Braduate Issue05 A
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The document is a newsletter from the University of Bradford alumni association. It provides information about upcoming alumni events including a graduate reunion on September 11th and invites graduates to join. It also summarizes the success of the Braduate Fund in raising over £70,000 from alumni donations to support current students. Additionally, it highlights the University's green credentials in rising to 7th place nationally in environmental rankings.
Braduate Issue05 A
- 1. thebraduate the magazine for alumni and friends of the University of Bradford ISSUE05 Invitation to the 2010 Graduate Reunion Profiling Graduate Lawrence Tomlinson, Entrepreneur by Design Braduate Fund Success
- 2. CLASSOF2009 Many congratulations and a special welcome to our new graduates W hether you are continuing with your studies or have left the University and are following your chosen career path, you continue to belong to the University community and we look forward to keeping in touch and continuing to provide help and support. On behalf of all Bradford alumni, welcome to the family. Our 2009 Honorary Graduates J oining our graduates in 2009, fifteen distinguished individuals were awarded honorary degrees by the University to whom we would like to extend our welcome. Conferred in July 2009, Author, Sir Terry Pratchett OBE; Bradford- born actor, Peter Firth; Artistic Director and CEO of Kala Sangam, Geetha Upadhyaya; Artist and world peace activist, Matt Lamb; Colin Parry OBE and Wendy Parry, Co-Founders of the Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace; Jan Fletcher OBE, Chairwoman of Montpellier Estates; former Pro-Chancellor of the University, Alan Jerome; Ornithologist, John Mather; and Microbiologist, Don Whitley. Conferred in December 2009, Mohammed Salam, Chief Executive of the Consortium of Ethnic Minority Organisations; Noorzaman Rashid, Director of Board and Leadership Services at Harvey Nash Group PLC; Dick Mills, BBC Sound Engineer; Achhar Paul Dharni, Chairman of the Hindu Cultural Society of Bradford; and Ann Cryer, MP for Keighley. SirTerryPratchettOBE ColinParryOBEandWendyParry
- 3. 1 www.bradford.ac.uk/alumniWELCOMEANDNEWS Welcome to the 5th Edition of The Braduate, The magazine for alumni and friends of the University of Bradford I t is great to be back in the Alumni Office and communicating with graduates again after my 12-month sabbatical. I was lucky enough to meet up with over 200 graduates on a tour of Brunei, Malaysia and Singapore in November 2009. More about the reunions on page 9 where you can also see a selection of photographs. The University launched the Braduate Fund in 2010, giving graduates the opportunity to support current and future students during a four-week telethon. Details about the Braduate Fund on page 2. We have set up an official Alumni Facebook page to make communicating with graduates easier and to allow you to share your photos and memories. Go to www.facebook.com/ Bradfordalumni and become a fan. You can also follow the University on Twitter at twitter.com/ BradfordUni. You will notice that your Braduate magazine is now in a new smaller format which will help us reduce the amount of paper we use in line with our environmental policy. We hope you find this new handy sized magazine useful, a condensed update on news, research and profiles. If you are happy to receive your Braduate magazine electronically, email us at alumni@bradford.ac.uk. The University is very proud of its green credentials and has, in fact, climbed three places in the national league of environmentally friendly universities to seventh place – making it the greenest university in Yorkshire. The 2010 ‘People & Planet Green League’ shows the University of Bradford rising from 10th place in 2009, and 31st in 2008. Last but not least, we are arranging a UK reunion for graduates of all years on Saturday 11 September 2010 to coincide with the opening of the new Student Central – you may have known