Simon Lee (academic)
Encyclopedia
Professor Simon Francis Lee (born 29 March 1957, Gillingham, Kent
) was the Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University
, Leeds
, West Yorkshire
, England from 2003 to 2009. His resignation was announced on 14 January 2009., following allegations of bullying. This is strongly disputed, with the Times Higher Education Supplement stating that "Simon Lee, vice-chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University, departed after falling out with Ninian Watt, chairman of the council, over whether or not to raise tuition fees." Lee is currently, with Jill Adam, developing a business called Level Partnerships to safeguard the legacy and promote the concept of partnerships.
Best Distinction in Law Moderations, in 1978 the Winter Williams Essay Prize and in 1979 took first class honours. He then attended Yale Law School studying for the LLM as a Harkness Fellow.
Harkness Fellowships were funded by the Harkness family foundation, the Commonwealth Fund of New York, and were set up by Edward Harkness
- a major benefactor on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1925 the Fund's Board issued the following Statement;
"...International understanding can be forwarded in no more practicable way than through the provision of international opportunities for education and travel to young men and women of character and ability. Such men and women, potentially leaders in their own country, becoming familiar through residence and education with the institutions, customs and ways of thinking of the people of another country, cannot but be a force for mutual understanding and good feeling. Secondly, the importance of unity of thought and purpose on the part of the two great English speaking nations of the world lends a special value to reciprocal educational opportunities in the two countries..."
Dean Godson, in Himself Alone, his 2004 (HarperCollins) biography of David Trimble
(who went on to become First Minister of Northern Ireland and to win the Nobel Peace Prize), wrote that Lee's appointment in the 1988 at the age of 31 to the chair of jurisprudence at Queen's University Belfast, ahead of the insider candidate David Trimble, was because he was a 'superstar' academic 'with good media credentials' (p. 93). He then became a regular commentator on BBC television and radio in Northern Ireland and in the press.
Whilst at Queen's he co-founded, with Robin Wilson, Initiative ‘92, "A citizens’ inquiry" through which opinions were sought across the Northern Ireland community and political parties on ways forward and was chaired by Professor Torkel Opsahl from Norway. This encouraged community groups and individuals to think and discuss the options for the future in a way that had been unimaginable before. Consequently the wider community "began to have greater confidence in putting forward its views and engaging with the political process and politicians from whom it had felt alienated for so long". "It was increasingly clear that he combined a passion for his faith with a deep commitment to education, ecumenism, peace, and partnership" Virginia Theological Seminary
2011, www.VTS.edu 2011>.
From 1995 to 2003 Lee was Chief Executive and Rector of Liverpool Hope University
. Within weeks of Professor Simon Lee being appointed Rector in 1995, the LIHE community and the Governing Council had agreed a new name, Hope, and a new mission statement – “Educating the whole person in mind, body and spirit” <Liverpool Hope University
www.hope.ac.uk/alumni/welcome/history-of-liverpool-hope> Hope became the first college in the UK to secure degree-awarding powers under the government’s new system. Lee's leadership of this ecumenical church college is discussed in a book of essays, The Foundation of Hope, edited by R John Elford and published by Liverpool University Press in 2003. At Liverpool Hope, he served under the late Lord Bishop David Sheppard, who described him as a person of “flair and imagination”. At this time, led by Lee, Hope was at the forefront of urban renewal (in particular the Arts Center in Everton, Liverpool) and the arts (he chaired the Everyman and Playhouse Theatres). Hope won the Freedom of the City of Liverpool and a Queen's Anniversary Prize
for the work of Hope One World with Tibetan refugee children in Ladakh. "And all of these connections were born out of his sense of call to service as a Christian and a Roman Catholic. This faith disposition has also characterized his scholarship. He is the author of some eight books, one of which, Believing Bishops, was credited as the text that anticipated the rising star of Archbishop George Carey, before he was made Archbishop. Lee has written extensively on medical ethics; his book, Uneasy Ethics, was highly acclaimed for the imaginative way in which the complex fields of ethics and law are woven together. Today he is continuing to create partnership opportunities for organizations. He is the chair of a new charity inaugurated by Pope Benedict XVI
called the John Paul II Foundation For Sport. From Burnley Football Club to the University of Oxford
, he is linking sport with education. The result of all these partnerships is to build stronger links between educational institutions, businesses, and the community"..
