The Dean of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Professor Michael Butler, has been appointed as the new Sponsor for Southampton’s Technician Commitment.
Michael succeeds Professor Rachel Mills, previously Dean of Environmental and Life Sciences, who left the University in July.
With over 40 per cent of all technical staff in the Faculty of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Michael was a natural choice for the role. Michael also has a good understanding of the challenges and opportunities faced by our technicians and is keen to support positive change in the areas of technician visibility, recognition, career development and sustainability. He also has a long track record of interest in developing the careers of technicians.
Michael will lead the Technician Commitment Implementation Group (TCIG) as they complete their first self-assessment, which will evaluate our progress against the two-year action plan agreed by UEB in 2019. The group also has responsibility for developing a further three-year action plan, up to 2024. There will be opportunities for technical staff to engage with the evaluation and input into the development of forthcoming activities in the coming months. The TCIG will submit the self-assessment and new action plan for consideration by the Science Council in December 2021.
One of the major achievements of the Technician Commitment, whilst led by Professor Rachel Mills, was to agree Southampton would become a Partner Affiliate of the National Technician Development Centre (NTDC). Nicola Pratt, Senior Marine Biology Technician, Ocean and Earth Science and member of the TCIG commented:
“I am excited to hear about becoming a Partner Affiliate of the NTDC. Access to their resources, such as the NTDC Toolkit, will help our Technician Commitment Implementation Group learn more about our technical community and how best to support it, and will assist us in fulfilling the actions set out in our Technician Commitment action plan.”
The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Mark E. Smith, would like to extend his sincere gratitude to Professor Rachel Mills, for leading the TC Implementation Group and successfully progressing the action plan despite the COVID-19 challenges of the previous year. This included getting a technician appointed to the Senate, the results of which will be announced shortly.
Professor Butler comments:
“I’m grateful to Rachel for the work so far and I recognise our technical staff have played a vital and significant role in supporting our students and ensuring our campus facilities are safe and available for use when appropriate, during a particularly challenging year. I am delighted we have become a Partner Affiliate of the NTDC and we will be working closely with them to provide more resources for staff and to gain a better understanding of the extensive knowledge and skills we have within our technical workforce.”
Further information:
For resources to support technical staff, please visit the Technician’s Hub.
The National Technician Development Centre.