this as the ‘Commie’. Your invitation is on page 3 and we hope to see you there. June Kronbachs, Alumni Relations Manager During the December award ceremonies two graduates from the United Arab Emirates Navy presented a gift to the University on behalf of the Navy. The gold ship is considered one of the highest levels of gift to be given by the UAE Navy to an institution that it feels has helped its staff in gaining knowledge that will enable them to improve in their field of work. Ahmad Mohammad Salem Alhassan said: “We wanted to show our appreciation to the University and the staff. We had a very good time learning here and we never felt that we were away from home. The staff really value the international students and understand their needs.” Easa Hasan Mohamed Alsabab Altenaiji said: “The University logo ‘Making Knowledge Work’ was one of the reasons I applied to study. The city of Bradford was very welcoming and the people are very friendly.” UAE Navy presents gift to University Tel: + 44 (0) 1274 233086 Fax: +44 (0) 1274 236280 Email: alumni@bradford.ac.uk Web: www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni Replacement Certificates/Transcripts: www.bradford.ac.uk/hub/Transcriptand CertificateRequests/ Tel: + 44 (0) 1274 232233 Stay in Touch Professor Mark Cleary accepting the gift from graduates Easa Hasan Mohamed Alsabab Altenaiji and Ahmad Mohammad Salem Alhassan
- 4. thebraduate themagazineforalumniandfriendsofTheUniversityofBradford www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni2 SUPPORTINGBRADFORD W e are delighted to report that the University’s first alumni fundraising campaign has raised more than £70,000! A month-long telethon was held to raise money for The Braduate Fund, created to help improve the student experience and support services, provides scholarships and strengthens hardship funds. Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark Cleary, said: “I am absolutely delighted that we have raised so much, this money will make a real difference to students. A huge thank you to all our alumni who gave so generously.” We are presently recruiting a committee to assess applications for funding to ensure your donations provide the greatest opportunities to students in line with your wishes. In future newsletters we will report on how your generosity has made a real difference. Braduate Fund success Student callers, Akhtar Munir (above), a first-year student on the BSc Information and Communications Technologies degree, and Judith Imholt (above right), a second-year Peace Studies BA student, chatting to alumni New web pages We’ve had some wonderful feedback about our new web pages. Here you can find how to pledge a gift, hear from a current student about how a scholarship has changed their life, or get in touch with the Development Office. If you’ve not yet visited www.bradford.ac.uk/giving-to- bradford, take a look and let us know what you think! The gift of a lifetime Following requests from alumni, we will soon be launching a brand-new brochure explaining how you could make a very real difference to the University by leaving a gift in your will. Would you like to leave a scholarship in your name or that of a loved one? Or a gift to your old department? To receive a copy of the new brochure, or if you have made provision in your will and would like to let us know, please call Carol Vickers on 01274 236493 or email giving@bradford.ac.uk. University of Bradford Gifts Gifts are available throughout the year from Just Shop in the Atrium or from the Alumni and Development Office, Room D17, Richmond Building. To purchase items by post, download and complete the form from our website at www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni/alumni-goods- and-gifts/ and send it with your cheque to the Alumni Office, University of Bradford, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD7 1DP. If you would prefer to pay by credit card please call the Finance Cashiers with your card details: +44 (0)1274 23 3137 or 3138 or 3123.
