Stephanie Glendinning

Professor Stephanie Glendinning is the Pro-Vice-Chancellor of the Faculty of Science, Agriculture and Engineering at Newcastle University.

She leads and manages one of the biggest faculties in the UK with more than 8000 students and 1200 staff across four schools in the UK and one in Singapore. Upon joining Newcastle University in 1998 as a lecturer in Geotechnical Engineering, she revamped­­ the dissertation module to provide better support for students and clearer responsibilities for colleagues.

“Throughout my academic career of 30 years what has driven me is a passion to make a difference for students, colleagues and the organization and places in which we all belong. What inspires me is making a difference for people, in particular creating opportunities for as many people as possible to achieve their best. I’m excited by new ideas and new connections from and with as diverse a group of people as possible.”

She redesigned the Civil Engineering curriculum, which involved working for an international engineering company to understand how learning about sustainability could enable graduates to be better prepared for global careers that would make a difference to the world. “In leading the Urban Sciences agenda, I wanted to ensure that our research and education could engage and have a positive impact for the citizens of Newcastle as well as students and colleagues,” she says.

As the faculty’s Dean of Strategic Projects, Prof Glendinning delivered several high-profile projects, including the Urban Sciences Building, because of her forte in bringing together academia and industry from a range of disciplines to create world-class research facilities for everyone, to address global sustainability challenges.

In her research, she has specialized in work related to infrastructure, and more recently, adaptation measures required to sustain extreme weather events and climate change. She loves meeting inspiring people from around the globe to share ideas and plays a pivotal role in developing a diverse community of researchers who have thriving careers all over the world.