology
• Dr Ruth Lowry - School of Sport, Rehabilitation and Exercise Sciences

2023-2026

• Dr Georgi Grahovski - School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science (3)
• Dr Brandon Reeder - School of Life Sciences (4)

2024-2027

• Professor Fabian Freyenhagen - School of Philosophical, Historical, and Interdisciplinary Studies
• Professor Timo Jütten - School of Philosophical, Historical, and Interdisciplinary Studies
• Dr Olayinka Lewis - Essex Law School 
• Dr Alastair Litterick, School of Mathematics, Statistics and Actuarial Science (5)
• Dr Christoph Siemroth - Department of Economics
• Professor Ting Xu - Essex Law School

(1) Until 31 December 2023
(2) Until 31 December 2022
(3) From 1 January 2023
(4) From 1 April 2023
(5) From 1 January 2024

Elections to Senate are held annually, usually in the spring term. The number of vacancies and eligibility requirements will depend on number and make-up of those members coming to the end of their term of office. A call for nominations with full details provided will be issued at the relevant time.

The process involves completion of a nomination form signed by the nominee and by two electors, one of whom must be from a department/school different from that of the nominee. Nominees will be asked for a brief biography and statement in support of their nomination. Should the number of nominees exceed the number of vacancies, an election will be held.

Senate is committed to ensuring its membership reflects our diverse University community. Anonymised EDI membership data is reviewed to inform the taking of positive action during the Senate election process. Such action may include the use of positive statements to encourage nominees from particular groups, targeted communications through particular EDI networks, the organisation of information events, some of which may be open to the whole University community, and others that may targeted particular groups. To ensure our data sets are as complete as possible in support of this work, all Senate members are encouraged to complete and maintain their staff profile through HR Organiser.

Further detail on the role of a Senate member can be found in our Standards for Senate members.

Opportunities are also available for Senate members to serve on Committees of Senate. Details of the nominations and elections process will be communicated at the relevant time.