Reflections on the Deanship of Anne Davies
Jonathan Herring reflects on the hard work and dedication of the first female Dean of the Faculty of Law, Anne Davies, who was Dean of the Law Faculty from 2015 to 2020. She recently handed over to Mindy Chen-Wishart for the start of the Academic Year in 2020. Its impossible to set out all she has done during her time as Dean, but we hope that this will give a flavour.
Anne demonstrating the Balance for Better pose - IWD 2019
I doubt, however, Anne would wish to be remembered as “the COVID Dean” and for good reason. There have been many exciting events and developments, which have transformed the intellectual life of the Faculty. In 2018 Kofi Anan opening the Bonovaro Institute of Human Rights which already has an international reputation. In 2019 The Centre for Health, Law and Emerging Technologies joined the Faculty, with their cutting edge research on medical innovation. The hugely successful MSc in taxation was launched and has taken off. The excitement of such developments can easily lead one to overlook the enormous amount of hard work on administrative, financial and practical issues that go on behind the scenes. Anne undertook this quietly and efficiently, with the support of the administrative staff, who she has always valued, as much as they have valued her.
Major steps have been made in the area of equality and diversity in the faculty. While Anne has always been the first to say that that there is still much to be done, under Anne’s passionate leadership on this issue, we have witnessed the creation of Equality and Diversity Committee, the Associate Dean for Equality and Diversity, the Race Equality Officer, and Athena Swan Co-ordinator. Anne has spearheaded a host of diversity events, 100 years of Women in Law in Oxford in 2019; the institution of the Annual Diversity Lecture; and a conference on intersectionality. The Faculty was awarded the Athena Swan Bronze award in 2016, recognising our commitment to promote gender equality among students and staff. After enormous hard work, the faculty has started offering scholarships aimed at improving our BAME intake. The Faculty has been taking a lead on many of these issues within the University. But, perhaps it was in her own character and scholarship; having a female Dean; that she gave a much needed impetus to equality work within the faculty.
In the early years of her Deanship the major renovations to the faculty building were taken. By far the most significant of these was the arrival of the Missing Bean Café!! More seriously, it opened up the building and creating new spaces of teaching; for the move of the Criminology Institute into the heart of the faculty; and new space for the Institute for European and Comparative Law. Later major work was required to make the building more accessible.
An important part of her work as Dean, and this has always been part of the faculty’s vision for post , has been Anne’s own academic research. Despite the duties of Dean she has produced an extremely impressive output by anyone’s standards.
There is so much that I have missed out, but the above will give a flavour of the dynamic, international, and thriving law faculty that Anne has shepherded over the past five years. But, some of the most important work Anne has done is not public. She has been a source of care and support for countless faculty members, staff and students who have sought her out over the years. Her gentle goodness has shone through her Deanship, providing a striking example of leadership that has rigour of intellect and kindness of heart.
by Jonathan Herring