- 5. www.bradford.ac.uk/alumniNEWSINGENERAL 3 Vision of Student Central Invitation 2010 Graduate Reunion Saturday 11 September 2010, 11am An invitation to graduates of all years to join us on campus. Preview the new Student Central and enjoy a free curry lunch, visits to academic Schools, tours of the campus, exhibitions, displays and talks. Attend the Graduates’ Association AGM and see how you can get involved. Places are limited so please register your interest as soon as possible by emailing reunion@bradford.ac.uk Further details and programme will be available at www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni from July onwards T he Communal Building facilities are being completely refurbished and extended to create an attractive, modern and interactive space which includes the introduction of a new glazed roof over the central courtyard to create an additional 1000m² of internal space and a glazed link to the J B Priestley Library building. The new building has been renamed Student Central, which was chosen by current students. Come along to the reunion on 11 September, which will be based in Student Central, and take a look for yourself. You can also join a tour and see how much the campus has changed, and is continuing to do so as the University’s £84 million investment programme progresses. Student Central
- 6. thebraduate themagazineforalumniandfriendsofTheUniversityofBradford www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni4 NEWSANDRESEARCHINBRIEF Graduates from the School of Computing, Informatics and Media at the University of Bradford can join our Graduates Network. Joining our Graduates Network is free and will allow you to access exclusive job adverts, keep in contact with fellow graduates, promote your business, share industry experience and give you the opportunity to develop professional skills such as coaching and mentoring. To register please visit http://graduates.scim.brad.ac.uk/ where you can also find news from the School and how you may be able to receive 10% discount on postgraduate study. Graduate Network School of Computing, Informatics and Media School of Health Studies Improving People’s Lives through Research, Knowledge Transfer and Educational Innovation a O ver 70 delegates from NHS trusts and health organisations, local authorities and universities across the region, as well as service users, ttended the School of Health Studies Research and Knowledge Transfer Showcase at the University on 22nd June. This second annual event demonstrated the breadth and depth of the School’s research and knowledge transfer activities, educational innovation and external partnership collaborations. The event was opened by Dean of School, Shirley Congdon, and the University’s Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark Cleary. Henrietta Spalding, Head of Policy and Practice from UK charity Changing Faces, gave an enlightening keynote presentation on the holistic rehabilitation challenges for people with disfigurement. Henrietta also explored how healthcare professionals should integrate some of the charity’s interventions into their daily practice. Colleagues from across the School presented on recent research successes including the involvement of service users in healthcare teaching and research and the impact of equality and diversity in healthcare. School of Life Sciences England’s Chief Pharmaceutical Officer opens £1m clinical suite C hief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, Dr Keith Ridge, officially opened a £1m state- of-the-art Clinical Skills Suite at the University in January. The suite is part of the Bradford School of Pharmacy at the University and is a modern, up-to-the-minute facility that allows students to contextualise their learning in different clinical settings. School of Engineering, Design and Technology £1 million project set to move frontiers of testing next generation test methods for Aat the University of Bradford £1 million project launched in May 2010 will develop turbochargers, a key component for reducing emissions from engines worldwide. The Advanced Turbocharger Technology Engineering Project is the latest world-leading development in turbocharger technology by Huddersfield-based Cummins Turbo Technologies, technology leaders for some of the world’s best-known engine manufacturers. Working in partnership with the School of Engineering, Design and Technology at the University, Cummins Turbo Technologies have successfully secured joint funding with Yorkshire Forward, demonstrating the regional development agency’s commitment to securing engineering excellence in the region.
