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THE FITZWILLIAM SOCIETY
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Consultant and Deputy Chairman, Provincial Group. In retirement he lived at Underbarrow near Kendal. He died on 3 April 2020, having succumbed to COVID-19.
DR GERALD LEON ZEITLIN (1951)
Gerald Zeitlin was born on 7 March 1931 in London, and was educated at William Ellis School. He had hoped to enrol at the London Hospital, like his father, but was thwarted by the restrictions on the number of Jewish students; so he took a year to qualify for Cambridge matriculation and came to Fitzwilliam to read Medicine in 1951. After graduating in 1954 he went to Oxford to undertake clinical studies, eventually gaining his BChir in 1957 and MB in 1958. At Oxford he was exposed to the burgeoning field of anaesthesia, which became his speciality. He married a young Irish-Jewish violinist, Aideen in 1960. The family emigrated with their children to the USA in 1965. Between private appointments at Lynn, Mass. & Lahey Clinic in Burlington, Mass, he held academic appointments at the Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham & Women’s Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts. He served a term as President of the Massachusetts Society of Anaesthesiologists, and published several papers on the history of anaesthesia. Gerald enjoyed family life bringing up his three children, Louise, Jonathan and Richard, coaching soccer and spending summers in Cape Cod. In retirement he published a memoir of his professional life, Laughing and Crying about Anaesthesia: a Memoir of Risk and Safety, which is also a history of the subject from its beginnings to the present day. He died on 26 April 2020 at University Hospitals, St John Medical Centre, Westlake, Ohio, leaving his three married children and their families. His wife died in 2014.
THE FITZWILLIAM SOCIETY
FITZWILLIAM SOCIETY COMMITTEE 2020-21
President Judith Bunting
Vice-Presidents Geoff Harrison (1955) Professor Brian Johnson FRS (ex officio) Professor Robert Lethbridge (ex officio) The Reverend Professor David Thompson John Adams (1958) Sir Kenneth Olisa OBE (1971) Professor Nicola Padfield QC (ex officio) Dr John Cleaver Dame Sarah Asplin DBE (1979) Baroness Sally Morgan (Master) (ex officio) Zoë Shaw (1979)
Secretary
Treasurer Peter Howard (1970)
Robin Bell (1965)
Editor of the Journal & Dr Nicola Jones (ex officio) Development Director
Bursar Rod Cantrill (ex officio)
Senior Tutor Dr Paul Chirico (ex officio)
Elected Members Retiring 2021 Peter Bates (1959) Rachael Webb (1979) Susannah Odell (2011) Retiring 2022 Professor Glen Norcliffe (1962) Andrew Garden (1981) Judith Bunting (1979) Retiring 2023 James Harrington (2008) Matt Bennison (2008) Dr Helen Bettinson (1982)
JCR Presidents Andrew Salkeld (2018) [President 2019-20] Ellie Brain (2017) [President 2018-19]
MCR Presidents Maurits Houck (2018) [President 2020-21] Aisha Sobey (2017) [President 2019-20]
Given the unusual turn of 2019-20, the Fitzwilliam Society asked Judith Bunting to continue her Presidency until September 2021.
The Fitzwilliam Society was established in 1924. Most of the specific aims for which the Society was established (for example, to keep records of members, publish the Journal and to arrange reunions) have been delegated to the Development Office at the College. The Committee therefore reviewed the role of the Society a few years ago, to ensure that it is useful and productive for members, and to strengthen the links between alumni and students. The Careers Fair and the programme of grants for student activities (see below) resulted from this review
The Objectives and Rules of the Society
New Objectives and Rules for the Society were adopted at the AGM on 24th September 2011. The objectives of the Society are now particularly focussed on social and business networking and career support, as well as assisting in the development of the College.
Support for Student Activities
For the last six years, the Society has been making small grants to assist a variety of student activities. Projects supported by grants made in the last 2 years include:
• New TV and sound system for the MCR • Heated propagator, compost bin and irrigation timer and kit for the Allotment Society • Black History Month celebration • Billy Day time capsule and celebration to mark 150 years of Fitz
The 2019 Annual Careers Fair. Photo: JRAC. The 2020 Fair took place entirely online via Zoom.
