Dame Nancy Rothwell | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Rothwell inacademic dress for agraduation ceremony for theDepartment of Mathematics at the University of Manchester in 2015 | |
| President and Vice Chancellor of theUniversity of Manchester | |
| In office 21 June 2010 – 31 July 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Alan Gilbert |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Nancy Jane Rothwell (1955-10-02)2 October 1955 (age 70) Tarleton, Lancashire, England, UK |
| Education | Penwortham Girls' Grammar School |
| Alma mater | University of London (BSc, PhD, DSc)[1] |
| Salary | £260,000 (2021–22)[2] |
| Awards | |
| Website | manchester |
| Scientific career | |
| Known for | President andVice Chancellor of theUniversity of Manchester Nancy Rothwell Building |
| Fields | |
| Institutions | |
| Thesis | Physiological mechanisms involved in the regulation of energy balance (1979) |
| Doctoral advisor | Mike J. Stock[4][3] |
Dame Nancy Jane RothwellDBE DL FRS FMedSci FRSB FBPhS MAE[1][7] (born 2 October 1955[8]) is a Britishphysiologist.[9] She served as president and vice-chancellor of theUniversity of Manchester from 2010 to 2024,[10][11][12] having deputised in both roles until January 2010.
Rothwell served asnon-executive director of pharmaceuticals companyAstraZeneca from 2006 to 2015.[13] She also served as co-chair of theCouncil for Science and Technology, and past president of theRoyal Society of Biology.[14][15][16]
She served asDeputy Lieutenant ofGreater Manchester[17][18] and served as chair of theRussell Group from 2020 to 2023, which represents 24 of the research intensive universities in the UK.[19] In March 2021, students at the University of Manchester passed avote of no confidence in Rothwell due to her response to theCOVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom.[citation needed]
Rothwell was born inTarleton, a village nearPreston, Lancashire. She was educated atPenwortham Girls' Grammar School and then went to college where she tookA-levels in mathematics, physics, chemistry and art, having dropped biology aged 14.[9][3] She enrolled at theUniversity of London and obtained a first-class degree inphysiology (1976) and aDoctor of Philosophy degree (1979) fromQueen Elizabeth College (now part ofKing's College, London).[20] Rothwell was awarded aDoctor of Science (DSc) degree in 1987 byKing's College London.[21]
Rothwell's early research[4][22][23] identified mechanisms of energy balance regulation,obesity andcachexia.[24] In 1984 she was awarded aRoyal Society University Research Fellowship[citation needed] and numerous grants by theBiotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).[25] She was appointed to a chair in physiology in 1994, then aMedical Research Council (MRC) research chair in 1998. Her current research focusses on the role of inflammation in brain disease and has identified the role of thecytokineinterleukin-1 (IL-1)[26] in diverse forms of brain injury.[27][28] Her studies have begun to elucidate the mechanisms regulating IL-1 release and its action and her group have conducted the first early clinical trial of an IL-1 inhibitor in strokes. She served as president of theBritish Neuroscience Association and a council member ofMedical Research Council (MRC).[when?]
From October 2004, Rothwell served as vice-president for research of the university.[29][30] In 2010 she was overseeing a research group of about 20 scientists, with significant external funding and was announced to succeedAlan Gilbert as president and vice-chancellor of theUniversity of Manchester on 1 July 2010. She is a trustee ofCancer Research UK, the Campaign for Medical Progress, a council member ofBBSRC, chair of theResearch Defence Society and theWellcome Trust's Public Engagement Strategy Committee and a non-executive director ofAstraZeneca. In 1998 she delivered theRoyal Institution Christmas Lecture onThe Secrets of Life, televised by theBBC.[31]
In January 2010, Rothwell was appointed deputy president and deputy vice-chancellor. Until Alan Gilbert retired she was acting president due to his sick leave. On 21 June 2010, she was appointed president and vice-chancellor of the University of Manchester. She assumed her post on 1 July 2010, succeeding Gilbert, who had retired after nearly six years. She became the first woman to lead the University of Manchester or either of its two predecessor institutions.[32] Commenting on her appointment, she said: "I am honoured and delighted to be invited to lead the University at this exciting time. I am determined to maintain the strategic focus that we have developed over the past six years and to work closely with colleagues to identify new priorities and opportunities for the University in the very challenging external environment that we will face over the next few years."[citation needed]
The chairman of the appointment panel andchairman-elect of the university's board of governors, Anil Ruia, said: "Dame Nancy will bring her own distinctive strengths, perspective and style to the role of President and Vice-Chancellor which will enable the University to build upon the remarkable progress that we have made under Professor Alan Gilbert's leadership."[citation needed] In 2009, Rothwell served as the first president of theSociety of Biology.[citation needed]
In May 2020, Rothwell was appointed as the chair of theRussell Group, starting September 2020.[19] The group represents 24 of the leading universities in the UK.
