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Leeds Beckett VC takes up post
Professor Slee succeeds Professor Susan Price, who retires after five and a half years at the helm. Professor Slee joins from the University of Huddersfield, where he was Deputy Vice Chancellor.
Speaking about his appointment Professor Slee said: “I am proud to be joining a University which makes such a powerful and positive contribution to the social, economic and cultural wellbeing of the communities it serves. The higher education sector is ever changing but is a sector which has immense power and value because of its ability to transform lives. My focus for the first few months will be on developing a new strategic plan for our university so that we can build on the progress of the last five years. I’m really looking forward to having conversations with students, staff, alumni, partners and friends of our University.”
During her tenure Professor Price led a major repositioning of Leeds Beckett University and change of name. She has increased student satisfaction scores by more than 10% across the five years; taken the University from financial deficit to a multi-million-pound surplus; and led the achievement of the Customer Service Excellence and Investors in People accreditations, making Leeds Beckett the only university in the UK to hold both accolades.
As Deputy Vice Chancellor at Huddersfield, Professor Slee was responsible for strategic planning and delivery, finance and resources, marketing, PR, and development and has helped drive major improvements to student satisfaction, research outcomes, and the University’s league table position.
Professor Slee was educated at the University of Reading, gained his PhD in Modern History from the University of Cambridge and was a postdoctoral fellow at Manchester and Durham. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and is widely published in modern history and higher education strategy and management. He is a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and an award-winning teacher and trainer.
Professor Slee has held a number of senior roles in higher education management at Northumbria, Durham and Aston universities and at the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) where he was Head of Education Policy. He took up his current role at the University of Huddersfield in 2010.
Speaking of the appointment, Chair of the Board of Governors at Leeds Beckett University, David Lowen, said: “We are delighted to welcome Professor Slee to our University. He has a wealth of experience in the sector and an in-depth knowledge of the local and regional environment within which our University operates. He also has an excellent track record of senior leadership across similar institutions notable for achieving success and transformational change; his leadership and vision will be critical in developing our next strategic plan.”