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Posted by Guy Spier at 09:26 PM | Permalink

We received the following email and copies of speeches from Gavin Williams.

Dear Alumni

You have the flysheets accompanying the Resolutions that were put to Congregation last week, and Don Fraser's speech (editors note: see previous entry). I attach copies of speeches made For the Resolution and Against the Amendment, including an uncorrected copy of Professor Fraser's text.

Gavin Williams

Oxford University's Congregation, meeting in the Sheldonian theatre on 17 May, passed the controversial Resolution on Academic Strategy rejecting the proposed 'mandatory system of regular, joint University-College review of individual contributions, with scope to enhance financial rewards, re-balance academic duties, and address under-performance' by 351 votes to 153.

An amendment proposed by the University Council was defeated by 358 to 183.

I attach the proposing and seconding speeches for the Resolution, and two given specifically against University Council's delaying amendment. Brief bios of the speakers follow below, as does the text of the resolution and the amendment. Editor's note: Two more speeches opposing the amendment have since been added.

If you would like to speak to the proposer and other supporters of the Resolution, you can get in touch with them directly by email , or via me, by email or on 07951 092876.

Professor Don Fraser, PROPOSER
Professor Don Fraser has held positions at Columbia University, the Max-Planck Institut für Chemie and at the California Institute of Technology. He is a member of the International Advisory Board for the COE-24 Programme of the Institute for the Study of the Earth's Interior in Japan and has taught Earth Sciences at Worcester College, Oxford since 1979.

He currently works on applications of thermodynamics to planetary problems and on the self-organization of prebiotic molecules related to the origin of life.

He founded the companies Statistical Sciences U.K. Ltd. and StatSci Europe in 1989 whose I.P. was jointly purchased by MathSoft Inc. in 1998.

don.fraser@earth.ox.ac.uk
Don Fraser Speech

Professor Alan Ware, SECONDER
Professor Alan Ware joined Oxford from the University of Warwick in 1990. He is a political scientist who has written 7 academic books, and edited a further 6 books; his next book will be published by Cambridge University Press in 2006.

alan.ware@worc.ox.ac.uk
Alan Ware Speech

Gavin Williams, OPPOSING THE AMENDMENT
Gavin Williams is a South African who has taught politics at St Peter's College, Oxford, since 1975. He has published widely on politics and agricultural policy in Africa, with a particular focus on Nigeria and South Africa.

gavin.williams@spc.ox.ac.uk
Gavin Williams Speech

Dan Lunn, OPPOSING THE AMENDMENT
Dan Lunn is Senior Tutor and a maths tutor at Worcester College.

Dan Lunn Speech

Bernard Sufrin, OPPOSING THE AMENDMENT
Bernard Sufrin is a Fellow and Tutor in Computation at Worcester College

Bernard.Sufrin@worcester.ox.ac.uk
Bernard Sufrin Speech

Philip Stewart, OPPOSING THE AMENDMENT
Philip Stewart, Department of Plant Sciences

philip.stewart@plant-sciences.oxford.ac.uk
Philip Stewart Speech

From the University Agenda:

Resolution concerning Oxford's Academic Strategy:
In order to ensure the paramount principle of academic freedom, Congregation rejects any 'mandatory system of regular, joint University-College review of individual contributions, with scope to enhance financial rewards, re-balance academic duties, and address under-performance' as expressed in Oxford's Academic Strategy, a Green Paper, Strategy IV(c).

Proposed by: Professor Don Fraser, Worcester

Seconded by: Professor Alan Ware, Worcester

The following amendment, proposed on behalf of Council, will be taken
into consideration:

Delete all after 'Congregation' and substitute

'agrees that any proposal to introduce a "mandatory system of regular, joint University-college review of individual contributions, with scope to enhance financial rewards.. . ", as suggested in the Oxford Academic Strategy, a Green Paper (Strategy IV (c)), should not only be measured against this principle, but should be considered through careful continuing consultation via the usual channels, and that any such proposal be subject to an eventual vote by Congregation.'

Proposed by: Dr R.C.S. Walker, Magdalen

Seconded by: Professor A.M. Cameron, Warden of Keble

Posted by Paula Hoare at 12:31 PM | Permalink

We received the following email and documents from Professor Don Fraser, Worcester College and Department of Earth Sciences.

Dear Alumni in New York!

Greetings from Oxford. As the speaker who introduced the Resolution on what became an issue of academic freedom on 17th May, I was happy to see that the debate in Oxford has been put up on your web-pages already.