All members of the College are automatically members of the Fitzwilliam Society.
The Society exists to keep the members of Fitzwilliam College in contact with each other and with the College, to provide social, business and career networking and support, and to further the interests of Fitzwilliam College.
To achieve these objectives, the Fitzwilliam Society works with the College to:
• publish the Fitzwilliam Journal • fund awards, scholarships, prizes and debates • provide funds to support other student activities • organise the annual Careers Fair • organise events in the UK and overseas
More information can be found at www.fitz.cam.ac.uk
The Society operates through a Committee and we are always delighted to welcome new members. All members of the Society are eligible to stand for election to the Committee - please contact the Secretary through the Development Office if you are interested in doing so. 87
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FITZWILLIAM SOCIETY AGM MINUTES
Held via Zoom, hosted from Fitzwilliam College, at 5.30pm on Saturday 26th September 2020
In the absence of the President, the chair was taken by Peter Howard (Secretary) for the first 7 agenda items, and by Baroness Sally Morgan (Master) for items 8 and 9. Others present included Peter Bates, Robin Bell (Treasurer), Ian Bratt, Rodney Burton, Rod Cantrill (Bursar-Elect), Dr Paul Chirico (Senior Tutor), Dr John Cleaver (Journal Editor), Dan George, Paul Gibson, David Glass, Maurits Houck, Dr Nicola Jones (Development Director), Michael Lee, Ted Parton, Andrew Powell (Bursar), Jeremy Prescott, Chris Salt, Zoë Shaw, Nigel Stapleton, Neil Walker, Doug Webb and Rachael Webb
1. Apologies for absence
Apologies were received from Professor Nicola Padfield, Professor Brian Johnson, Professor Robert Lethbridge, Geoff Harrison, Judith Bunting (President) and Dame Sarah Asplin.
2. Secretary’s Report
The report by the Secretary, which had been provided before the meeting, was accepted.
3. Treasurer’s Report and Accounts
The report by the Treasurer and the accounts, both of which had been provided before the meeting, were accepted. Dr Jones expressed thanks to the Independent Examiner who had checked and approved the accounts.
4. Report on the Fitzwilliam Society Trust Fund
A report by the Senior Tutor had been provided before the meeting. Dr Chirico said that the awards reward students for hard work and also help fund some interesting projects.There are some gaps this year; not all the usual scholarships were awarded, because assessment arrangements in Cambridge had been changed due to the pandemic, and generally only final year students were classed. Also, fewer Milner Walton awards had been made as some of the activities which they fund could not take place this summer.
Dr Jones mentioned the discussion in the recent committee meeting about the Society’s separate programme of grants for student activities, and the need to give students particular support in the forthcoming academic year. There could be some interesting opportunities. These will be explored in conjunction with the JCR and the MCR, and thought will be given to the support that students will need in the Michaelmas term; there is much concern about the risk of students feeling isolated due to being confined to their rooms for long periods. She mentioned a suggestion by the Master to consider holding online cookery classes.
5. Election of President and other Officers
Judith Bunting (proposed by Dr Jones. seconded by Peter Bates) was re-elected President for 2020-21. The Master, Baroness Sally Morgan, (proposed by Robin Bell. seconded by Peter Bates) was elected President for 2021-22. Peter Bates proposed that Peter Howard and Robin Bell be re-elected as Secretary and Treasurer. The proposal was seconded by Zoë Shaw and Rachael Webb, and both were re-elected. Dr Jones asked that thanks to both for their work be recorded.
The Secretary reported that Dr John Cleaver had decided to step down from the position of Journal Editor at the end of the month. He expressed thanks, on behalf of the Society, for the magnificent job that John had done for the last 16 years, and proposed that Dr Nicola Jones be elected to succeed him. The proposal was seconded by Rachel Webb and Zoë Shaw, and Dr Jones was elected to serve as the new Journal Editor.
