Athena SWAN Charter
Athena SWAN is a charter established by the Equality Challenge Unit in 2005 to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine (STEMM) in higher education and research.
The University achieved a bronze award in April 2015 and now all academic Schools are working on their own departmental submissions.
We will be using this space, and the main blog, to let you know about our School’s application process.
SAS Self-Assessment Team
Members:
- Gary Hutchison (Dean of School, School Leadership Team)
- Clare Taylor (Convenor, SAS Athena SWAN Champion, School Leadership Team)
- Ross Morgan (Clerk to the group, School Support Service)
- Sam Campbell Casey (Biomedical Science)
- Eva Malone (Biomedical Science)
- Graham Wright (Biomedical Science)
- Faye Skelton (Psychology)
- Hollie Fountain (Sport, Exercise & Health)
- Nick Cimini (Social Sciences)
- Fiona McQueen (Criminology)
- Patricia Gonzalez-Iglesias (Professional Services: Technical Support
- Yvonne Taylor (Professional Services: School Support Service)
- Kirsty Hooper (Postgraduate Research Student representative)
- Kate Singh (Undergraduate Student representative)
- Gillian Muir (SAS HR Client Partner)
- Anne Tierney (DLTE; Critical Friend)
Observers:
Eleni Theodoraki (Institutional Athena SWAN Champion from Jan 2017)
Fiona Forrest-Anderson (Human Resources Institutional Support)
Gary Hutchison
Gary is Dean of Applied Sciences & Associate Professor of Toxicology. Gary teaches on both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes and leads research into the hazard assessment of nanotechnology. He has a keen interest in scientific training, science policy & communication, and is a member of the UK Governments Hazardous Substances Advisory Committee. Gary has actively engaged in programmes to improve equality in science and was a nominated member of the Medical Research Council (MRC) national committee for ‘Women in Science’ (2005-2007).
Clare Taylor
Clare is a Senior Lecturer in Medical Microbiology and teaches on both undergraduate and postgraduate programmes at home and overseas. She is also the School’s Head of Student Experience and Employability, in addition to being Public Engagement lead, and Athena SWAN Lead. Clare also represents the School of Applied Sciences on the University Athena SWAN SAT. She has a keen interest in science communication, public engagement and equality and is the local Edinburgh co-ordinator of Science Grrl, a grass-roots organisation aiming to show that science is for everyone. Clare also organised the first ever Edinburgh Soapbox Science event in 2016 to showcase female researchers from across Scotland. In 2017, Edinburgh’s Soapbox Science will take place on 22 July.
Samantha Campbell-Casey
Samantha Campbell Casey is a lecturer in Biomedical Science in the School of Applied Science and teaches on both the undergraduate and post graduate programmes in Edinburgh and contributes to teaching on overseas programmes in Sri Lanka. She is a member of the University Teaching Fellow community and has recently gained Senior Fellowship of the HEA. She is interested in employability of graduates and was involved in establishing the Skills Passport project within the school a number of years ago to help to enhance the employability of the students graduating from our programmes to ensure that they are equipped for the modern workplace.
Eva Malone
Immunology and education are my two passions so I have the best job – lecturer in Immunology. In this role, I wear many hats. I am actively involved in LTA at undergraduate and postgraduate levels, am part of the Biology suite of undergraduate programmes’ leadership team and I lead a module overseas and work with my colleagues from HKU-SPACE. I lead a research project investigating the responses of human neutrophils to nanomaterials in vitro with the aim of creating hazard profiles for nanomaterials and allowing safety-by-design and appropriate risk assessments in the field of nanotechnology. My research skills, activities and interests have led to multiple collaborations within the School in the areas of Exercise Immunology and Nanotoxicology. In recent years, I have taken my first solo steps into the world of public engagement and am now working more ambitiously and collaboratively, albeit at early stages, to engage the ‘world’ in Immunology. Currently, I am enrolled on the Aurora leadership programme which is a great opportunity for me professionally but it has also provided me with ‘a pair of gender equality glasses’ to look through which has been both enlightening and fascinating.
