Carole M. Berotte Joseph
An alumnus of the City University of New York is returning to her alma mater to become president of Bronx Community College. Carole M. Berotte Joseph joins CUNY from Massachusetts Bay Community College, where she has been president since 2005. Prior to that, she was chief academic officer and dean of academic affairs at Dutchess Community College of the State University of New York. Dr Berotte Joseph is no stranger to the CUNY system; not only did she complete her undergraduate degree at York College, she has also served as vice-president of academic affairs at Hostos Community College in the Bronx and spent 20 years on the faculty of City College. She said she was looking forward to "returning to my roots ... This is a wonderful and very special homecoming for me." Born in Haiti, Dr Berotte Joseph studied for an undergraduate degree in Spanish at CUNY before completing a master's in education at Fordham University. She went on to advanced graduate coursework in administration and supervision before a doctorate in sociolinguistics and bilingual education at New York University. She is fluent in four languages - Haitian Creole, French, Spanish and English - and researches educational-policy issues facing Haitians at home and in the US.
HE International and Europe Unit
Joanna Newman
The UK's Higher Education International and Europe Unit, formed by the merger of two bodies last August, has appointed its first director. Joanna Newman, who since 2007 has been head of higher education at the British Library, said she was looking forward to taking up the role during an "important and challenging time" for the sector. Dr Newman studied for a PhD at the University of Southampton on the Caribbean as a refuge during the Second World War. "It took me to archives all over the world," she said of her research, "but I didn't get to go to the West Indies until after I'd finished." She became a lecturer at University College London and went on to the University of Warwick. She then moved to Germany, where she worked as a journalist for The Wall Street Journal Europe. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce and an honorary Fellow at Southampton. Dr Newman said that even when she worked outside the sector, she remained in its thrall. "I love higher education and I've never stopped being interested in it," she said. She added that her new role was a "natural progression" and put her "at the heart of what the sector needs to engage with over the next couple of years".
Donald Ainslie
A philosopher has been named principal of the University of Toronto's University College for a five-year term. Donald Ainslie, who is currently chair of Toronto's department of philosophy and the graduate department of philosophy, said that he considered University College to be "home", despite never having worked there, thanks to the legacy of his grandfather, a graduate of the institution who went on to work there as a physics professor. Professor Ainslie earned his undergraduate degree in mathematics from Queen's University and holds graduate degrees from the University of Pittsburgh. He began his career at Erindale College, which is now Toronto's Mississauga campus. He took on the philosophy chair in 2003. Under his leadership, the faculty gained plaudits for its Socrates Project, which won a Northrop Frye Award in 2009. It offers high-achieving undergraduates the opportunity to learn by teaching other students. He said that philosophy classes at the institution were small enough to offer opportunities for dialogue and discussion. "One of the most rewarding parts of my job as chair has been finding ways to energise students so that they can learn how to think through philosophical problems together," he said.
Rebecca Hughes
An academic who warns against "business as usual" in English higher education has been named pro vice-chancellor international at the University of Sheffield. Rebecca Hughes is currently chair in applied linguistics at the University of Nottingham, and has also been director of Nottingham's Centre for English Language Education. While at the university she has helped set up campuses in Malaysia and China and led the creation of the first department delivering UK degrees wholly in China. She holds undergraduate and postgraduate degrees from the University of Oxford. Professor Hughes said her interest in applied linguistics began when she was a child. "My father was a writer and I was interested in language from an early age," she explained. "The way you see the world is very often coloured by language and that was something I became fascinated by." Professor Hughes said she was looking forward to taking part in the ongoing debate about how universities approach internationalisation. "I will be in a good place to have a meaningful conversation about it with people at Sheffield," she said. "Some of the more well-trodden ideas are probably history."
OTHER CHANGES
Tara Dean, associate dean of research in the Faculty of Science at the University of Portsmouth, has been made director of research.
Linda Bauld has been appointed professor of socio-management at the University of Stirling. She was previously professor of social policy and head of the department of social and policy sciences at the University of Bath.
Cass Business School, part of City University London, has appointed Andrew Hind, former chief executive of the Charity Commission, visiting professor of charity governance and finance.
Catherine Staite has joined the University of Birmingham's Institute of Local Government Studies as director of organisational development.
The University of the West of England has appointed Liz Falconer to a new post as professor of technology-enhanced learning. Dr Falconer is currently manager of the university's E-Learning Development Unit.
Malcolm Grant, provost of University College London, has been reappointed to the Economic and Social Research Council.
John Williams, director of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Geospatial Data Center, has been awarded a visiting professorship at the University of Wales.
Lianghuo Fan has been made professor of education at the University of Southampton. He previously worked at Nanyang Technological University's National Institute of Education in Singapore.
April McMahon has been appointed vice-chancellor of Aberystwyth University. Professor McMahon is currently vice-principal of planning, resources and research policy at the University of Edinburgh.