Professor Alison Fell has been appointed Pro-Vice-Chancellor and Head of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, taking over the role from Professor Fiona Beveridge who retires in September.
Alison joined the University as Dean of the School of Histories, Languages and Cultures in 2021 after previously working at the Universities of Oxford, Lancaster and Leeds. Her research has examined women’s experiences in, and cultural responses to, the First World War in France and Britain, and more recently the uses of images of armed women for military mobilisation in nineteenth and twentieth century Europe.
During the First World War Centenary, Alison led Legacies of War 1914-18/2014-18 – a series of regional, national and international externally-funded research projects and outreach activities with more than fifty partners from the creative, cultural and heritage sectors.
Alison will take up the role of Pro-Vice-Chancellor in October 2025.
Vice-Chancellor, Professor Tim Jones, said: “Alison is an exceptional academic leader and I am delighted to be able to welcome her to the Senior Leadership Team to lead the overall performance of the Faculty and play a key role in shaping the University’s future strategic direction.
“I’m sure many across the institution who have worked with Alison will join me in congratulating her on this well-deserved appointment. Our Humanities and Social Sciences will play an essential part in the delivery of the goals and ambitions laid out in our Strategic Framework, Liverpool 2031, and I have no doubt that Alison’s leadership will continue to inspire and deliver high-quality teaching, research, global engagement and commercialisation.”
Professor Alison Fell said: “I am delighted to be taking on the role of PVC and Head of the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences. At what is a challenging time for our disciplines, I’m keen to support and promote the impact of the Faculty’s innovative teaching and research on our students, and on our many local and global partners. Building on the excellent trajectory set in motion by the outgoing EPVC, and maintaining our core values at the heart of our activity, I am excited by the opportunity to steer the Faculty through the next phase of its journey.”
Alison is a Strategic Reviewer and member of the Peer Review College for UKRI and AHRC. She is also a panellist for the Polish National Science Centre, and an assessor for the Irish and European Research Councils.