6. Election of Committee Members
Rachael Webb proposed that Matthew Bennison, James Harrington and Dr Helen Bettinson each be re-elected for a further 3 years. The proposal was seconded by Dr Jones, and all three were re-elected.
7. Election of Independent Examiner
Roger Smith FCA (proposed by Peter Howard and seconded by Robin Bell) was re-elected as the Independent Examiner.
8. Open Discussion - the Society and its relationship with students, past, present and future
The Master took the chair. She mentioned that the recent committee meeting had agreed that the Society should aim for more involvement of students and alumni across the generations, and invited Maurits Houck, the MCR President, to comment on how students view the Society. His feedback was positive; he personally regards a termly subscription of £8 as worth paying, although the Society should review and perhaps revise how the money is spent. He praised the Grants scheme which helps enrich College life. He would like to see more effort to maintain contact with former students for at least 5 years after they leave, and to see more international students join the committee.
Zoë Shaw suggested the Society could benefit from some input from alumni with marketing experience, as its current approach to raising its profile seems rather amateurish, and having a professional on the committee would help. She agreed with Maurits Houck that involvement of a greater range of alumni cohorts would benefit the Society and make it more dynamic. She is particularly keen to identify alumni with the skills and willingness to put on regional events.
Dr Jones said that there had been discussions with other colleges about their approaches to alumni relations and events. Some colleges leave everything to their development offices, and some have only recently recruited professional development staff. Emmanuel operates in a similar manner to Fitzwilliam, but has more capacity and runs a wide range of regional events. She would like to see more small scale events, perhaps arranged by alumni but with administrative support from the College. She referred to Maurits Houck’s point about contact between the College and recent graduates, and mentioned a recent initiative, a young alumni themed careers event held in a pub with support from Zoë Shaw. About 30 older alumni had acted as mentors, and several groups of students were invited about three years after graduating. It was a success and she thought that the idea could be developed further.
The Master said that Girton used alumni who had graduated within the last decade to run careers events, and Fitzwilliam could do something similar in the forthcoming academic year using Zoom. For example, students who are interested in a civil service career might be invited to question and answer sessions with some fairly recent alumni who work in the civil service and might be asked to give an hour of their time. This would help the students and also result in more engagement with the alumni.
Rachael Webb mentioned efforts to do something similar a few years ago using LinkedIn, enabling recent graduates to contact alumni for careers advice. Dr Jones thought it had worked quite well. A reasonable number of students had signed up to this when they graduated, and there was also a fairly good response from alumni who are currently working. But it had not always been easy to move this to the next stage and actually make conversations happen, although it has not been possible to monitor this. Perhaps some professional help is needed here. The Bursar emphasized that the Society is a network; he said that, when he was at London Business School, no class was allowed to leave without one member of it signing up as a class representative. This sort of institutionalized approach might be easier than seeking out alumni who are interested, and doubtless some people each year would be interested in taking part. The Master suggested that a start be made now, aiming to secure one person from those graduating this year and also one from last year. Advice from someone who has recently been through the job application process will be more valuable than advice from someone who did this many years ago.
Peter Bates commented that graduates now seemed much keener to keep in touch with the College than had been the case when he graduated from Fitzwilliam House 58 years ago. He had had little contact with the College until one of his daughters turned 16, after which he had attended the Reunion every year.
Dr Jones mentioned that the annual telephone campaign is in its first week, so many alumni will shortly receive a call. It might sound cheeky to talk to them about their work but from conversations this morning it is clear that contact from the College really means something to them at the moment, when many are feeling very unsettled. Showing interest in what they are doing is very reassuring to some of the recent graduates.
The Senior Tutor said that undergraduates have events to help them remain connected to the College after graduating. The MA dinner attracts a large proportion of each year group to return 3 or 4 years after graduating, thus helping to re-establish connections. But there is no equivalent for graduates and thought should be given to doing something about this. There had been some ad hoc reunions and this could be developed. Maurits Houck agreed. Being invited back for the first time only after 10 years leaves a long gap. There is now an opportunity to use Zoom to keep in touch with the whole range of alumni. There was a recent event where the MCR President of 10 years back was invited to return and that went down very well. He would like to do something similar involving earlier generations, including alumni who had attended Fitzwilliam House.
