Honours
The University of Leeds has become the second university in the
world to secure a place in Palladium’s Balanced Scorecard Hall of
Fame for using a process devised by Harvard Business School to
help develop its 2004 strategy map and achieve impressive results.
Since then, Leeds has jumped 50 places in world university rankings and came 80th in the THES-QS world league table 2007. Research income rose 19% in 2006-07, the largest increase of any researchintensive university in England, and over the same period, student applications rose 11.3% to more than 54,000.
University Catering has been awarded ‘Food for the Brain’ accreditation, becoming only the second university in England to receive this prestigious award. It reflects high nutritional standards and menu variety that helps improve customers’ wellbeing.
The LOGIK Learning Centre for staff has received the national Unionlearn Quality Award from the Trades Union Congress (TUC). Accepted by LOGIK Centre manager Jo Westerman, the award recognises the centre’s commitment to high standards in teaching and learning, supporting learners of English as a second language, and working with trade unions in the design, development and delivery of its courses.
The University of Leeds Student Counselling Centre has achieved the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy’s service accreditation. Leeds is one of only nine universities nationwide to achieve BACP accreditation, and one of only two universities in the Russell Group.
Leeds University Union (LUU) was awarded first prize for equality and diversity at the National Union of Students Awards 2008, as well as coming second in the Higher Education Students’ Union of the Year Award.
The University claimed three of the top honours at the Yorkshire Bioscience Awards 2008, held on 26 June. The Young Company of the Year award went to Leeds spinout Tissue Regenix, which designs regenerative tissue grafts to meet growing demand in medical procedures. The company’s products are based on the world-class research of Professor John Fisher (School of Mechanical Engineering) and Professor Eileen Ingham (Institute for Molecular and Cellular Biology).
Professor Keith Holland (Institute of Integrative and Comparative Biology), an expert microbiologist and the founder of the Skin Research Centre at Leeds, received a lifetime achievement award in recognition of his 50-year career in bioscience.
The Entrepreneur of the Year Award went to Dr Olga Kubassova, who after completing her PhD at Leeds, has formed her own company, Image Analysis, which specialises in software for interpreting magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans. Her work has attracted interest from two MRI manufacturers, and been endorsed by three hospitals in Europe.
The book Deviance in Contemporary Crime Fiction, written by Dr Christiana Gregoriou (School of English), has been nominated for two ‘best critical work’ awards. In May, Dr Gregoriou was shortlisted for an Edgar Allan Poe Award by the Mystery Writers of America Society. She is now in the running for a coveted Anthony Award, being presented on 12 October at the Bouchercon World Mystery Convention in Baltimore.
Public health master’s student Andrew Clarke (Leeds Institute of Health Sciences), who works with a British charity as a health adviser in Nepal, was invited to 10 Downing Street to meet Prime Minister Gordon Brown, after winning an award for international nurse of the year from the Nursing Standard journal.
A 60-second short film by Professor Kenneth Hay (School of Design), called Miracle, was screened at Beijing’s Today Museum in June. Professor Hay’s short film, depicting a pair of fisherman’s waders that seem to perform a miraculous walk on water, was made in Venice for the 2003 Venice Biennale.
Professor Adam Nelson (School of Chemistry) has received a Corday-Morgan Medal and prize from the Royal Society of Chemistry. The medal, awarded annually to British chemists under 40, recognises his application of organic chemistry to both novel asymmetric synthesis and chemical biology.
Professor Stephen Morley (Institute of Health Sciences) has received the 2008 MB Shapiro Award from the British Psychological Society’s Division of Clinical Psychology. Professor Morley’s current research is concerned with understanding and treating chronic pain. He will give his award lecture at the division’s annual conference on 10-12 December 2008.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has awarded senior pharmacy lecturer Dr Barry Strickland-Hodge (School of Healthcare) a fellowship for distinction in the practice of pharmacy. He is one of only eight fellowship winners this year, selected from their 44,000 members.
Dr Rick Jones (Leeds Institute of Health Sciences) has received a lifetime’s recognition award from the Association of Clinical Biochemistry for his work in pathology IT.
Simon Glass, 22, had his short film Yakov, My Boy, snapped up by a French company at the Cannes film festival. Simon made the film last year while studying cinema, photography and television at the University of Leeds, and then funded his own trip to Cannes. For more information go to www.yakovmyboy.co.uk
Social psychology lecturer Dr Rhiannon Turner (Institute of Psychological Sciences) received an award from the British Psychological Society for outstanding doctoral research of 2007. Dr Turner’s research revealed that cross-ethnic friendships can have wide ranging and impressive effects in reducing prejudice.