Graduation guests chair ceremonies
Thu, 25 Jul 2013 11:02:00 BST
Bishop of Wakefield The Rt Revd Stephen Platten, poet Lemn Sissay and former umpire Dickie Bird take centre stage
THE University invited three honorary award recipients to act as chairpersons for some of the July Awards Ceremonies.
The three, poet Lemn Sissay, former umpire Harold ‘Dickie’ Bird and the Bishop of Wakefield, The Rt Revd Stephen Platten (pictured), were welcomed to the second week of the ceremonies.
The Rt Revd Stephen Platten chaired the ceremony for some of the graduates from the School of Art, Design and Architecture.
Bishop Stephen came to the Anglican Diocese of Wakefield as the 12th Bishop of Wakefield in 2003and he has also been a member of the University’s governing council. The University works closely with the Diocese for the annual Harold Wilson Lecture, which is held jointly at the University and has welcomed a number of eminent political speakers.
Bishop Stephen received an honorary doctorate from the University in July 2012.
Famous cricket umpire Harold ‘Dickie’ Bird (pictured (left) with honorary award recipient Michael Woodhead) collected his honorary doctorate from the University alongside television chat show host and broadcaster Sir Michael Parkinson in 2008.
Dickie Bird played cricket for Yorkshire and Leicestershire before eventually becoming one of the sports most famous umpires. He has officiated at the highest level for county games, test matches and world cup cricket, presided in four world cups as well as being a match official for 68 test matches and 92 one-day international games and for all the major domestic trophies. Dickie has been a regular visitor at the University at a number of events. Most recently, the University hosted a luncheon to celebrate his 80th birthday on the campus.
Dickie attended the graduation ceremony for the Business School, where former member of the University’s governing council, businessman Michael Woodhead, received his honorary award.
Lemn Sissay (pictured (centre) with Huddersfield professors Adele Jones and John Playle) chaired two ceremonies for students graduating from the School of Human and Health Sciences – he received an honorary doctorate from the University in 2009.
Lemn is one of the UK’s leading poets and playwrights and was awarded the MBE for services to literature, he is the associate artist at the Southbank Centre and he was the first of five poets commissioned for last year’s London Olympics. As well as writing plays for stage and BBC radio, he is a regular columnist for The Guardian newspaper and he is also the author of five collections of poetry. On a recent visit to the University, the renowned writer gave his permission for his Landmark Poem Let There Be Peace to be installed on the wall of the University’s new £22 million Learning and Leisure Centre.
In 2010, the University of Huddersfield created a PhD scholarship which was designed to provide an opportunity for a care leaver to progress beyond undergraduate study based on the recognition that while they might enter the university system, getting further was more difficult. The scholarship was named The Lemn Sissay PhD Scholarship with the kind permission of the poet and it is the only scholarship in the country designed specifically to offer a care leaver the opportunity to be supported by a university whilst they undertake a PhD.
