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23 Oct 2006 16:59:19
It has been a busy month for University of Bedfordshire’s Vice Chancellor, Professor Les Ebdon. He presented at a secondary school Science Masterclass, chaired a £100 million East of England Development Agency (EEDA) meeting, and organised an equalities forum.
The busy Vice Chancellor started the month off by chairing an EEDA summit of Chief Executives, which discussed the allocation of £100m for regeneration in Luton and Bedfordshire. This included supporting those on sickness benefit to get back into work, and how to meet childcare needs for parents wishing to return to work.
The Vice Chancellor said: “Regeneration is key to the growth of the region. The summit identified key ways in supporting the unemployed return to work and also ensuring that school leavers moved into employment or further education.
“It is the responsibility of the community to support individuals to gain the right skills to make them more employable.”
Later this month, Professor Ebdon, who is a world expert in environmental chemistry, addressed secondary school children at a science Masterclass at Luton Sixth Form College, which was attended by students from Luton High Schools and Cardinal Newman.
In his speech, The Vice Chancellor highlighted the benefits of science he has given society. He said: “It is the 150th anniversary of William Perkins’ discovery of Mauvene, a dye used to colour clothing. Without this discovery, we would all be still wearing grey, football teams would be playing in the same colours, and we wouldn’t be able to watch the match on television without the discovery of phosphor dyes, which are used in televisions.”
During the Masterclass, the students carried out biology, physics and chemistry experiments. These included identifying potentially dangerous ingredients in drinks for people with allergies and how to locate a copper mine by analysing the amount of copper from different test sites.
At the end of the event, a prize was awarded by the Vice Chancellor to the team who gave the best overall performance. The winning team consisted of Souniya Tidyani (Challney Girls), Tom Ravenhall (Icknield), Wesley Letang (Lea Manor), Loren MacDonald (Ashcroft) and Kyle Barry (Cardinal Newman).
Professor Ebdon is concluding his busy month with an equality forum for universities, colleges and trade unions, followed by a Universities UK meeting to discuss proposed changes to admissions procedures. Universities UK provides support and services to institutions across the United Kingdom.
Latest news» 2006» Oct» Economy, science and education top the bill for Beds VC