In 2023 it was announced that Rothwell would stand down as President and Vice-chancellor of the University in 2024.[33]
In April 2020, Rothwell wrote to University of Manchester staff warning that the loss of revenue caused by theCOVID-19 pandemic would result in pay cuts and possible job losses.[34][35] In September 2020 she warned that students who failed to followsocial distancing rules could be excluded from the university campus.[36]
In the autumn 2020 semester the university's handling of the pandemic and thesecond national lockdown led to criticism and protests.[37][38] In September 2020, university officials said they had taken precautions including staggered arrivals, social distancing and a reduced lecture timetable, though university staff alleged they were being pressured into conducting face-to-face teaching.[37] In October 2020 theFallowfield area, home to the university'sFallowfield Campus, saw more COVID-19 cases than any other part of the UK.[37] Rothwell launched an investigation after fences were erected around campus residences in November 2020 and apologised for the university's "very poor communication" with students.[39][40] Days later students began arent strike andoccupied a campus building and demanded Rothwell meet with them to discuss a proposed rent discount.[41][42] Later in November, Rothwell acknowledged the university had made "mistakes" in its approach to the pandemic and said that, while many students supported the measures, others felt "let down".[37] The inquiry issued a report in December 2020, which identified failures ofproject management on the university's part and a failure to engage with students; Rothwell accepted the inquiry's findings and pledged to implement its recommendations.[43]
Also in November 2020, anti-racist campaigners called on Rothwell to resign following an incident in which a black student was detained and allegedlyracially profiled by university security guards.[38] AUniversities and Colleges Union official said Rothwell should "offer a full apology" to the student "and stop trying to police the university's student population".[37] In an interview onNewsnight, Rothwell said that she had contacted the student to apologise.[44][45] At the time of the interview she had not, in fact, contacted the student, and she later apologised for claiming she had done so.[46][47]
In February 2021, theUniversity of Manchester Students' Union (UMSU) called avote of no confidence in Rothwell, the first time in the university's history such a motion has been triggered.[48][49][50] The students obtained the requisite 400 signatures to launch the referendum in hours.[49] The campaign also called for the vice-chancellor to be elected by staff and students.[49] In March 2021 the vote of no confidence was passed with the support of 89 percent of voters. The vote, however, wasnon-binding and a spokesperson for the university said it had "full confidence" in Rothwell.[51][52]
Rothwell retired from her position as vice chancellor in July 2024 and was succeeded byDuncan Ivison.[12][33]
In February 2013, Rothwell was assessed as the 15th most powerful woman in the United Kingdom byWoman's Hour onBBC Radio 4.[53][54] In May 2013 she was the subject of BBC Radio 4'sThe Life Scientific and was interviewed about her life and work byJim Al-Khalili.[3] Rothwell was appointedDame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the2005 Birthday Honours,[55]Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 2004,[56]Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology (FRSB)[when?] andFellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences (FMedSci).[when?][1] In 2003 she was awarded the Pfizer award by the Royal Society.[57][58] Her nomination as aFellow of theRoyal Society (FRS) reads:[59]
Nancy Rothwell has made major discoveries in the areas of energy balance, host defence responses, and neurodegeneration, several of which are now being translated into clinical benefit. Early work emphasised the importance of thermogenesis in the regulation of energy balance and theaetiology of obesity, and the role of b2adrenoreceptor activation in musclehypertrophy. More recently she has carried out pioneering studies of the role ofcytokines and other components of the immune system within the central nervous system. She demonstrated the key role of specific cytokines and the hormoneleptin in the integration and regulation by the brain of host defence responses to infection and injury. This led to important discoveries concerning the role of cytokines inneurodegeneration. She was the first to show that the cytokineIL-1 mediatesischaemicbrain damage, challenging the view that immune or inflammatory processes are unimportant in the brain. She patented the use of IL-1 inhibitors to prevent acute neurodegeneration and is leading the first clinical trial of such an inhibitor in stroke. Her demonstration thatcaspases are involved directly in ischaemic brain damagein vivo stimulated the development of caspase inhibitors for possible clinical application. Nancy Rothwell has also worked energetically to advancephysiology andneuroscience, to furtherpublic awareness of science, and toencourage women to pursue careers in science.
She is an honorary member of theBritish Society for Immunology[60] and honorary fellow ofSomerville College, Oxford[61] as well as honorary member of theManchester Literary and Philosophical Society.[62] She has been a member ofThe Physiological Society since 1982 and was awarded thePhysiological Society Annual Review Prize Lecture in 1998.
Rothwell was awarded anhonoraryDoctor of Law degree from theUniversity of Bath in 2009.[21][63] She was awarded an honoraryDoctorate in Education (DEd) byManchester Metropolitan University (MMU) in 2024.[64]
As part of thebicentennial anniversary of the University of Manchester (1824-2024) a series of portraits of Rothwell byCarla van de Puttelaar were commissioned with one exhibited atThe Whitworth art gallery.[32][65] TheManchester Engineering Campus Development (MECD) and Engineering Building were renamed theNancy Rothwell Building in 2024 to mark herretirement.[66]
Bury failure and celebrate success
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| Academic offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Vice Chancellor andPresident of theUniversity of Manchester 2010–present | Incumbent |
| Preceded by - | President of theRoyal Society of Biology 2009–2014 | Succeeded by |
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