, sometimes known as Carnegie
(after the teacher training college for physical education of that name, now incorporated into Leeds Met). He announced in his 2003 inaugural lecture that the university would develop a Rose Bowl behind the Civic Hall which duly happened (it won the Design & Innovation category at the RICS Pro-Yorkshire Awards 2010 and "best new venue to the property industry") together with other award-winning estate developments he initiated. The partnership with Leeds Rugby resulted in the rugby and cricket stadium becoming an extension of the Headingley campus, with its Carnegie Stand for rugby giving the University's Carnegie campus a permanent base at the Stadium. The Carnegie Stand incorporates 12 classrooms and tripled the number of disabled spaces formerly available at Headingley Carnegie Stadium. Of the Carnegie Pavilion and Media Centre for cricket at the stadium, designed by Will Alsop, Leeds Metropolitan's director of estates Sue Holmes said:
"The new Carnegie Pavilion is the first of its kind - a real dual-use building giving university students and sporting professionals access to state of the art shared space. We believe it will be another iconic building for Leeds and Yorkshire." The Carnegie Pavilion replaced the existing YCCC media and player facilities at Headingley Carnegie Stadium and enables the venue to continue to host international fixtures. The £21m Carnegie Pavilion project was supported by Yorkshire Forward, Leeds council, HSBC, The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Sport England.
In the annual Times Higher Awards 2006, the University won the category of Outstanding Contribution by a University to the Local Community, for its work with Bradford City Football Club and the local Muslim community in Manningham, and silver for the overall University of the Year. In 2007, the University won national awards for Arts & Business, for its partnership with Northern Ballet, and for being the most environmentally friendly university in the country, in the inaugural league table compiled by the green action group, People & Planet
. In 2008, the university won the bidding process for The UK Centre of Coaching Excellence through to the 2016 Olympics and the national award for the best coaching environment of any organization in the country. In 2009, the University came 3rd in the BUCS league table for all UK university sport, having risen from 27th during his leadership.
.
Lee replaced the university's previous owl logo with a Yorkshire rose.
During Vice-Chancellor Lee's time at Leeds Met a dispute between a "whistle-blower" and the previous administration at the university was pursued by Fabian Hamilton MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom A case was made resulting in a statement delivered to Parliament on the 21st July 2004 by Leeds MP Fabian Hamilton on the "disturbing" practices which were endured by staff and students who had cause to resort to the internal complaints procedure. This has sometimes been misleadingly linked to Simon Lee.
It is clear from the student newspaper and the Times Higher's chronology that he fell out with the chair of governors. Lee resigned in January 2009 and was placed on 'gardening leave' for the duration of his contract which ran until September 2009. In his inaugural lecture at Leeds Met, entitled Beyond Boundaries, he quoted a 19th-century English college principal as saying that students should be able to drink from a 'running stream' of insights, a curriculum informed by research, rather than from a 'stagnant pool' and announced a fcous on sporting and cultural partnerships, a policy adopted by the Board of Governors and put into award-winning effect. ref name="Newman">
The chairman of the governors acknowledged that Lee had transformed the university and left it "financially stable and sustainable".
However, Lee's successor as chief executive, Dr Geoff Hitchins, has said that Lee's "low-charge high-impact" policy on student fees did not make sense and had cost the university £10 million. He also believed that the decision to charge such low fees had disadvantaged its students because of the resulting large class sizes.
Times Higher Education reported that Ninian Watt, chair of the governors, had offered Lee a choice between suspension and resignation.
