Guest Posts

Guest Post by Kayleigh Gray, Student Voice Project Officer, Graduate Management Development Programme

Every year the University publishes a magazine which helps showcase some of the equality work undertaken across the university in the last year. This year the theme was collaboration and it gave me the wonderful opportunity to go out into the university population and capture a variety of inspiring stories.

As part of this work I was lucky enough to meet with the Students’ Union President and engage with three part-time reps, hearing about their ambitions for the 2015-16 academic year, thus allowing an insight into their professional goals for an equal society.

Dapo Adaramewa, the 2015-16 and 2016-17 Students’ Union President, aims to work on reducing the BME attainment gap and ensure anonymous marking is used in every case possible.

Ellie Simpson, the Students’ Union disabled students’ rep 2015-16, wants to set up a specific society for disabled students.

Luke Allan, the Students’ Union LGBT+ part-time rep 2015-16, would like to create a Liberation Hub which will bring all the liberation groups together and provide workspaces for meetings.

Ellie Davison, the Students’ Union part-time women’s rep 2015-16, wants to fully establish, support and promote a range of gender equality and women’s liberation societies within the Students’ Union.

I hope you’ll agree with me that these four, like all the other officers and part-time reps in post, are role models and leaders for the student population. They offer dedication, passion and a voice for all students, thereby making the collaboration with the Students’ Union a key relationship which the equality and diversity team value to support change for the better.

I would encourage you all to have a look at the magazine, take the time to read more about these Students’ Union roles and to find out more about our other key relationships, such as International Women’s Day, Time to Change and Football Unites Racism Divides (FURD).

You can download Equality Highlights by clicking on the link below or look out for hard copies at key information points across the University Campuses.

JN124_EQHIGHLIGHTS_PRINT

Guest Post by Natalie Whelan

External Relationship Officer (Schools and Colleges) – Venture Matrix

More than 130 school pupils from across South Yorkshire have recently visited Sheffield Hallam University, as part of a four day criminology event, in association with South Yorkshire Police. With the help of Venture Matrix undergraduate students, pupils were able to explore a range of crimes affecting the local community, from hate crime to burglary, among others.

South Yorkshire Police initially set a brief for students to support local school pupils in exploring the issues around four specific crimes; hate crime, cyber bullying, bonfire night crime and burglary. Following this brief, over 120 undergraduate criminology students set about designing, and then delivering, a variety of engaging activities for school pupils, to explore the causes and solutions of each type of crime.

More than 135 pupils took part in the events, learning from real case studies and undertaking practical activities, such as court room drama roll plays and creativity tasks, looking at solutions and ways to promote help services. Pupils also undertook reflective tasks to help them understand and reinforce what they had learnt throughout the sessions.

One pupil from University Technical College when reflecting on the event said;         “I learned so much about hate crime and the different categories. We learnt how to solve the problem of hate crime and we got a chance to talk about it openly. I really enjoyed it!”

Natalie Whelan, External Relationships Officer for Schools and Colleges within the Venture Matrix team, commented: “The events not only provided pupils with the opportunity to learn about the causes & solutions of real crimes, but also gave them an opportunity to visit the university, engage with our students and raise their aspirations. The events were also a valuable opportunity for our students to engage, interact and support the local community, which really helps them to feel part of Sheffield.”

Venture Matrix offers Sheffield Hallam students the opportunity to work on real-life projects as an accredited part of their degree. The students who take part get the chance to apply their academic theory within a practical situation, whilst developing key skills which will help them to realise their full potential and succeed after graduating.

If you’d like to find out more information about Venture Matrix please call us on 0114 225 4468 or email venturematrix@shu.ac.uk

Did you know that Sheffield Hallam’s Student Union advice centre is a third party reporting centre for hate crime where both students and staff can report a hate crime or incident in complete confidence either by phone or in person?

Post by the Careers and Employability placement student, Olivia Royston, on the recent International Women’s Day event in the Careers and Employability Centre. The below article was originally published on the Sheffield Hallam Careers and Employability blog: https://blogs.shu.ac.uk/employability/

International Women’s Day was such a huge success at Sheffield Hallam this year; it was truly wonderful to see so many inspiring women in one room. The first session consisted of women, in typically male dominated job roles, talking about their success within that company, and how that company strives for equality. It was really interesting to hear from Liz Ledger, from HSBC, about the tremendous steps that HSBC are taking in order to create a more balanced workforce, for example nameless CVs! Liz also gave excellent advice, which I know will have been extremely valuable to the students, on the many challenges that women have to face when juggling a career and home life.