- 7. www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni 5 NEWSANDRESEARCHINBRIEF D School of Life Sciences transformation which converts kinetic energy into electrical power. By highlighting the energy modification from one form to another (e.g. food, roundabout, heat and electricity), we can tie this into the National Curriculum and assist teachers to design updated and interactive teaching materials about energy transformation.” Merry-Go-Green Dynamo: Making Physical Exercise Fun to Tackle Obesity r Sam Wong, a lecturer in the Division of Archaeological, Geographical and Environmental Sciences, working with Sheffield and Warwick Universities, has obtained £15k from the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts to build an innovative roundabout on a primary school playground in a deprived area of Bradford. The schoolchildren will be involved in choosing the design of the roundabout, which will be built in transparent material in order to see how the mechanics work. An electronic read-out will be constructed at the school to let the children know how much green energy they help produce every day. Dr Wong said: “When young children play, the central bar of the roundabout will also be illuminated. It visualises the concept of energy Ins and Outs School of Management Dean retires this summer Professor Arthur Francis retires in August after 12 successful years as Dean of the School of Management. Under his direction, the School has doubled the amount of quality research income and expanded the provision for the distance learning MBA across the globe. Professor Francis said: “I’ve worked in three other universities and what I’ve loved about Bradford is the warmth of the relationship between staff and students. It’s a really friendly environment and I’ve made many friends, and many rich relationships, and I shall miss those greatly when I leave.” Bradford graduate appointed as new Dean The School of Management has appointed Bradford languages graduate Dr Sarah Dixon as its new Dean. A former international strategist from Shell and currently head of MSc programmes at the University of Bath, Sarah will join the School in September 2010 when Professor Arthur Francis retires. Dr Dixon said: “I am excited to be joining this top-ranking business school with its established reputation of excellence. “We are operating in an increasingly challenging environment with government funding cuts and international competition. My intention is to encourage innovation across all areas of activity and increase our co-operation with business, public and third sector organisations. In the jargon of a business strategist, I am keen to secure sustainable competitive advantage for the School.” A linguist, Sarah achieved her BA in Russian and German at Bradford. Stop Press! Last week the MBA and selected MSc programmes were fully accredited by AMBA until 2015
- 8. thebraduate themagazineforalumniandfriendsofTheUniversityofBradford www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni6 PROFILE LawrenceTomlinson MechanicalEngineering Lawrence with the electric car he designed
- 9. www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni 7 FEATUREPROFILE Fast track to success U niversity of Bradford graduate, Lawrence Tomlinson, is a Yorkshire- based entrepreneur with an estimated wealth of £400m. He graduated from the University of Bradford in 1987 in Mechanical Engineering. He said: “The course was hard work. After the first six months I was quite conscious that I didn’t know all I needed to know. I don’t think I even knew what thermodynamics was! I didn’t pass all my exams in my first year and had to re-sit, but it made me realise that I had to knuckle down and do some more work, having really enjoyed student life for six months. “I was sponsored by Wellman Bibby, an engineering company who had paid for me to come for four years, so I had to work hard. But the social life was great. I saw some great bands performing at the Students’ Union.” Whilst studying, Lawrence lived in a house off Great Horton Road, which he shared with a friend for about £8 a week. “The door didn’t even shut, never mind lock! It was awful in winter, the door would blow open and it would be snowing in the house! Spending money on heating was not a priority. We once put the heating on whilst we went out and when we came back all the wallpaper had peeled off the walls!” After University, he completed graduate training at Holset Engineering, and worked in the prototype department. Soon after, he was running a care home business and used his engineering and software programming skills to make managing the business easier. “One morning I made a call to a bank trying to get a loan. I asked for £526,000 to set up my own business. I was only 23 and I’d no idea how I was going to pay it back. Thankfully it was a success.” Lawrence is the sole founder and Chairman of LNT Group, which includes LNT Construction, GLP Taylors, Haigh Mechanical and Electrical, CoolBlue Software, Ideal Care Homes, Basic Solutions, LNT Aviation, Ginetta Cars, and the Repton-based Zytek Engineering, in which he has an equal stake. Motor sport is his first love, and he fulfilled a lifetime ambition in 2006 when he and two co- drivers won first place in the GT2 class of the Le Mans 24-hour race. He has also developed an electric car, which took six months to build and travels 200 miles before needing to be recharged. “I looked at the figures about electric cars and didn’t believe that it wasn’t possible or wasn’t financially viable. So I built it (pictured). It’s great and I use it by charging it on my windmill at home.” Lawrence can’t be too sure what it is that got him where he is today. He’d always enjoyed software, but was encouraged to take an engineering degree. “Who knows what I’d have become if I’d not taken that path. I think Engineering is a fantastic degree and really sets you up. My course included software as well so it was quite broad.” With so many successful businesses under his belt, we’re sure there are many more exciting things to come from Lawrence.
