Way Back When – exhibition opening

From the Curator of Museum Services at the University of Dundee :

WAY BACK WHEN – STUDENT PHOTOGRAPHS 1968-73

The opening of a new exhibition of rarely seen photographs taken by a Dundee art student in the early 1970s – “Way Back When” – opens today – Friday 3rd March – from 5pm – 6.30pm in the Tower Foyer Gallery at the University of Dundee. 

The photographs were all taken by Walter Simms, who studied at Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art from 1968-1973, specialising in Graphic Design and Photography.    He went on to have a successful career in graphic design and museum exhibition design, retiring in 2012.

The exhibition has been assembled by Walter in association with one of his contemporaries, Gordon Robertson, a lecturer in Graphic Design at the college for many years.    

The photographs include portraits of Walter’s fellow students at the Art College at work and at play, including at the Tav Bar and the famous Revels.    They also feature fascinating glimpses into a Dundee that has changed completely – the ruined remains of the old Hawkhill; workers at the docks and at NCR.   It is a time capsule of a very different Dundee.

The exhibition runs until 6th May and is open Monday to Friday (9.30am to 7pm) and Saturday (1pm to 5pm).

Admission is free but if you would like to attend the preview, it would be helpful if you could book here. 


Concern over closure of university adult learning classes

Following concerns from constituents, I have written to University of Dundee Principal Professor Sir Pete Downes expressing dismay at the closure of the School of Humanities’ educational and creative adult education classes as of April 2017.

Residents are concerned that the replacement which is a suite of credit-bearing modules will be more costly and deviates away from the principles of the adult education classes that have been so successful over the years.

These adult learning courses have run for many years and have been really successful.    Many, but not all of the students, are at or beyond retirement age and many are already well- qualified, so replacing the courses with award bearing courses sadly will end a long tradition of offering general interest courses to members of the public.  

At present there are 13 courses on offer at Dundee University, with over 200 registered enrolments.   It seems such a shame to end the courses and I have asked the university for a re-think.

Professor Downes has now advised me :    

We are replacing the current `Courses for Adults’ programme with a new suite of modules for students of all ages, which will give an introduction to studying at higher education level and will be credit bearing.

This aligns with our commitment to widening access to higher education. Modules will be available at the start of the next academic year in English, History, Creative Writing and Philosophy. There will be an option for students to opt-out of studying for credit.

These courses are replacing our previous provision, which was no longer sustainable and did not align with the priorities of the School of the Humanities and of the University.

The University’s contributions to the local community are very important to me and to many of our staff and students. The breadth of these depends on building sustainable models of delivery wherever possible. I expect adult education will remain an important part of our work with the local community but we need to consider adult education in a broader context and across a wider range of subjects and disciplines. The approach being taken by the School of Humanities to ensure sustainable provision of Continuing Education is as follows:

•         The School of Humanities initiative to change its continuing education offering to a suite of four 10 credit bearing modules will widen access to higher education and be in line with the Universities commitment to public engagement and outreach.
•         This offering will extend the opportunity to reach people who may wish to engage with HE later in their lives, or who wish to study whilst having other commitments which prohibits them from a full time programme.
•         A matriculated student undertaking study for credit may be able to apply for help with course fees from the following:
o   Individual Learning Account (ILA) 
o   Part-time Fee Grant 

There are wider implications for the University as a whole and for our commitments to, and responsibility for, public engagement.  Much work is currently being done to prepare the University’s strategic plan for the period from 2017 to 2022 and I have asked our Vice Principal (Learning & Teaching) to review Continuing Education and its part in our widening access and public engagement work as part of the refreshed University strategy, which will be in place from the start of the next academic year.

I hope that the Vice Principal (Learning & Teaching) when reviewing Continuing Education will bear in mind that many constituents and the Dundee University Courses for Adults Association committee do not want the present provision to end.


Saving our Bumblebees

Lecture on Tuesday 31st January at the Dalhousie Building Lecture Theatre 1, University of Dundee  :

Bumblebees are amongst the most important of wild pollinators; many wildflowers would not set seed without them, and they are the main pollinators of crops such as tomatoes, blueberries and raspberries. Concerningly, many bumblebees are in decline, with 3 species now extinct in the UK and the first global extinction recently occurring in USA.

Dave Goulson, Professor Of Biology (Evolution, Behaviour and Environment) at the University of Sussex, will discuss the drivers of these declines, and the many things we can all do to halt and reverse them, at the Biochemical Society sponsored lecture.

Dave has published over 200 scientific articles on the ecology of bees and other insects, and is author of ‘Bumblebees; their behaviour, ecology and conservation’ (2010, Oxford University Press) and ‘A Sting in the Tale’ (2013, Jonathan Cape), a popular science book about bumblebees.

He is a Fellow of the Royal Entomological Society, and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.  

In 2010 he was BBSRC “Social Innovator of the Year” and in 2013 he won the Marsh Award for Conservation Biology from the Zoological Society of London.

The lecture will be followed by a drinks reception from 5-6pm, giving the opportunity to meet with Dave in a more informal setting.

Tickets are free but should be booked in advance here.