Sarah MacDonald (p

REPORT FROM THE SENIOR TUTOR

My predominant feeling when I look back on the academic year 2020-21 is one of immense gratitude to my colleagues and satisfaction that Selwyn’s academic community is fortunate indeed to include so many hard-working, committed and effective people whose professionalism and dedication have allowed the core work of the College to continue successfully through the year. Their efforts have helped us to meet new challenges effectively and to ‘keep the show on the road’ rather well. The vast amount of adaptation to routines has been handled with calm and good sense by the staff of the College, and this has allowed us to deliver the core business for which we exist –teaching, learning, pastoral support and research – in an effective way. And having two medic colleagues as Dean and Assistant Dean was certainly a great help as we occasionally had to deal with (thankfully minor) breaches of our Covid regulations. I salute all those who have contributed to our success.

The core activities have gone ahead, sometimes much changed. Perhaps the best examples of how came at either end of the year. Using the marquee we had erected on the Old Court lawn, we began with in-person matriculation events for both undergraduates and postgraduates. It was important to bring all new entrants together to start the year even if many of their subsequent activities would be distanced and rather different from what we would usually expect. We were also delighted that we managed to make an in-person graduation work at the year’s end. Guest numbers were limited but the graduands left to the cheers of their guests, Fellows, staff and students as they processed down West Bye Lane on their way to the Senate House. The guests were then able to watch the streamed ceremony from the West Road Concert Hall. The new graduates then rejoined their guests in family clusters, which were arranged around the College, to enjoy some festivities. The hearty roar on West Bye Lane was one of the highlights of my year. So have been the messages of appreciation from graduates and their guests alike. That such events went so well is testimony to the hard work and efficiency of those who organised them and to all the staff and Fellows whose contributions may not always be very visible but have been crucial.

More generally, I can report on a good year for Selwyn. Academic results seem good, though it remains too early to tell whether the record number of firsts achieved is in line with the trend across the University or an improvement upon it. Certainly, the Tripos toppers and winners of University prizes are numerous enough to suggest that it has been a very good year. So too does the success of members of our MCR in moving on to prestigious positions in and out of academia. The academic health of the College is good. That is also reflected in the success of our Fellows, many of whom have achieved national and international recognition for their work. We have welcomed Nicole Hartwell, Grant Stewart and Anna Lippert into the Fellowship, and Robert Tasker back to it as he effected his second return and third arrival at Selwyn since he himself matriculated. Another perhaps less intuitive marker of the high quality of the Selwyn Fellowship is the progress of colleagues to other institutions as they build their careers. This summer we bid farewell to Emily Hancox, Fabian Grabenhorst and Kacia Macieszczak as they go on to new challenges in their respective disciplines. We also wish Professor Bill Clegg well as he retires after a distinguished career.

There has been a lively and full agenda of not-so-routine business too. It has been great fun working with the Librarian and others on the planning of the move to the new Bartlam Library. As I type, the books are in the process of being moved (a wine lover, I like the use of the term ‘decanted’ in this context), the discussions of the final elements of furnishings are under way, and we are reflecting that the use of this splendid new space as a safe and distanced study area during the Easter Term went remarkably smoothly. The next steps have already begun as we start the transformation of what will imminently become the former Library into a set of well kitted-out seminar and meeting rooms, new office space and, perhaps most excitingly, a dedicated area for medical and veterinary students to be able to use and study the impressive collections of anatomical models that Bob Whitaker and Stuart Eves have managed to build up. As if these projects were not enough to immerse me in discussions of buildings and building techniques, we are also embarking on the refurbishment of two postgraduate hostels in Grange Road and the linked transformation of our newly-bought house in Selwyn Gardens into student accommodation. The College is not standing still.

Undergraduate applications 1977 to 2020