Principal’s Introduction
Snow
White
A team of first and second year
Costume Design and Construction
students created these stunning
outfits for the pantomime, Snow
White, which was performed at The
Byre Theatre, St Andrews. This was
the first professional show which
this student team had worked on.
They were responsible for the
design, production and delivery of
each costume.
I am delighted to welcome you to another edition of QMYOU. However,
more importantly, we want to welcome you to QMU’s campus. We’re
having an alumni reunion – Connect 2013 – and we would be delighted if
you could join us on the day to re-connect with old friends and make new
ones. We’ll also be offering brunch, cheese and wine tutor-led sessions
and a chef demonstration from Neil Forbes, as well as the opportunity to
hear about some amazing research projects taking place at QMU. You can
read more about the reunion on page 24 and I hope that this information
will make you want to mark Saturday 8th June in your diary straightaway.
One really inspirational aspect of our research featured in this magazine
is our pioneering work in speech technology and therapy which is helping
more children with Down’s syndrome improve their speech communication.
Eleven-year-old schoolgirl Grace just loved showcasing the EPG speech
technology for BBC Reporting Scotland in February. And our work in
the area of health and nutrition captured people’s attention when we
publicised our research findings into the properties of Portobello honey.
Find out more from our feature article on page 10 and 11. You will see
from articles on our commercial and hospitality work that we are totally
committed to supporting Scotland’s food and drink industry as well as
its hospitality and tourism industry. In particular, we are proud to share
news of the incredible impact that our Hospitality and Tourism Academy
is having on the skills development of young people. You can also read
about our research into the properties of rapeseed oil and how this work
has helped an East Lothian farmer.
It is always thrilling to hear about the successes of QMU alumni and it’s
exciting to see our performing arts graduates on TV. We have been keeping
track of Angel Coulby’s career progression over the last ten years and it
has been wonderful to watch her in the BBC fantasy series ‘Merlin’ and,
more recently, enjoy her stunning vocal performance in ‘Dancing on the
Edge’. It’s also heartening to hear about James Rottger’s quick success
in his acting career since graduating
only a year ago, as featured in this
magazine, and April Cumming, who
graduated in 2011 and is now working
at the Scottish Parliament. Some of
our students have significant barriers
to overcome to reach their goals and
on page 22 you can read about how
QMU’s specialist support helped
Terrie Howie cope with dyslexia
and ultimately develop a successful
career as a story teller.
Enjoy reading QMYOU and, for
those of you who are QMU alumni,
we hope we can reconnect with you
at our reunion on the 8th June 2013.
Professor Petra Wend, PhD, FRSA
Principal & Vice-Chancellor
Queen Margaret University,
Edinburgh
2
QMYOU / Principal’s Introduction