The Queen's College Record 2020

FROM THE PROVOST
From the Provost
I am writing this article in September 2020 knowing
that, by the time you will be reading it, the College will
have completed a Michaelmas term like no other. As
I write, staff and Fellows are beginning to reopen the
College buildings after their six-month closure due to
the pandemic. We are all greatly looking forward to
welcoming students back and to doing everything we
can to make their experiences rich and to keep them
and the rest of our community safe.
Dr Claire Craig CBE My first year at Queen’s began, like that of other
freshers, with the excitement of meeting all the
remarkable people connected with the College:
students, Old Members, staff and Fellows. Michaelmas term included learning
how to handle the Loving Cup and welcoming the Visitor, the outgoing Archbishop
of York, John Sentamu, to celebrate the 300 th anniversary of the Chapel. The
President of the Seychelles visited, as a result of Lindsay Turnbull’s work on
the Aldabra coral reef, researching ecosystem impacts and working with DPhil
student April Burt who co-led a project to remove 25 tonnes of plastic waste.
Then in March the pandemic struck. The College had one of the early positive cases
of COVID-19. We completed Hilary term due to the incredible fortitude, good sense
and hard work of staff and students alike. Throughout the Easter Vacation, Fellows
worked hard to move all teaching and exams online. So, with the College buildings
shut and most support staff on furlough, we completed Trinity term virtually. We are
all particularly proud of our Finalists: the College had more Firsts than in any previous
year and, as importantly, all our students worked hard to complete their studies in
extremely difficult circumstances.
I am grateful to my predecessor Paul Madden for leaving the College as a strong
place, capable of dealing well with the emergencies and difficulties that beset it this
year. It is also due to him and others of even earlier generations, including those who
have supported the College through donations, that Queen’s remains better placed
than many places of higher education to weather the economic hardships we all face.
The financial impacts of the pandemic so far have included the inevitable devaluation
of the endowment, the loss of conference income and reduced rents from commercial
properties. Because of the College’s underlying financial strength we have, however,
so far been able to continue to provide hardship funds for students and to maintain
the full salaries of staff when they were on furlough.
6 The Queen’s College | College Record 2020