On 11th July, the annual University Staff Awards ceremony took place at St George’s Hall. This year’s ceremony introduced two new awards: Outstanding Contribution to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) at the University and in Society, both of them with individual and team categories. The first one recognises individuals or teams who have demonstrated outstanding commitment and dedication to equality, diversity, and inclusion at the University, while the second one recognises individuals or teams who, through their role, have advanced the University’s commitment to work towards a fairer, more equal and more just society within the UN Sustainable Development Group’s framework.
In the individual category, Outstanding Contribution to EDI at the University was awarded to Kamila Zychaluk, from the Department of Mathematical Sciences. Kamila has been committed to improving equality, diversity and inclusion in the University for a long time. Until recently, she served as the Athena Swan Lead at the School of Physical Sciences, and led the application to obtain Silver Award (in 2016) and renew (in 2022) the Athena Swan Silver Award for the School. Athena Swan is a gender equality charter that operates in the Higher Education sector. She also was the EDI Lead in the Department of Mathematical Sciences where she established the EDI Champions group in 2021. Recently she led a task & finish group to develop an action plan to tackle bullying and harassment within the School.
In the teams category, Outstanding Contribution to EDI at the University was awarded to the team who developed the Inclusive Curriculum Tool, which includes Prof. Gita Sedghi, from the Department of Chemistry, and members of the Centre for Innovation in Education. Gita serves as the Director of EDI in the School of Physical Sciences and co-chairs the School EDI Committee together with the Dean. The Inclusive Curriculum Tool assesses the inclusiveness of modules and programmes, supporting individuals to understand and deliver an inclusive curriculum. Piloted with the English Language Centre’s pre-sessional English course, it supported data collection and analysis at the course/programme level to improve the student experience and support increasing access and opportunities for underrepresented students.
The members of the EDI Committee at the School of Physical Sciences and the EDI Champions groups in Chemistry, Mathematical Sciences and Physics have led different initiatives to improve EDI across the School, including the organisation of:
- Conference for Undergraduate Women and Non-Binary Physicists 2023
- AIMS-UoL Joint Postgraduate Conference 2023
- Maths EDI Poster Competition 2023
- International Women in Mathematics Day 2023
- International Day of Women & Girls in Science 2023
The School of Physical Sciences has proactively engaged in student recruitment, aimed at collaborating on projects focused on researching, planning, designing and implementing EDI initiatives to foster an inclusive and equitable environment for all. Recently, for the third consecutive year, undergraduate students from the Departments of Chemistry, Mathematical Sciences and Physics undertook a paid EDI Internship where they looked at ways to make EDI information more accessible to students, and how to embed EDI in the curriculum.
If you are a student or staff member and would like to help making the University a better place for everyone, you are very welcome to join the EDI Champions group in your Department, please contact Marco.Giardiello@liverpool.ac.uk or John.Ward@liverpool.ac.uk (Chemistry), edimaths@liverpool.ac.uk (Mathematical Sciences), and N.McCauley@liverpool.ac.uk or B.R.Heazlewood@liverpool.ac.uk (Physics). Undergraduate students are eligible to receive a Higher Education Achievement Report (HEAR) for their participation in the EDI Champions committee.
You can contact the School EDI Committee at spsde@liverpool.ac.uk.