Following on from this was Jennifer Standish from FDM, an international ICT services company. ICT job roles are usually a male dominated workforce, which made Jennifer’s talk about her life at FDM really eye-opening about the changes companies are trying to encourage. Especially, their ‘International Girls in ICT Day’ which they run in hope to encourage girls and young women into ICT through engagement in workshops, debates and ‘smashing the stereotypes’

The final inspirational talk came from a team of women who worked for Enterprise Rent – a -Car. Hearing about their personal career paths was especially inspiring for me as it was clear to see how passionate and successful these women were at effectively balancing their busy lives. A story that stood out in particular, was one women’s personal experience of an interview she had gone for and been successful, against nine other male candidates, whilst eight months pregnant! She successfully relocated her family and went back to work full time after maternity leave whilst her husband became a stay at home dad.

Each one of these speakers contributed so much and built up such a good atmosphere ready for the next event, the Role Model Carousal! This was a great opportunity for the speakers to interact with the students. Each female speaker went round small groups of students sat on tables and discussed anything that was of interest and was able to chat about each other’s career goals and skills. This was an invaluable experience for students to open up and talk about their successes as well as inspiring each other at the same time.

My favourite part of the day was reading about and speaking to students who have been nominated by members of staff as inspirational students. I think this really put into perspective how much of a difference female students can make in so many aspects of life. To be inspired by these students, as I was, visit this website to find out more about the women Sheffield Hallam are proud to call their students. It was superb to see such a variety of women at the event and I hope they got as much from it as I did as it was such an empowering and successful day. However, I do believe the year that we don’t need to celebrate International Women’s day will be the biggest celebration, as that will be the day we have finally reached equality.

This week sees the start of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) History Month. In this guest post, Tom Reaney (Alumni Information Officer and member of SIGNAL! – Sheffield Hallam University’s LGBT staff network) tells us about the background to the month and looks at what’s going on on campus and in the city to celebrate it.

LGBT History Month provides a perfect opportunity to reflect upon and celebrate the achievements of LGBT+ people, honour key milestones and turning points in LGBT+ history, and recognise the hard fought and won battles for LGBT+ rights and equality across the world – many still ongoing.

Why is LGBT History Month important?

Led in the UK by charity Schools OUT, LGBT History Month has a dedicated theme each year – this year, the theme is Religion, Belief and Philosophy. This is a particularly prominent theme given that strongly held religious beliefs, interpretations of religious texts and the influences of key religious figureheads have all historically led to negative, discriminatory, dismissive and violent attitudes towards LGBT+ people globally. This tension is still very much a concern today, with the Anglican Church’s punishment of more liberal, accepting churches, people in the US such as Kim Davis making headlines for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and the ongoing ‘gay cake’ bakery row.

However these issues seem pale when compared to the treatment of LGBT+ people in countries that aren’t the UK or America. In 2015, an updated report released by the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights entitled “Discrimination and Violence against Individuals Based on their Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity” highlighted the shocking statistics on LGBT+ hate crimes, and drew attention to the fact that LGBT+ people are often targets for religious extremists.

So what do we do?

History Month gives LGBT+ people and allies the opportunity to counter negative perceptions and stereotypes by celebrating and shining the spotlight on achievements by LGBT+ people, as well as celebrating stories from everyday LGBT+ lives.

The Inner Temple Library in London have produced a fantastic LGBT legal milestone timeline, along with supporting information.

UK LGBT charity Stonewall is currently profiling LGBT+ people of faith on their website, as well as showcasing Christian LGBT+ role models in their latest publication, also viewable online.

Sheffield also has a support group for Christian LGBT+ people, which meets twice per month for socials, speakers, discussions, bible study and prayer. The Hidden Perspectives project at The University of Sheffield has been looking at LGBT+ and faith through thought-provoking and engaging events and discussions since 2013, and continues with a research symposium this month titled ‘Orange is the New Bible’.

What’s happening? How can I join in?

There are a great varied number of events and activities going on in Sheffield and on campus to celebrate the month – see what’s coming up by viewing the full programme as it stands here

Keep your eyes on SIGNAL! and Hallam LGBT+ links below for more up to date information on events taking place, as well as other informative posts and discussions around History Month – join in the conversations!

If you have any feedback, want to ask a question or wish to find out anything more not covered here, please email us at lgbt@shu.ac.uk

Tom Reaney – Alumni Information Officer and SIGNAL! member

LINKS

LGBT History Month

Web – http://lgbthistorymonth.org.uk/

Twitter – @LGBTHM

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/LGBTHistoryMonth/

SIGNAL! – Sheffield Hallam University’s LGBT+ Staff Network

Twitter – @SHU_Signal_LGBT

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/SignalatSHU

Hallam LGBT+ – Sheffield Hallam University’s student liberation group

Web – http://lgbtsh.weebly.com/

Twitter – @lgbthallam

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/SHUSULGBT

Facebook (History Month) – https://www.facebook.com/Hallam-LGBT-History-Month-902045786539511

Same Love – Sheffield LGBT+ Christian Support Group

Email – sameloveorg@yahoo.co.uk

Hidden Perspectives

Web – http://hiddenperspectives.org/

Twitter – @HPerspectives

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/hidden.perspectives.sheffield/

Guest post by Dr Sarah Smith, Doctoral School Manager in the Research and Innovation Office and member of SHU’s Athena SWAN Central Self-Assessment Team

In this article, we showcase the University’s work to support women in science, technology, engineering, maths and medicine.

