Congratulations to Professor Linda Bauld, Professor Simin Davoudi, Tricia Dodd, Professor Chris Millward and Dr Utsa Mukherjee who were announced as Trustees of the Academy of Social Science’s Council at our Annual General Meeting (AGM) today.
Professor Linda Bauld OBE FMedSci FRSE FRCPE FAcSS FFPH is the Bruce and John Usher Chair in Public Health in the Usher Institute, University of Edinburgh and Chief Social Policy Adviser to the Scottish Government. She leads two research consortia: SPECTRUM – funded by the MRC that focuses on the commercial determinants of health; and Behavioural Research UK (BR-UK) – funded by the ESRC as a leadership hub for behavioural research.
On hearing of her election to the Academy’s Council, Linda said, “I am delighted to be joining the Council at a crucial time when the need to strengthen links between learned societies and policy and practice could not be more important.”
Professor Simin Davoudi FAcSS FRTPI is Professor of Planning and Co-Director of Centre for Researching Cities at Newcastle University. Her research centres on planning, environmental governance, climate resilience, and ethics of care and justice, and she is a former member of ESRRC Strategic Advisory Network, REF 2014 sub-panel, and DEFRA Social Science Expert Group. Simin also served as advisor for several government departments and research councils in the UK and internationally.
Reflecting on her election to the Academy’s Council, Simin said, “As a Fellow of the Academy since 2003 and an advocate of the social sciences, I am delighted to have the opportunity to serve the Academy as a Trustee and look forward to working with the Academy, other Trustees and Fellows to support the voice of social sciences in challenging times.”
Tricia Dodd MBE is an independent statistical and research consultant with a background in social and official statistics. The majority of her career was spent at the Office for National Statistics, latterly as the Chief Methodology Officer. She is a Fellow and Council member of the Royal Statistical Society (RSS) and is the organisation’s Honorary Officer responsible for Equality, Diversity and Inclusion.
Following news of her election, Tricia said, “I’m delighted to be elected as a trustee of the Academy and look forward to helping deliver the strategy of promoting the use of social sciences for public good, an objective that has always been close to my heart.”
Professor Chris Millward FAcSS is Professor of Practice in Education Policy at the University of Birmingham. In addition to his role on the Academy’s Council, Chris is a member of the Commission for Tertiary Education and Research in Wales, a Marshall Scholarships Commissioner and a Trustee of the Society for Research into Higher Education. Prior to joining the University of Birmingham, he was England’s Director for Fair Access and Participation and Director of Policy at the Higher Education Funding Council for England.
On his election to the Academy’s Council, Chris said, “This year will be crucial for advocating the social sciences in higher education and broader government policy. I’m delighted to be able to support this as a Trustee of AcSS.”
Dr Utsa Mukherjee teaches at the Department of Education, Brunel University London where he is the Director of Equality and Diversity. Utsa’s research interests lie in leisure studies and the sociology of childhood, youth and families with a key focus on equity and social justice. He is the inaugural Academic Lead of Brunel Youth Action Group, and co-leads the Education, Identities and Society research group at Brunel.
Reflecting on his election to the Academy’s Council, Utsa said, “I am delighted to join the Council. I look forward to championing the diversity of the sector and promote the voices of smaller-scale learned societies that support under-resourced areas of social sciences.”
Our five new Trustees join 15 existing members of Council and they are collectively responsible for the governance of the Academy. The Council is chaired by the President and comprises 20 members, most of whom are Fellows. We thank our outgoing members of Council, Professor Nic Beech FAcSS (Honorary Treasurer), Professor Tony Crook FAcSS, Professor Simon Marginson, Dame Jil Matheson DCB FAcSS (Honorary Secretary) and Professor Vicky Pryce, for their hard work and dedication to the Academy.