Principal’s Report

Margaret Adams, MA, DPhil Pauline Adams, MA, BLitt, (Dipl Lib Lond) Lesley Brown, BPhil, MA Marian Ellina Stamp Dawkins, CBE, MA DPhil, FRS Katherine Duncan-Jones, MA, BLitt, FRSL Karin Erdmann, MA, (Dr rer nat Giessen) Mary Jane Hands, MA Barbara Fitzgerald Harvey, MA, BLitt, FBA, FRHistS, CBE Judith Heyer, MA, (PhD London) Julianne Mott Jack, MA Carole Jordan, DBE, MA, (PhD London), FRS

Norma MacManaway, MA, (MA, MPhil Dublin, DEA Paris) Helen Morton, MA, (MSc Boston, MA Cantab) Hilary Ockendon, MA, DPhil, (Hon DSc Southampton) Josephine Peach, BSc, MA, DPhil

Stephen Guy Pulman, MA, (MA, PhD Essex), FBA Frances Julia Stewart, MA, DPhil

Adrianne Tooke, MA, (BA London, PhD Cantab) Angela Vincent, MA, MB, BS, (MSc London), FRS, FMedSci

Foundation Fellows

Lady Margaret Elliott, MBE, MA Sir Geoffrey Leigh Robert Ng Lord Powell of Bayswater, KCMG, OBE Mr Gavin Ralston, MA Wafic Rida Saïd Susan Scollan, MA Gopal Subramanium, SA, Bencher (Hon.), Gray’s Inn

Honorary Fellows

Baroness Williams of Crosby (d. 12 April 2021) CH, PC, MA Kiri Jeanette Te Kanawa, DBE, AC ONZ, Hon DMus Carolyn Emma Kirkby, DBE, OBE, MA, Hon DMus, (Hon DMus Bath, Hon DLitt Salf), FGSM

Joyce Maire Reynolds, MA, (Hon DLitt Newcastle-uponTyne), FBA Hazel Mary Fox (Lady Fox), CMG, QC, MA Averil Millicent Cameron, DBE, MA, DLitt (PhD London), FBA, FSA Baroness O’Neill of Bengarve, CH, CBE, MA Hon DCL, (PhD Harvard), FBA, Hon FRS, FMedSci Kay Elizabeth Davies, DBE, CBE, MA, DPhil, (Hon DSc Victoria Canada), FRS, FMedSci

Baroness Jay of Paddington, PC, BA Irangani Manel Abeysekera, MA

Paula Pimlott Brownlee, MA, DPhil Julia Stretton Higgins, DBE, CBE, MA, DPhil, Hon DSc, FRS, CChem, FRSC, CEng, FIM, FREng Doreen Elizabeth Boyce, MA, (PhD Pittsburgh) Ruth Hilary Finnegan, OBE, MA, BLitt, DPhil, FBA Janet Margaret Bately, CBE, MA, FBA Margaret Kenyon (Mrs), MA Clara Elizabeth Mary Freeman (Mrs), OBE, MA Jenny Glusker, MA, DPhil Ann Rosamund Oakley, MA, (PhD London, Hon DLitt Salford), AcSS Theresa Joyce Stewart, MA Baroness Lucy Neville-Rolfe, DBE, CMG, MA Judith Ann Kathleen Howard, CBE, DPhil, (BSc Bristol), FRS Victoria Glendinning, CBE, MA

Nicola Ralston, BA Antonia Byatt, DBE, CBE, BA, FRSL

Anna Laura Momigliano Lepschy, MA, BLitt Rosalind Mary Marsden, DCMG, MA, DPhil Sarah Broadie, OBE, BPhil MA, (PhD Edinburgh), FBA Harriet Maunsell, OBE, MA Hilary Spurling, CBE, BA Catherine Jane Royle de Camprubi, MA Nancy Rothwell, DBE, BSc, DS, (PhD London), FMedSci, FRS

Baroness Shriti Vadera, PC, BA

Elizabeth Mary Keegan, DBE, MA

Carole Hillenbrand, CBE, OBE, BA, (BA Cantab, PhD Edinburgh), FBA, FRSE, FRAS, FRHistS

Angela McLean, DBE, BA, (MA Berkeley, PhD Lond), FRS Michele Moody-Adams, BA, (BA Wellesley, PhD Harvard) Judith Parker, DBE, QC, MA Esther Rantzen, DBE, CBE, MA