According to the Institution of Engineering and Technology:

• 50% of STEM enrolments at University (UG/PG, FT/PT) are female, unevenly distributed by discipline, e.g. at undergraduate level, women make up
  • 79% in medicine
  • 61% in biological sciences
  • 17% in computer sciences
  • 16% in engineering and technology
• 51% of female STEM graduates go on to work in STEM roles, compared with 68% of men
• Women represent 47% of the UK workforce, but only 13% of the STEM workforce
• Academia is a significant STEM employer in the UK
  • Women account for 34% of UK STEM postgraduates and are evenly distributed across disciplines
  • 17% of full-time STEM professors are female, compared to 27% in non-STEM subjects
  • Women are more likely than men to end their STEM career at the early academic stage.

(Source: Women in STEM, Statistics and facts (2012-2015), The Institution of Engineering and Technology)

Diversity brings different perspectives and approaches to problem solving – an essential component of scientific progress. Lack of diversity not only limits that range of perspectives, but it represents a loss of skills from the STEM workforce. Initiatives to promote diversity in STEM aim to support the inclusion of traditionally under-represented groups alongside more well-represented groups.

A range of initiatives across the University are in place to support women in STEM – we host a dedicated Women in Science, Engineering and Technology (WiSET) team, we were one of the first post-92 universities to gain an Athena SWAN Award, and we are a sponsor of the 2016 National Women in Engineering Day. As an institution, we also have supportive policies around flexible working, and a number of mentoring schemes designed to support staff to achieve their potential.

Drop-out from STEM subjects begins early, so it’s important to raise awareness of the opportunities in STEM from an early age. Our WiSET team, based in the Sheffield Institute of Education, works with regional schools and colleges, employers, careers professionals and community organisations to widen participation in STEM and built environment, particularly for girls and women. Their activities aim to encourage girls and women into STEM and the built environment, and increase rates of recruitment, retention and progression.

Women in Engineering Event

SHU is also a signatory to the Your Life campaign. Led by industry, and backed by the UK Government, Your Life is a three year campaign which aims to show young people the career opportunities that science and maths can lead to, and thereby drive uptake of maths and physics at A-level.

Clearly, attracting and retaining the best staff is a priority for the University. Athena SWAN is a nationwide gender equality charter, established in 2005 to encourage and recognise commitment to advancing the careers of women in STEM employment in higher education and research.

Sheffield Hallam has been a member of the Athena SWAN Charter since 2008, and achieved a Bronze University award in 2010, renewed in 2013. A number of our departments and research centres have also been successful in achieving recognition, with Biosciences and BMRC securing a Silver award (2012), and Engineering and Maths (2013), Psychology Research Group (2012), and Architecture and Planning (2013) holding Bronze.

Sheffield Hallam departmental award winners , Biosciences & BMRC and Psychology

A number of departments and research centres have submitted applications to the November round. Current award-holders Architecture and Planning (now Natural and Built Environment), Psychology, and Biosciences and Chemistry are all aiming for silver awards. Five other departments are submitting applications for the first time, all for Bronze awards.

Athena SWAN employs a rigorous assessment process, with an evidence-based application being evaluated by a panel of academics and HR and E&D practitioners. The preparation of an application is a lengthy process. Led by local self-assessment teams, the process involves focus groups, surveys and discussions with staff; the analysis of staff and student data provided by HR and Planning Services; an objective self-evaluation; and the formation of a robust action plan for the following three years. An award does therefore genuinely reflect a commitment to supporting women in STEM.

Daphne Jackson Fellowships support STEM professionals to return to their research career after a break of 2 years or more for family, caring or health reasons. Dr Louise Vickers has recently been awarded one of these prestigious fellowships to work with Dr Christine Le Maitre (BMRC) and Prof Chris Sammon (MERI) on a 2-year research project.

SHU is a sponsor of the 2016 National Women in Engineering Day. Launched by the Women’s Engineering Society in 2014, it aims to focus attention on the opportunities for women in engineering through encouraging local groups and organisations to organise their own events in support of the day. In the past two years, SHU has celebrated the day by running hands-on events for local school girls which have been ably supported by the University’s Women in Engineering and Maths Student Society.

Women in Engineering Event

This year SHU celebrated Ada Lovelace Day by launching its first Women in Computing Student Society which has plans for hosting networking opportunities with local employers, and delivering outreach activities with local schools.

We are also delighted to welcome Meg Munn onto our Board of Governors. Meg has been a long-time champion of women in STEM and supporter of SHU’s work in this area.

Finally, last year’s Students’ Union President, Emily Connor, has written a piece reflecting on her time as President and the importance of equality and diversity. You can read her blog here.