The Master summarized the main points which came out of the discussion:
• Networks are powerful, and there are several different but overlapping networks. • Functions of the Society are social and support. No need to be pessimistic about the forthcoming year. Opportunities to do more rather than less - using Zoom is easier than trying to persuade people to return physically. • She likes Maurits’ idea of looking at the full range of our alumni and identifying those who would like to talk to current graduate students. • A simple careers advice process using Zoom more effectively should be explored, and she will discuss this with Judith Bunting. • More reunion events for graduates. • Learning from other colleges about planning regional activities, etc.
9. Any other business
Dr Jones said the Careers Fair will almost certainly go ahead this year, albeit remotely. But this does not have to be a single event only. Smaller events could take place throughout the year, perhaps even fortnightly, as well as the large annual event. This can be discussed with the Strategy group.
Andrew Powell, the Bursar, said this was his last meeting and thanked the Society for having him over the last few 89
years. He had enjoyed working with other committee members and helping to move the Society’s work forward. He wished the Society, and his successor Rod Cantrill, all the best for the future. The Master expressed very fulsome thanks to Andrew.
The meeting closed at 6.22 pm
Minutes prepared by Peter Howard, Secretary, and approved and signed by the Master, Baroness Sally Morgan
Copies of the Treasurer’s and Secretary’s Annual Reports can be viewed here: https://www.fitz.cam.ac.uk/alumni/ get-involved/fitzwilliam-society
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THE FITZWILLIAM SOCIETY
Notes 2020
Income Subscriptions Donations received
Expenditure London Dinner-Society guests Fitzwilliam Journal - share of costs Careers Fair refreshments and CF booklets Magazines for JMA Student café Grants to MCR and JCR
Surplus for theyear 1 14,536.00 2 827.00 15,363.00
3
4 11,863.00 5 445.91 6 627.99 7 1,455.00 14,391.90
£971.10 2019
14,928.00 857.00 15,785.00
255.00 10,526.00
83.99 2,117.50 12,982.49
£2,802.51
BALANCE SHEET - at 31 July 2020
Assets Loan to Fitzwilliam College
NetAssets 8 40,043.67 39,072.57
£40,043.67 £39,072.57
Representedby: Accumulated fund at 1 August 2019 Surplus for the year 2019-20
Accumulated fund at 31 July 2020 39,072.57 971.10 36,270.06 2,802.51
£40,043.67 £39,072.57
NOTES TO THE ACCOUNTS: 1. The subscriptions shown above are those received in the period from members currently at the College. Subscription levels were reviewed in 2014-15, with all students (JCR and MCR) now paying on an equivalent basis. 2. Donations received from members of the Society towards costs of printing the Journal and the Careers brochure. 3. The London Dinner was cancelled due to Covid-19, and no costs were incurred. 4. The Society and the College now share the cost of printing/distributing the Fitzwilliam Journal to those members of the College who are members of the Society. The College's current contribution of 57% (2019: 55%) will continue to rise. In 2020 the Society's contribution of £11,863 was 43% of the total cost (45% last year). The delayed funding formula review is now due before the end of July 2021 following digitisation of the Journal. 5. The Careers' Fair refreshment costs were funded by the Society for the first time (£446) 6. For a range of titles in the Student Café. 7. The Society made five grants (total £1,455) to the MCR and JCR, deferring two others into 2020-21 8. The Society's assets are on loan interest-free to Fitzwilliam College, to the benefit of the Society's Trust fund at the College. The fund supports the College by awarding scholarships and prizes, funding research awards and the Milner Walton Music & Drama Awards, and an annual library grant.
Robin G Bell, Honorary Treasurer
HONORARY INDEPENDENTEXAMINER'S REPORT I have examined the Income & Expenditure Account for the year ended 31 July 2020 and the Balance Sheet at that date together with the records and vouchers of the Society, and confirm them to be in accordance therewith. 26 August 2020
Roger N Smith, Independent Examiner
27 August 2020 91