Caroline Barron, OBE, MA, (PhD London), FRHistS Fiona Caldicott (d. 15 Feb. 2021), DBE, BM BCh MA, (MD (Hon) Birm, DSc (Hon) Warwick), FRCPsych, FRCP, FRCPI, FRCGP, FMedSci Emma Rothschild, CMG, MA Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, Kt, (BSc Baroda, PhD Ohio), Nobel Laureate, FRS (President)

Tessa Ross, CBE, BA Joanna Haigh, CBE, MA, DPhil, FRS, FRMetS Akua Kuenyehia, BCL, (LLB University of Ghana) Baroness Wolf of Dulwich, CBE, BA, MPhil

Lorna Margaret Hutson, BA, DPhil, FBA Caroline Mary Series, BA, (PhD Harvard), FRS Sacha Romanovitch, BA Alice Prochaska, MA, DPhil, FRHistS

Margaret Casely-Hayford, CBE, MA Dame Elan Closs Stephens, DBE, BA June Raine, CBE, BA, MSc, BMBCh, MRCP

Stipendiary Lecturers

Ayla Barutchu, (BSc, DPhil La Trobe), Psychology Sophie Bocksberger, (DPhil), Classics

Achas Burin, BCL, DPhil, (LLB Leeds), Law Yvonne Couch, MSc, DPhil, Medicine

Marcelo de Martino, (PhD), Mathematics

Xon de Ros, DPhil, (Fellow of LMH), Spanish Kamel El Omari, (BSc Paris VII, MSc, PhD Paris VI), Biochemistry Andrew Elliott, MPhil, DPhil, (BA Cantab), Economics Rachel Exley, (BSc Leeds, PhD Paris XI), Medicine Konstantinos Gatsis, (PhD University of Pennsylvania), Engineering Science

Francesco Hautmann, (Dottore in Fisica Florence), Physics James Kirkpatrick, BPhil DPhil, (BA Reading, MLitt St Andrews), Philosophy Quentin Miller, DPhil, (BMath Waterloo, Canada), Computer Science

Ain Neuhaus, MA, DPhil, BMBCh, Medicine Emile Okada, (BA, MMath Camb), Mathematics Naomi Petela, MBioChem, DPhil, Biochemistry Nisha Singh, MSc, DPhil, Medicine

Graeme Smith, MPhys, DPhil, Physics Kerstin Timm, (PhD Cantab), Medicine

Timothy Walker, MA, Horti Praefectus, Plant Sciences

Retaining Fee Lectures

Susan Anthony, (MBBS London), MRCP, FRCR, Medicine

Richard Ashdowne, MA, DPhil, Linguistics Vilma de Gasperin, DPhil, (Laurea Padua), Modern Languages

Departmental Lecturers

Pippa Byrne, BA MSt DPhil, History Dean Sheppard, MChem DPhil, Chemistry Linus Ubl, MSt DPhil, (BA MA Eichstätt-Ingolstadt), German Hanne Eckhoff, (Cand Mag, Cand Philol, Doctor artium, Oslo), Russian

Lecturer in Medicine

Helen Ashdown, BMBCh, (MA Cantab), MRCP, MRCPG, DCH PGDip (Health Res), Janet Vaughan Tutor in Clinical Medicine

Academic Office

Joanne Ockwell, (BA, MA University of Gloucester), Welfare support and Policy Officer

Julia Hill, (BBA University of Kent), Undergraduate Officer Victoria Wilson, Scholarships and Funding Officer

Margaret Thatcher Scholarship Trust

Jessica Mannix, (MA St Andrews), Campaign Director Claire Cockcroft, MA (PhD Cantab), Director of the Thatcher Scholarship Programme

Oxford India Centre

Radhika Khosla, MPhys, (PhD Chicago), Research Director Vinita Govindarajan, (BA Christ University Bangalore, PGDip Asian College of Journalism), MSc, Partnerships and Communications Manager Susan Elizabeth Purver, MA, Assistant Librarian

Matthew Roper, MA, (MA Durham), Library Assistant

Development Office

Brett de Gaynesford, (BA, College of William & Mary, USA), Deputy Development Director

Clare Finch, Deputy Development Director (Operations)

Communications

Matt Phipps, (BA York, MPhil Cantab), Communications Manager Jack Evans, BA, Communications Officer

