Notes from the Acting Vice-Master and Assistant Master

Notes from the Assistant Master and Acting Vice-Master

(January to June 2021)

Katie Stobbs, Assistant Master (and Acting Vice-Master) 2020-21

Hello there and I trust all is well with you as we make our way to the end of what has been an interesting year, to say the least!

I joined Hatfield as the new Assistant Master in July 2020, following Dr Ellen Crabtree’s departure in April. I spent the next five weeks at my kitchen table navigating my new role and getting to know my new colleagues, whilst endlessly fighting with my cat for access to the computer keyboard. In August, I was finally able to cross the threshold and come into College for the first time. This year has been like no other and there hasn’t been much time for reflection until now. Going back to that first day where I was able to start working from the Rectory, I remember feeling a real sense of pride that I was now a Hatfielder. Just before the first national lockdown in March 2020, I had been to visit Durham Miners’ Hall. For those of you who have never visited Redhills, the crowning glory is a spectacular debating chamber, nicknamed the Pitman’s Parliament, in which each numbered seat corresponded to a colliery from the Durham Coalfield. Deliberately designed to resemble a mine-owner’s country estate, Redhills is a unique and extraordinary monument to working-class pride, ambition and self-organisation. Seat number 39 was Eden Colliery’s designated seat and now bears a token under the seat engraved with the names of my greatgrandad and his brother.

I never met my great-grandad, but by all accounts, he was a clever man. However, University would never have been an option for him. It would have been within touching distance, but only in a physical sense. I wonder if he ever peered into Hatfield when he was in Durham for the Miners’ Gala, whether he and his “marras” even knew of the world inside of the College gates. It wasn’t that my greatgrandad wasn’t capable, just that he didn’t have the opportunity. It may seem unfathomable that pit-men who earned very little to start with, donated a portion of their wages each month to support the Durham Miners’ Association (DMA) and

Durham Miners’ Hall

to building Redhills. But for them, it was the way to create opportunity, not just for themselves, but for their children, and their children’s children. It was about accessing places and people that you believed you deserved to have access to. So, I go back to feeling that sense of pride on my first day in my new role at Hatfield. I’m very proud to be a first generation scholar from County Durham, an alumna of Durham University and now the Acting Vice-Master of Hatfield College, Durham’s second oldest College. I’m sure my great-grandad would have loved the concept of All One Hatfield, the belief that a diverse, inclusive community of equals is of the highest value to all. I am very excited to be a part of it. And now back to the day job. Never has the challenge of welcoming, enrolling and inducting all of our new undergraduates and postgraduates been greater, whilst supporting our current students at the start of a new academic year shaped by uncertainty. We were determined to welcome all applicants who met their offer grades, despite the chaos on A Level Results Day and the subsequent decision to approve centre assessed grades. There were suggestions of housing some Hatfielders across the City. However this year, more than ever, our priority was to create that strong sense of community Hatfield is known for. Luckily, we were able to create a mixed undergraduate and postgraduate community in James Barber House for the first time, in order to accommodate everyone who had earned their place at Hatfield in very difficult circumstances.

College staff, the JCR, MCR and the indefatigable Frep team (led by James Reid and Minnie Parker) went to unbelievable efforts to ensure that the incoming cohort of students, whether living in or out of College, whether living inside or out of the UK, whether quarantining or otherwise, could experience College life and benefit from as many opportunities as possible, enveloping them in the Hatfield spirit and passing on our traditions and quirks. From organising a four-day arrivals weekend to drafting servery meal times with military precision, from household wristbands to mini-matriculations in the Chapel and socially distanced Freshers’ formals, Michaelmas Term 2020 received a level of planning last seen in Churchill’s War Rooms. Not to mention coordinating an army of Hatfielders to deliver meals on wheels for 300 self-isolating students, three times a day! Whilst August to December was the ultimate baptism of fire as a new staff member, I was very privileged to work alongside the most creative, adaptable, dedicated and resilient colleagues and students who showed true grit and collegiality when the chips were down. However, as the old saying goes, out of challenge comes opportunity. Despite the unexpected obstacles, opportunities came to improve many procedures and practices in the wider student experience and operational spheres within College. Key administrative processes have been streamlined and gone online, working practices have become more efficient and effective, and our collaborative mind set was cemented. Progress in a pandemic – it hasn’t all been bad!

Covid-19 restrictions have enabled us to focus on how we can make College as accessible as it can be, in a physical and logistical sense but also more widely. Our ethos of All One Hatfield has been embraced and celebrated at any given chance. From anti-racism training for our Freps, to Hanukkah doughnuts in the dining hall and fortnightly First Generation Scholars’ meetings, we have been doing everything we can to ensure that Hatfield is a place where all of our students can thrive and diversity is celebrated. Hatfield has supported more students than ever before through the Hatfield Bursary Scheme, another positive milestone.

I have responsibility for student support and wellbeing within College. Many of the students I see on a daily basis are going through a difficult and challenging time, but I have been impressed by their motivation and resilience. It has been a particular pleasure to work with Jess Clark and Shauna Townsend, the JCR Welfare Officers this year, who have done a huge amount to support their peers at a time when welfare and student support have been very much in demand. I know the support and encouragement from our Student Support Office and Welfare team is greatly appreciated. This academic year has seen the introduction of a new Hatfield Student Signposting Handbook, and a number of important wellbeing campaigns have been run throughout the academic year including a Body Positivity Campaign with Hatfield Feminists, an Imposter Syndrome campaign including a spotlight on imposter syndrome in the People of Colour community and a Men’s Mental Health Month campaign in November 2020. The Welfare team have also been keeping the famous Tea and Toast tradition alive virtually throughout term! Our Mentors have also been truly brilliant, supporting Hatfielders virtually as well as bringing College and Durham to life, especially for those students who have been studying entirely online for this academic year.

Two virtual Post-Offer Visit Days in February and March 2021 have been a great opportunity to get to know many of our current applicants. They are a socially engaged bunch who showed keen interest in sports, societies and the other pillars of

College life, but also wanted to know about the College response to the Black Lives Matters movement and how to get involved in feminist activism or environmental initiatives. We hope that after their virtual visit as well as through our ongoing programme of events for applicants, they will be convinced Hatfield is the place for them.

We have been active in reaching out to our neighbours and it has been so good to see the local community enjoying what our students can offer; 235kg of food has been donated to local food banks, much needed funds have been raised for Durham Action on Single Housing and Red Nose Day, advent calendars and Christmas cards have been distributed amongst young and elderly residents alike, and our Schools’ Mentoring Project has continued to support local sixth formers despite the lockdowns. The Hatfield Fashion Show will be held in College once again this year and is sure to raise vital funds in aid of the Trussell Trust. I know that all our community partners appreciate the contribution our students make to the lives of local people. Simultaneously, involvement in volunteering and outreach is an important formational experience for Hatfielders, particularly this year where contact with others and the world outside has often been illegal! I hope that with time our neighbours also refer to us, as you do, as ‘our College’. This resonates with our passion for, and dedication to, making a difference to the lives of people both within and outside the College and developing a strong sense of community and inclusion in all that we do. Our 175 Good Deeds campaign marking our upcoming 175th anniversary will be the perfect opportunity to promote that. My first ten months in this role have been hugely enjoyable and I am looking forward to the next academic year and the challenges, opportunities and rewards it will bring for all members of our College

Alex Galucci, JCR Charity Committee, at our Red Nose Day fundraising stall 2021

community, hopefully with the end of the pandemic in sight. I write in mid-April 2021 at an uncertain time for us all but I know life at Hatfield will continue to be the best it can be!

Katie Stobbs