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The University of Nottingham has appointed alumna Emma Sims as its new Head of Access and Communities.
Emma will lead a newly established section within Student Operations and Support, bringing together a range of existing service areas including
Widening Participation, Community Partnerships and the Academies unit.
After completing both her undergraduate degree in History and her Post Graduate Certificate in Education (History) at The University of Nottingham, Emma completed her MA in Educational Leadership and Innovation at the University of Warwick.
Emma then began her career as a teacher, and later held senior posts within an educational trust and worked on teaching and learning and school-improvement agendas in the UK and internationally. In 2011, Emma went on to work at the University of Northampton as Director of Employability and Engagement.
In her new role, Emma will play a major part in the evolution of the University’s community engagement and widening participation strategies and a central role in delivery, particularly in relation to the University’s sponsorship of local academies. Emma will also investigate further opportunities for collaborating and supporting educational developments and relationships with schools and further education at both primary and secondary level.
Emma said on her appointment: “I am delighted to be joining the University and look forward to working with the team. Having previously studied at Nottingham, I already understand the commitment the University shows towards the city and the wider region, and feel that in this role I will be able to use my experience in the sector to find further opportunities for collaboration and to engage even more of the communities where we operate.”
Professor Alan Ford, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Teaching and Learning at the University, said: “Not only are we pleased to welcome someone of Emma’s calibre to the University, but by creating this role it is also another step forward in showing our support for the community. Engagement with the local community is a central part of the University’s mission. It is also vitally important that we promote the broader social good of education at a local level and maintain equality of access and opportunity for students and staff from the local community.”
Emma will start in her new role on 1 July.
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Notes to editors: The University of Nottinghamhas 42,000 students at award-winning campuses in the United Kingdom, China and Malaysia. It was ‘one of the first to embrace a truly international approach to higher education’, according to the Sunday Times University Guide 2013. It is also one of the most popular universities among graduate employers, one of the world’s greenest universities, and winner of the Times Higher Education Award for ‘Outstanding Contribution to Sustainable Development’. It is ranked in the UK's Top 10 and the World's Top 75 universities by the Shanghai Jiao Tong and the QS World Rankings.
More than 90 per cent of research at The University of Nottingham is of international quality, according to the most recent Research Assessment Exercise. The University aims to be recognised around the world for its signature contributions, especially in global food security, energy & sustainability, and health. The University won a Queen’s Anniversary Prize for Higher and Further Education for its research into global food security.
Impact: The Nottingham Campaign, its biggest ever fundraising campaign, will deliver the University’s vision to change lives, tackle global issues and shape the future. More news…