LSE’s founding purpose and continued ambition is “To know the causes of things for the betterment of society.” Visiting appointments, including Visiting Fellows, Visiting Senior Fellows, Visiting Professors and Visiting Professors in Practice, are highly valued members of LSE’s research and innovation culture, enhancing LSE’s scholarly outputs while also bringing expertise and experience as practitioners or academics at other institutions worldwide.
To create space to meet one another and recognise their contributions, LSE hosted an event for all Visiting Appointments - complete with talks and a chance to mingle in the Old Building’s Shaw Library. The event began with opening remarks about the purpose of the event from Associate Vice President (Impact) Professor Elizabeth Stokoe, followed by welcoming words from Professor Susana Mourato, Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research), and Professor Alex Voorhoeve, Vice President and Pro-Vice Chancellor (Faculty Development).
Professor Elizabeth Stokoe speaking at the Visiting LSE event in LSE’s Shaw Library.
Each recognised how the LSE community is made stronger by the expertise of Visitors. Notably, Professor Voorhoeve spoke about how his time as a visiting faculty member at Harvard University inspired a pivot into health inequality and justice research, broadening his academic journey beyond philosophy and towards unexpected subjects. Professor Voorhoeve’s story spoke to the unique offerings of visiting appointments, which provide exposure to new and generative networks.
This was followed by short talks from Visitors including Elisabeth Costa, Senior Visiting Fellow in the Department of Psychological and Behavioral Science, Jennifer Dixon, Visiting Professor in Practice in the Department of Health Policy, Marta Lorimer, Visiting Fellow at the European Institute, and Chukwumerije Okereke, Visiting Professor at the Grantham Research Institute.
From left to right: Elisabeth Costa, Marta Lorimer, Chukwumerjie Okereke, Jennifer Dixon and Elizabeth Stokoe.
Lorimer, an alumna of LSE who completed her both PhD and dual degree (LSE-Sciences Po) in European Studies at LSE, spoke about building community at LSE and emphasised the importance of keeping connections in every stage of her academic and professional journey. As Lorimer recounted, “being a Visiting Fellow at the LSE has helped me maintain collaborative relationships with former colleagues and remain part of the community that shaped my academic career so far. Networks are a key part of professional development for early career scholars such as myself, and I always enjoy catching up with LSE colleagues and friends, and hearing about what they are up to.”
The second part of the event provided space for visiting faculty from across the School to meet peers that they might not otherwise have the opportunity to speak to. Gerald Wistow, a Visiting Professor at LSE’s Care Policy and Evaluation Centre, left the event feeling gratified by his conversations with new connections. He shared: “It was a very worthwhile event which enabled me to learn how visitor roles are fulfilled across the School. I made useful contacts in the networking sessions directly relevant to current commitments and developing interests.”
Attendees mingling with fellow visiting appointment holders after the speeches. Photos © Simon Williams (Boot Creative).
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