Lee was reported as saying that "the real reason for the dispute was his ongoing argument with Mr Watt over whether Leeds Met should raise tuition fees". It was reported by the BBC that Lee resigned on full pay "pending an investigation into allegations about his treatment of some members of staff". The independent review reported in September 2009 that staff, including Lee, had bought items on university purchase cards without supplying receipts to justify the expenditure. However, the auditors "found no evidence of wrongdoing by Professor Lee, his wife Patricia or senior managers".
Dr Geoffrey Hitchins, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, held the post of Chief Executive after Prof Lee's departure. In July 2009 Professor Susan Price
was named Lee's successor.
Gillingham, Kent
Gillingham is a town in the unitary authority of Medway in South East England. It is part of the ceremonial county of Kent. The town includes the settlements of Brompton, Hempstead, Rainham, Rainham Mark and Twydall....
) was the Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University
Leeds Metropolitan University
Leeds Metropolitan University is a British University with three campuses. Two are situated in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England while the third is situated in Bhopal, India...
, Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
, West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan county within the Yorkshire and the Humber region of England with a population of 2.2 million. West Yorkshire came into existence as a metropolitan county in 1974 after the passage of the Local Government Act 1972....
, England from 2003 to 2009. His resignation was announced on 14 January 2009., following allegations of bullying. This is strongly disputed, with the Times Higher Education Supplement stating that "Simon Lee, vice-chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University, departed after falling out with Ninian Watt, chairman of the council, over whether or not to raise tuition fees." Lee is currently, with Jill Adam, developing a business called Level Partnerships to safeguard the legacy and promote the concept of partnerships.
Early life
Lee attended school in Gillingham before winning the highly-coveted Brackenbury scholarship to read Jurisprudence at Balliol College, Oxford, where in 1977 he won the Sweet & Maxwell Prize for the University of OxfordUniversity of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
Best Distinction in Law Moderations, in 1978 the Winter Williams Essay Prize and in 1979 took first class honours. He then attended Yale Law School studying for the LLM as a Harkness Fellow.
Harkness Fellowships were funded by the Harkness family foundation, the Commonwealth Fund of New York, and were set up by Edward Harkness
Edward Harkness
Edward Stephen Harkness was an American philanthropist. He was born in Cleveland, Ohio, one of four sons to Stephen V. Harkness, a harness-maker who invested in the forerunner of Standard Oil, John D. Rockefeller's oil company. Harkness inherited a fortune from his father...
- a major benefactor on both sides of the Atlantic. In 1925 the Fund's Board issued the following Statement;
"...International understanding can be forwarded in no more practicable way than through the provision of international opportunities for education and travel to young men and women of character and ability. Such men and women, potentially leaders in their own country, becoming familiar through residence and education with the institutions, customs and ways of thinking of the people of another country, cannot but be a force for mutual understanding and good feeling. Secondly, the importance of unity of thought and purpose on the part of the two great English speaking nations of the world lends a special value to reciprocal educational opportunities in the two countries..."
Career
Having taught law at Trinity College,Oxford University, and then King’s College, London University, in 1989 at the age of only 31 he was appointed Professor of Jurisprudence at Queen’s University, Belfast.Dean Godson, in Himself Alone, his 2004 (HarperCollins) biography of David Trimble
David Trimble
William David Trimble, Baron Trimble, PC , is a politician from Northern Ireland. He served as Leader of the Ulster Unionist Party , was the first First Minister of Northern Ireland , and was a Member of the British Parliament . He is currently a life peer for the Conservative Party...
(who went on to become First Minister of Northern Ireland and to win the Nobel Peace Prize), wrote that Lee's appointment in the 1988 at the age of 31 to the chair of jurisprudence at Queen's University Belfast, ahead of the insider candidate David Trimble, was because he was a 'superstar' academic 'with good media credentials' (p. 93). He then became a regular commentator on BBC television and radio in Northern Ireland and in the press.