Alumni Relations

Liz Cooke, MA, Joint Secretary to the Alumni Association

Lisa Gygax, MA, Joint Secretary to the Alumni Association Chris Bamber, Systems Manager

Porters’ Lodge

Mark Ealey, Lodge Manager

Chapel

Utkarsh Sharma, (MSc Warwick, MFin Cantab, BEng Surrey), Chapel Director Will Dawes, (PGDip RAM, BMus (Hons) Edinburgh), Director of Chapel Music

Estates

Steve Johnson, Estates Manager

Gardens

Sophie Walwin, (Kew Dip), Head Gardener

Conferences and Catering

Dave Simpson, Catering and Conference Manager

Treasury

Elaine Boorman, College Accountant

Principal’s Report

Another academic year has come and gone. Degrees have been awarded and new lives begun in the world beyond Oxford. Of course, this past year was not the year any of us wanted – nor, it seems, will the next one bring an end to these fevers and frets. And yet, look at what a lot our College has achieved in spite of these difficulties.

Our students, confronted by a series of challenges more numerous and severe than any students have experienced since the Second World War, rose to the challenge spectacularly. They sat exams in their rooms, adhered with tremendous stoicism to the rigours of government and university guidelines and flattened infection rates to an extraordinary degree.

All of this is enduring testament to them. Even more than that, however, this generation of students should have our admiration and respect for the way they’ve continued to uphold the standards of Somerville. They produced events to support refugees during Refugee Week, organised drinks to celebrate Pride Month, ran a biodiversity audit to make us more sustainable and, most of all, supported one another with a compassion and generosity beyond their years.

My only regret is that, due to the rise of the Delta variant, we were not able to give this year’s Leavers the send-off they deserved. We had meant to allow students to stay in College for an additional three weeks of ‘term’ in order to make up for all the missed Oxford experiences of the preceding year, and our JCR Committee poured vast amounts of time and energy into their planning – but, alas, it was not to be. The risks were simply too great. Fortunately, we have at least been able to pencil in a date in Michaelmas 2021 for our Leavers to return for a Formal and overnight stay.

Meanwhile, so much else has happened. My colleague Richard Stone, who once again served as Vice Principal this year, was recognised with Fellowships at both the Royal Academy of Engineering and the Society of Automotive Engineers, while his fellow Engineer, Associate Professor Noa Zilberman, was named a Google Research Scholar 2021 in recognition of her work developing sustainable computing infrastructure.

We have also had the pleasure of seeing three of our Fellows promoted to Professorships. Our Tutorial Fellows in Biochemistry and Maths, Dr Elena Seiradake and Dr Renaud Lambiotte, were respectively elected to full Professorships in Molecular Biology within the Department of Biochemistry and Networks and Nonlinear Systems within the Mathematical Institute. Meanwhile, Dr Radhika Khosla, our wonderful Research Director at the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development, was made Associate Professor in the School of Geography and the Environment.

At Somerville, research and practice continue to dovetail seamlessly. Earlier this year, Biology Fellow Professor Renier van der Hoorn received a spectacular €2.5m grant from the European Research Council to continue his work on developing crop protection strategies by unlocking extracellular immunity. His research is reflected in the actions of our Sustainability Working Group – efforts that will shortly include, in a first for Oxford, the appointment of a Sustainability Champion to lead the march for greater sustainability throughout College. Our efforts also received a welcome boost in June, when HRH the Prince of Wales visited College to launch our sustainability programme and meet with Scholars from the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development.

In the humanities, the benefits of interdisciplinary collaboration were highlighted by the publication, in February 2021, of Medieval Temporalities. The third book to be produced under the aegis of the Somerville Medieval Research Group, its diverse reflections on the experience of time in the Middle Ages pay remarkable tribute to the power of scholarship in forging new understanding and partnerships in a post-Brexit world. A fourth volume on ‘Openness’ is expected in 2022.

Further evidence of interdisciplinary thinking came from the podcast series produced by our SRF and Associate Professor in Global Health Ethics, Patricia Kingori. The ‘Genuine Fake’ series saw Patricia meeting experts from the V&A, De Beers and the London College of Fashion to explore the growing sense that our Eurocentric notion of authenticity as a signifier of value is problematic. Patricia was even interviewed about the series by ex-Australian PM Julia Gillard, and both podcasts are now available via the usual platforms.