- 10. thebraduate themagazineforalumniandfriendsofTheUniversityofBradford www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni8 ALUMNIPROFILES Left to right: Prof Jo Neill; Olanike; The Nigerian High Commissioner; Prof Kay Marshall; and Mrs Folasade Ogunro PROFILE CliveLewis BSc Social and Economic Studies C live Lewis graduated in July 1993 with a BSc in Social and Economic Studies after studying politics and history in his first year. He was President of the Bradford Students’ Union in 1993 and subsequently elected as Vice- President of the NUS. Following postgraduate study in newspaper journalism, Clive worked for newspapers for about 18 months, until he was selected Clive with some young friends in Afghanistan for the BBC news trainee scheme. Work followed at BBC Leeds, Look North and BBC Midlands Today. He then joined BBC East where he is presently a Senior Broadcast Journalist. Clive is very hands on, researching and filming the stories, editing, presenting live or pre-recorded bulletins. “The more skills you have, the better,” he comments. “The people coming out of college and university now are taught everything, the works.” This hands-on approach also applies in his personal life, Clive joined the Territorial Army and became one of the oldest (34) officer cadets to pass out at Sandhurst in 2006. In the summer of 2009 he took six months off from the BBC to serve a frontline tour of Afghanistan as an officer in charge of a regular army combat camera team. When we asked how relevant his degree was to his job and what university had taught him that helps now, Clive said: “So often a story that you’re doing has an economic angle, so it helps to know something about macro and micro economics, so you are not completely baffled by economic jargon because it can be quite scary. Doing the degree did help, because politics also has an economic slant. “It’s also the life experience you get at university, making new friends, becoming an adult in your own right, it’s an excellent initiation for young people to strive for bigger and better things. I loved Bradford, I loved being in Bradford, I loved the whole ambience. It was a nexus - the point at which my life changed and branched out into possibilities and opportunities I could never have imagined.” PROFILE OlanikeAdebayo BSc (Hons) Biomedical Science A fter graduating in 2005, Olanike trained as a biomedical scientist at the University of Cambridge NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, before moving to the South Manchester University NHS Trust and taking further specialist qualifications. Presently Olanike is a Specialist Biomedical Scientist at Charing Cross Hospital in London. Olanike said, about her time at Bradford: “The quality education (including extra-curricular) and skills gained from the University immensely prepared me for my career path and my progression in the field.” After university, Olanike enrolled on a creative writing course while pursuing her career as a biomedical scientist and she has just been published. The book, entitled The Real Deal: The Journey of an International Student in the UK, highlights the many challenges that international students experience and how to overcome them. Online reviews of the book have been excellent, showing 5* ratings. The Real Deal was launched on the 21st May 2010 at the Nigeria High Commission in London which was hosted by HE Dr Dalhatu Sarki Tafida, OFR, The Honourable High Commissioner of Nigeria to the UK and the Court of St James’s. Representatives from the University included Professor Kay Marshall, Head of Pharmacy and Professor Jo Neill.
- 11. www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni 9 NEWSINGENERAL M ore than 200 graduates attended reunion events in Brunei, Kuala Lumpur and Singapore during November 2009. Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark Cleary, hosted the three events supported by the Deans and members of staff from the Schools of Engineering, Design and Technology, Life Sciences and Management. Special guests included the British High Commissioner of Brunei, representatives from the British Council in each country, Ministries of Education and colleagues from partner institutions. The guests joined graduates and staff at the events, which included presentations on the progress of the University by the Vice- Chancellor, followed by a buffet dinner. Photographs from all three events are on the alumni website at www.bradford.ac.uk/alumni/ international-alumni/events-and-reunions/ Far Eastern Reunions Brunei SingaporeKuala Lumpur We know that many of the University of Bradford’s graduates have become successful business people. We would really like the opportunity to work with you again and support you to build on your business success. We can help you, your employees, and your business develop. For more information contact the Regional Business Partnerships Centre: Tel: +44 (0)1274 236000 Email: rkts@bradford.ac.uk Website: www.bradford.ac.uk/gateway University services to business Graduate Success Profile Bradford graduate Jun Sheng Chan, who achieved a first class BEng (Hons) in Industrial Engineering, completed a University of Bradford Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with Surgical Innovations Group plc in 2009. The project was to develop knowledge-based systems to comply with both European and US regulatory frameworks, including risk management procedures. Mike White, Technical Director for Surgical Innovations, said: “The KTP helped us to progress our Product Development process to deliver new CE-marked devices in the shortest possible timescales.” Surgical Innovations were so impressed with Jun, that he was offered a position as Production Engineer with the Group. Jun said: “The KTP has acted as a springboard into my career and personal development, it was a great experience and I would highly recommend it to fresh graduates.” Jun is currently undertaking a Postgraduate Diploma in Engineering. This, coupled with the experience gained from Surgical Innovations, will help him acquire Chartership of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) to increase his career options for the future.