Graham Wright
Dr Graham Wright is a Lecturer in Immunology in the School of Applied Science. He has an interest in how the immune system makes the decision as to what to ‘attack’ and what to ‘tolerate’ and how this can be manipulated to treat diseases such as cancer and autoimmunity. As an early career researcher Graham has an understanding of how the demands put on all scientists at this stage of their career can impact on work-life balance and how this can disproportionately impact on woman. He hopes that through the Athena SWAN process changes can be made that will benefit everyone.
Faye Skelton
Dr Faye Skelton is a Lecturer in Cognitive Psychology within the School of Applied Sciences at Edinburgh Napier University. Her research interests centre on applied cognition, specifically forensic applications of face recognition, including eyewitness identification and Police facial composites, and, more recently, so-called “Super-Recognisers”. Faye is also an employability lead for the Psychology subject group, and a reviewer on the EnRoute HEA accreditation programme.
Hollie Fountain
Hollie Fountain is a teaching associate in the School of Applied Sciences, and teaches on both undergraduate and post graduate courses in Sport, Exercise and Health Sciences. Her primary research interest relates to psychological resilience in aspiring athletes on which her PhD is based. Hollie’s other keen interests concern the continuing professional development in elite coaches, helping design resources to enhance leadership practices which benefit athletes, and psychological resilience in an exercise and health context.
Fiona McQueen
Fiona McQueen from the School of Applied Science is a lecturer in Sociology, specialising in the areas of Gender and Sexuality. Fiona is interested in the areas of emotion, couple relationships and gendered power, particularly the ways in which attitudes towards gender are changing.
Patricia Gonzalez Iglesias
I am a Senior Technician within the school of Applied Sciences at Edinburgh Napier University and I have held this position since June 2013. As a Senior Technician I have a close relationship with the academic staff at the University. I help to develop, prepare and set up practical classes for undergraduates and postgraduate students in Napier’s Applied Sciences programs. At the same time, I coordinate my technical team to run the section in a timely and efficient manner, delivering a high level of support to academic staff and also to undergraduate and postgraduate students.
Kirsty Hooper
Kirsty is in her final year of a PhD at Edinburgh Napier University researching Crohn’s disease and an immune process known as autophagy. The research is funded by Crohn’s in Childhood Research Association (CICRA) and is in collaboration with the Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh. Kirsty is also a STEMM ambassador and is keen to participate in scientific communication and public engagement.
Kate Singh
My name is Kate Singh and I am a undergraduate student within the school of Applied Sciences at Edinburgh Napier University, studying Social Sciences BA(Hons). My topic of interest is gender studies, with a focus on both structural gendered violence and interpersonal accounts of domestic abuse. I volunteer with the organisation Scottish Woman’s Aid, and have previously taken the role of student representative for my university class. I feel that the Athena SWAN award application is a hugely valuable endeavour, as recognising the commitment of institutions towards increasing gender diversity in academic enrolment and attainment as well as routes of progression for staff, is a key for the progression of equality in wider society.
Anne Tierney
I am a lecturer in academic practice in the Department of Learning and Teaching Enhancement at Edinburgh Napier University. My expertise is in Threshold Concepts, in particular those experienced by Life Science practitioners engaging in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, Communities of Practice as experienced by Life Sciences Teaching-Focused Academics, and the effects of the Research Excellence Framework on the same group. Previously I was a Senior University Teacher at the University of Glasgow, where my expertise was in teaching large undergraduate groups (800+), work-related learning and widening opportunities for Life Sciences students. I also spent time as a Visiting Fellow at the University of Otago, New Zealand. I am a fellow of the Higher Education Academy, and a member of ISSOTL and the Society for Experimental Biology. I am on the editorial team for the electronic journal JPAAP, and review for JPAAP, PESTLHE and Advances in Physiology Education. I am a member of the Improving University Teaching Advisory Board.