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Access to Excellence: Buildings Opening

Dates

October 7

Times

From 4.00pm

Location

Holywell Music Room and Wadham College Back Quad

Summary

The pandemic caused a delay in thanking our donors to the new Back Quad buildings, and we are therefore delighted to announce that the Chancellor of the University and UK donors are invited to Wadham to celebrate the opening of the Dr Lee Shau Kee Building, the William Doo Undergraduate Centre and the Locke Access Centre. As most of our overseas donors are unable to join us currently, we expect to organise additional celebrations later this year and early in 2023.

The opening will be preceded by an Access to Excellence Summit in the Holywell Music Room, inviting school partners and national policy leaders to reflect on the impact of this pioneering programme and the direction for the future.

Programme

By invitation only

4.00pm Access to Excellence Summit

We are delighted to welcome school partners and policy experts to explore and celebrate the impact of the College’s Access to Excellence programme, as we look to the future.

The Warden, Robert Hannigan, will host a panel of speakers:

  • Dr Louise Ashley, Senior Lecturer at Queen Mary University, London will share the headlines from a decade of research on diversity and inclusion in higher education and in the City.
  • Nik Miller, Chief Executive, The Bridge Group will locate the College’s work in the wider policy landscape. They will be joined by:
    • Karishma Khosla (Law, 2019), Wadham SU Access Officer;
    • Faheem Khan, Head Teacher (Woodbridge School in Wadham’s link area);
    • Margaret Leach, Diversity and Global Recruitment Advisor (Linklaters); and
    • Dr Hugh Munro (Tutor for Access)

5.30pm Official opening of the Back Quad Buildings

The opening ceremony will be presided over by:

  • The Chancellor, The Rt Hon the Lord Patten of Barnes CH
  • Foundation Fellow, Alasdair Locke (Modern History and Economics, 1971)
  • Amanda Levete CBE, Founder and Principal, AL_A
  • Dr Neal Shasore (History of Art, 2007) CEO, London School of Architecture
  • Honorary Fellow, Ken Macdonald KC

Representatives from AL_A will be on hand to talk about the new buildings, with student volunteers available for tours.

7.00pm Celebration dinner in Hall

About

Wadham College’s historic site has been enhanced by the addition of its elegant new buildings that will inspire students from all backgrounds to apply to Oxford. The ‘Back Quad’ project is part of our Access to Excellence programme, which supports young people from the moment they consider university, through their time at Oxford and on into their careers.

The Locke Access Centre in the Dr Lee Shau Kee Building, Oxford's first-ever purpose-built Access Centre, is the hub for Wadham's extensive school outreach work. The William Doo Undergraduate Centre provides our students with high-quality facilities for social and academic interaction that will enhance their experience at Oxford.