Whilst at Queen's he co-founded, with Robin Wilson, Initiative ‘92, "A citizens’ inquiry" through which opinions were sought across the Northern Ireland community and political parties on ways forward and was chaired by Professor Torkel Opsahl from Norway. This encouraged community groups and individuals to think and discuss the options for the future in a way that had been unimaginable before. Consequently the wider community "began to have greater confidence in putting forward its views and engaging with the political process and politicians from whom it had felt alienated for so long"
Virginia Theological Seminary
Virginia Theological Seminary , formally called the Protestant Episcopal Theological Seminary in Virginia, is the largest accredited Episcopal seminary in the United States. Founded in 1818, VTS is situated on an campus in Alexandria, Virginia, just a few miles from downtown Washington, DC. VTS...
2011, www.VTS.edu 2011>.
From 1995 to 2003 Lee was Chief Executive and Rector of Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. Two of its three founding colleges were established in 1844 and 1856, the third opening in the 1960s. It is the only ecumenical university in Europe. Based on two campuses, the main campus is located in Childwall and the second...
. Within weeks of Professor Simon Lee being appointed Rector in 1995, the LIHE community and the Governing Council had agreed a new name, Hope, and a new mission statement – “Educating the whole person in mind, body and spirit” <Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University
Liverpool Hope University is a university in Liverpool, England. Two of its three founding colleges were established in 1844 and 1856, the third opening in the 1960s. It is the only ecumenical university in Europe. Based on two campuses, the main campus is located in Childwall and the second...
www.hope.ac.uk/alumni/welcome/history-of-liverpool-hope> Hope became the first college in the UK to secure degree-awarding powers under the government’s new system. Lee's leadership of this ecumenical church college is discussed in a book of essays, The Foundation of Hope, edited by R John Elford and published by Liverpool University Press in 2003. At Liverpool Hope, he served under the late Lord Bishop David Sheppard, who described him as a person of “flair and imagination”. At this time, led by Lee, Hope was at the forefront of urban renewal (in particular the Arts Center in Everton, Liverpool) and the arts (he chaired the Everyman and Playhouse Theatres). Hope won the Freedom of the City of Liverpool and a Queen's Anniversary Prize
Queen's Anniversary Prize
The Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Higher and Further Education is a biennially awarded series of prizes awarded to Universities and Colleges in the further and higher education sectors within the United Kingdom...
for the work of Hope One World with Tibetan refugee children in Ladakh. "And all of these connections were born out of his sense of call to service as a Christian and a Roman Catholic. This faith disposition has also characterized his scholarship. He is the author of some eight books, one of which, Believing Bishops, was credited as the text that anticipated the rising star of Archbishop George Carey, before he was made Archbishop. Lee has written extensively on medical ethics; his book, Uneasy Ethics, was highly acclaimed for the imaginative way in which the complex fields of ethics and law are woven together. Today he is continuing to create partnership opportunities for organizations. He is the chair of a new charity inaugurated by Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
called the John Paul II Foundation For Sport. From Burnley Football Club to the University of Oxford
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a university located in Oxford, United Kingdom. It is the second-oldest surviving university in the world and the oldest in the English-speaking world. Although its exact date of foundation is unclear, there is evidence of teaching as far back as 1096...
, he is linking sport with education. The result of all these partnerships is to build stronger links between educational institutions, businesses, and the community".
Leeds Metropolitan University
After eight years, and after Hope had gained university college status, Lee left to become vice-chancellor in 2003 of Leeds Metropolitan UniversityLeeds Metropolitan University
Leeds Metropolitan University is a British University with three campuses. Two are situated in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England while the third is situated in Bhopal, India...
, sometimes known as Carnegie
Carnegie
Carnegie may refer to:*Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist, for whom many entries on this page are named*Dale Carnegie, motivational speaker and author*David Carnegie , Scottish-Swedish industrialist...
