Winners of University Awards and Prizes 2010
Leadership in Learning and 
Teaching Award awarded to:
Mr Howard White
Department of European Studies & Modern Languages
This Award is for excellence in leadership of learning and teaching at the University.
Mr Howard White was selected by the Committee for this Award for his outstanding work both at department and institutional level. Within the Department of European Studies and Modern Languages, Mr White has taken the lead on many issues and encouraged the Department to review continuously its teaching and assessment practices. He is held in high esteem by both staff and students and considered to be a central figure in the department, be it in his role as SSLC Chair or as Director of Studies. At an institutional level, Mr White has been at the forefront of change through his work on numerous committees and, in particular, in his role as Chair of the Quality Assurance Committee.
Past winners of the Leadership in Learning and Teaching Award
Excellence in Doctoral Supervision Prize awarded jointly to: 
Professor Laurence Hurst
Department of Biology and Biochemistry
and Professor Cathryn Mitchell
Department of Electronic & Electrical Engineering
This prize is awarded in recognition of excellence 
in the supervision of doctoral students.
The inaugural year of this prize saw animpressive range of talent nominated from within the University's academic staff. Aftersome difficult discussions theCommittee unanimously agreed to award two prizes, in recognition of the records of Professors Hurst and Mitchell in combining exceptional standards of postgraduate supervision, with a strong record of supporting their students to in producing research of the highest quality.
The statements provided by the academic departments of the two winners emphasised how Professors Hurst and Mitchell each provide a supportive, dynamic and integrated research environment within which their students are able to realise their maximum academic potential, have the freedom to pursue and explore their own ideas, and develop impressive records of prompt submission, publications and academic prizes.
Professor Hurst is the supervisor of this year's Ede and Ravenscroft Prize winner, Tobias Warnecke.
John Willis Award
awarded to:
Dr Jun Zang
This Award is made to an academic who has demonstrated dedication to the academic and personal lives of students combined with accomplishment in research.
The Committee selected Dr Jun Zang to receive the John Willis Award for her outstanding achievements in research, teaching and pastoral care of students. Despite having only recently passed probation, Dr Zang already has an impressive record in securing grant income and publishing high quality journal articles. Feedback from students clearly indicates that Dr Zang has established herself as a popular and well-regarded lecturer and supervisor. The unit she introduced on coastal and offshore engineering has enabled her to use her research interests to inform her teaching and it is currently the most popular Civil Engineering option unit. In taking on the additional responsibilities, within the department, of second year tutor and placement tutor, Dr Zang has been able to demonstrate her commitment to the pastoral care of her students.
Innovation in Learning and 
Teaching Award
awarded to:
Ms Caroline Hickman
Department of Social & Policy Sciences
This Award is made in recognition of a significant contribution to innovation in curriculum design, content or delivery.
The Committee praised Ms Hickman’s work to revitalise service user and carer involvement in the social work programme. Ms Hickman joined the University as a Teaching Fellow in 2008. In a short time she has had a significant impact on the social work programme. Her capacity to innovate was demonstrated through her work to get students to engage with young carers through activities embedded within taught modules delivered on campus. This method ensured that the interaction of students and service users and carers could be evaluated and assessed within an academic framework. Her work has important significance for social work education and is already gaining external recognition, nationally and internationally. By bringing young carers on campus this novel method of delivery also supports widening participation and strengthens the University’s relationship with the community.
Mary Tasker Award awarded to: 
Mr Martin Gledhill
Department of Architecture & Civil Engineering
This Award is for excellence in teaching at the University.
The Committee was impressed by the extraordinary passion for and dedication to teaching shown by Mr Martin Gledhill and attested to by his students and colleagues in the Department of Architecture and Civil Engineering. Mr Gledhill has contributed greatly to the culture of the Department both through his energy and commitment and also by dint of his professional background and contacts. These attributes enabled him to organise a prestigious London exhibition for his students. Both staff and students alike commented on how much they valued Mr Gledhill’s willingness to give up his time and his incisive and constructive criticism of their work. Mr Gledhill researches and travels extensively in order to inform his teaching. Always keen to encourage his students to make learning part of their lives, he gives them access to his private collection of books. He has worked tirelessly to make improvements to the BSc Architecture programme based on his students’ feedback.