For background, I am scientist who has, amongst other things, recently spent nearly two years at Caltech and who has a collaborative research proramme at Princeton. I have never been remotely close to speaking in Congregation. So it may be of interest to your members if I enclose copies of the Flysheets which were published with the Gazette on 5th May and also of what I said to Congregation which voted for the Resolution 351 : 153. Gavin Williams did a great job in leading the debate against Council's amendment which was comprehensively defeated.

In particular, I wish now to stress that all the speakers for the resolution - and I believe most academics in Oxford are pro-appraisal!

Many of us also believe that John Hood is a man of energy and vision who is very well equipped to represent the University to the outside world and to reform the control structures of its Senior Management Team. He also has an excellent chance to succeed in raising Oxford's much-needed income. Oxford's Academics strongly support these aims that underpin what we try to do: - to push the frontiers, both in teaching and in research, but without line managers! After all, Dorothy Hodgkin did not win a Nobel Prize in Oxford for her work on Insulin because she had a line manager.

The attached files will, I hope explain, the need for the debate.

With best wishes from this side of the pond,

Don Fraser
Professor D.G. Fraser, Worcester College and Department of Earth Sciences, University of Oxford.

Speech - D.G. Fraser

Fly Sheet - Academic Freedom

Flysheet - Governance

Flysheet - Libraries

Posted by Paula Hoare at 09:07 AM | Permalink

Oxford University was forced to back down on controversial proposals to set up a compulsory appraisal system for academics after dons yesterday voted down the idea. At a meeting of Congregation, the university's parliament, a motion condemning the plan as inimical to academic freedom was passed by 351 votes to 153. A compromise amendment tabled by the university executive was also rejected.

The decision by academics could be overturned if the university's executive won a postal ballot of dons that could be called at a later date. If not, the development represented a setback for an ambitious programme of corporate governance reforms at Britain's oldest university introduced by John Hood, the recently appointed vice-chancellor.

Jon Boone, FT, May 18th 2005
http://news.ft.com/cms/s/866a573e-c73b-11d9-a700-00000e2511c8,ft_acl=,s01=2.html

Posted by Paula Hoare at 08:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

A paper has been produced summarising the outcome of the consultation on the Green Paper on Oxford's academic strategy, which was issued in January 2005; and outlines the next steps in the preparation of a revised Corporate Plan for Oxford.

A total of 119 written responses were received, comprising 44 from colleges or college bodies (including the Conference of Colleges), 31 on behalf of University bodies (including departments, faculty boards and committees, and OUSU), and 44 from individuals (including one on behalf of the New York Oxford alumni group). In addition, the facility for on-line comments via the web received 2212 hits, and 26 contributions, making a total of 145 responses.

The full summary paper is available for downloading in PDF format (128KB) at http://www.admin.ox.ac.uk/po/vc/outcome.pdf

Posted by Paula Hoare at 04:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

Amanda Pullinger (member of the OAANY Board and Membership Secretary) had the opportunity to visit with Dr. John Hood last week in Oxford

Her report is below:

Since I was in the UK to vote on May 5th, I decided to set up some meetings in Oxford the following day. The first meeting of the day was with Dr. John Hood, the Vice Chancellor.

I started the meeting by congratulating him on his new post and expressing our support for him in the challenging environment he faces.

He was keen to find out more about the OAANY and I described the type of members we had, and the typical events held in New York. He was, of course, aware of the recent Oxford-Cambridge New York Alumni Boat Race, and I have heard from a number of the Oxford alumni rowers that they received personal letters from the Vice Chancellor thanking them for their efforts.

We discussed the recent Green papers and it seems clear that John Hood is a man on a mission -- to make the necessary changes to ensure that Oxford remains one of the elite universities in the world. From discussions with others at Oxford following my meeting with Dr. Hood, I think there will be considerable debate and some significant challenges in implementing those changes, but I have no doubt that Dr. Hood will not sway from his determination to achieve his goal.

I brought up the role of alumni in the debate and raised our concern that alumni have not been involved in the process to date. Dr. Hood stated that he is keenly aware that alumni will be part of the future of Oxford, which was why he was building a team around around him to support alumni affairs, as well as fundraising efforts. As you may be aware, Dr Jon Dellandrea, who is currently Vice President and Chief Advancement Officer at the University of Toronto, will join Oxford University in the new role of Pro-Vice-Chancellor (Development and External Affairs) on October 1st this year. I had the opportunity to meet Dr. Dellandrea briefly after my meeting with the Vice Chancellor, and I will be following up on that meeting once he joins the University in October.

Finally, I invited Dr. Hood to come and speak to the OAANY at his earliest convenience, and he said he would be delighted to do so on one of his upcoming trips to New York. We will, of course, inform you of his visit when that time comes.

Posted by Guy Spier at 07:05 PM | Permalink