(after the teacher training college for physical education of that name, now incorporated into Leeds Met). He announced in his 2003 inaugural lecture that the university would develop a Rose Bowl behind the Civic Hall which duly happened (it won the Design & Innovation category at the RICS Pro-Yorkshire Awards 2010 and "best new venue to the property industry"
"The new Carnegie Pavilion is the first of its kind - a real dual-use building giving university students and sporting professionals access to state of the art shared space. We believe it will be another iconic building for Leeds and Yorkshire." The Carnegie Pavilion replaced the existing YCCC media and player facilities at Headingley Carnegie Stadium and enables the venue to continue to host international fixtures. The £21m Carnegie Pavilion project was supported by Yorkshire Forward, Leeds council, HSBC, The England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and Sport England.
In the annual Times Higher Awards 2006, the University won the category of Outstanding Contribution by a University to the Local Community, for its work with Bradford City Football Club and the local Muslim community in Manningham, and silver for the overall University of the Year. In 2007, the University won national awards for Arts & Business, for its partnership with Northern Ballet, and for being the most environmentally friendly university in the country, in the inaugural league table compiled by the green action group, People & Planet
People & Planet
People & Planet is a network of student campaign groups in the UK. It claims to be "the largest student campaigning organization in the country campaigning to alleviate world poverty, defend human rights and protect the environment."-Organization:...
. In 2008, the university won the bidding process for The UK Centre of Coaching Excellence through to the 2016 Olympics and the national award for the best coaching environment of any organization in the country. In 2009, the University came 3rd in the BUCS league table for all UK university sport, having risen from 27th during his leadership.
.
Lee replaced the university's previous owl logo with a Yorkshire rose.
During Vice-Chancellor Lee's time at Leeds Met a dispute between a "whistle-blower" and the previous administration at the university was pursued by Fabian Hamilton MP in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom A case was made resulting in a statement delivered to Parliament on the 21st July 2004 by Leeds MP Fabian Hamilton on the "disturbing" practices which were endured by staff and students who had cause to resort to the internal complaints procedure. This has sometimes been misleadingly linked to Simon Lee.
It is clear from the student newspaper and the Times Higher's chronology that he fell out with the chair of governors. Lee resigned in January 2009 and was placed on 'gardening leave' for the duration of his contract which ran until September 2009. In his inaugural lecture at Leeds Met, entitled Beyond Boundaries, he quoted a 19th-century English college principal as saying that students should be able to drink from a 'running stream' of insights, a curriculum informed by research, rather than from a 'stagnant pool' and announced a fcous on sporting and cultural partnerships, a policy adopted by the Board of Governors and put into award-winning effect. ref name="Newman">
The chairman of the governors acknowledged that Lee had transformed the university and left it "financially stable and sustainable".
However, Lee's successor as chief executive, Dr Geoff Hitchins, has said that Lee's "low-charge high-impact" policy on student fees did not make sense and had cost the university £10 million. He also believed that the decision to charge such low fees had disadvantaged its students because of the resulting large class sizes.
Times Higher Education reported that Ninian Watt, chair of the governors, had offered Lee a choice between suspension and resignation.
Lee was reported as saying that "the real reason for the dispute was his ongoing argument with Mr Watt over whether Leeds Met should raise tuition fees". It was reported by the BBC that Lee resigned on full pay "pending an investigation into allegations about his treatment of some members of staff". The independent review reported in September 2009 that staff, including Lee, had bought items on university purchase cards without supplying receipts to justify the expenditure. However, the auditors "found no evidence of wrongdoing by Professor Lee, his wife Patricia or senior managers".
Dr Geoffrey Hitchins, the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, held the post of Chief Executive after Prof Lee's departure. In July 2009 Professor Susan Price
Susan Price (academic)
Susan Price is Vice-Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds, West Yorkshire, a position which she took up on 1 January 2010 following the resignation of Simon Lee in January 2009...
was named Lee's successor.