The return of Lumiere light festival, discovering Durham’s earliest known resident and £2m-worth of scholarships for North East students: it’s been an extraordinary academic year for Durham University. In the first in a two-part series, we look back on some highlights from 2019/20
LAST September, the university began its year by opening its £40m Teaching and Learning Centre – which includes lecture theatres, seminar rooms, individual and group study space and a café. The centre also features an Education Laboratory, where experts can trial the latest teaching and learning techniques.
Durham University’s £40m Teaching and Learning Centre, which opened in September 2019
Meanwhile, Durham physicists helped figure out why new cadmium telluride solar panels are more efficient at producing electricity than silicon panels – a breakthrough that could lead to cheaper and more efficient solar power.
In October, the curtain was raised on the university’s new-look Assembly Rooms Theatre, refurbished at a cost of £2.5m. Though currently closed due to Covid-19, theatre bosses are looking forward to reopening the venue to students and the public when it is safe to do so.
Durham University’s Assembly Rooms Theatre reopened in October 2019 following a £2.5m refurbishment
The university also celebrated Black History Month in October, with a series of talks and exhibitions.
November saw the return of the Lumiere light festival for a special tenth anniversary edition, with the University as a major partner and sponsor. Also, Lady Brenda Hale, a former President of the Supreme Court, launched the University’s first Global Lecture Series, aimed at stimulating debate and discussion on issues of global importance.
In December came the announcement of groundbreaking research that suggested the more television we watch, the more we prefer thinner female bodies. A timely publication, ahead of the Christmas period!
Durham University’s Assembly Rooms Theatre reopened in October 2019 following a £2.5m refurbishment
The New Year brought a visit from the then-Universities Minister Chris Skidmore MP, who praised Durham’s inspiring research and innovation, learned about its role in developing autonomous vehicles and tried out some of the innovative educational technology on offer to its lecturers and students.
Chris Skidmore, left, then Universities Minister, visited Durham University in January 2020 and tried out some of the innovative educational technology
In February, the university announced the discovery of Durham City’s earliest known resident, its archaeologists having dated bones found during an excavation off Claypath to 90BC-60AD – 1,000 years before Durham’s world-famous Cathedral was built.
One of the bones found by Durham University archaeologists during an excavation off Claypath, Durham City, where they unearthed Durham City’s earliest known resident
There was also the announcement of the Durham Inspired – North East Scholarships programme – a £2m endowment to support young people from the region study at Durham, regardless of their background. The fund was set up as part of a £7.5m donation, the largest in the university’s 188-year history.
Coming soon: how the university responded to the Covid-19 pandemic, shocking research reveals the extent of plastic pollution in the oceans and Durham University receives a royal honour.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here