- 12. University of Bradford Graduates’ Association made from recycled paper Annual General Meeting – Saturday 11 September 2010 Make a difference On graduation, you automatically become a member of the Graduates’ Association for life! It’s easy to think ‘So what?’ but did you know this gives you a voice on the governing and decision- making bodies of the University forever? The Graduates’ Association Committee is elected by the association members (you) and represents your views on the University’s Court and Council. The association aspires to represent all the diverse groups within our student body and with Skype and Elluminate (virtual conferencing software) now both very much a reality, there is no reason why this cannot now include people from long distances away, as well as people who can get to Bradford more easily. We need you now to build a strong graduate association committee to influence how the University goes forward and provides important networking support for alumni career development and social reunions. All Executive Committee Officer posts are due to expire this year, including Chair, Vice-Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and a number of expert co-optees. The association needs graduates who think they can offer something - a viewpoint, some wisdom, some experience of committee operation, some communications expertise or perhaps some online skills. You will need to devote a day per year to attend or virtually attend a meeting with your fellow committee members, commit to reading papers sent in advance and perhaps one more day to follow through on some agreed actions. The Annual General Meeting is taking place on Saturday 11 September 2010 to coincide with the Alumni reunion. This is where nominees and volunteers will be voted into office. So if you don’t feel like getting completely immersed in the committee this year you can still come along and exercise your vote to get the right people appointed. We hope though that many of you will think ‘Why Not?’ After all, Higher Education is facing some of the greatest challenges it has faced for many years and the voice of our graduates should be helping to form the future success of the University of Bradford. If you are interested in being nominated as one of the above officers, just send us an email with details of the post you are interested in and provide 100 words that we can put to voting members to support your suitability for that post. Email the Chair of the Graduates’ Association (Jawahar Dhutia – Mathematical Sciences 1979) at j.dhutia@bradford. ac.uk or jmkdhutia@aol.com and cc the Alumni Office at alumni@bradford.ac.uk. Or you can phone Jawahar for an informal chat about it first on tel: 07999 481266 or 07957 348551 (mobiles). The University holds personal data of its graduates which has been imported from the student records database into the alumni database. Information is added to the records of alumni as their relationships with the University progress. Personal data is used primarily for communication between the University and its alumni but may also be used for marketing, promotional and fundraising purposes. All information held by the Alumni and Development Office is held securely and will remain confidential to the University in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998. Data will not be disclosed to any external bodies, other than those acting as agents for the University of Bradford for alumni matters and related projects. You have the right to object to the use of your data for any of the above purposes. For further information regarding your details and data protection at the University of Bradford, please write to: The Data Controller, University of Bradford, Richmond Road, Bradford BD7 1DP. We can arrange for this material to be transcribed into an accessible format such as Braille, large print, E-text (compatible with screen-reading software) or digital audio such as CD. Please contact the Alumni Office. Tel: 01274 233086 The University of Bradford – Confronting Inequality: Celebrating Diversity™ The University of Bradford is committed to promoting equality, diversity and an inclusive and supportive environment for students, staff and others closely associated with the University in conformity with the provisions of its Charter.