Dr Katrina Skerratt-Love joins the University’s School of Engineering as the recipient of the prestigious Royal Society Career Development Fellowship (CDF), a new programme aimed at developing underrepresentation in UK STEM academia.
Dr Skerratt-Love is one of eight researchers selected in the first cohort of the scheme which provides recipients with the funding and mentorship necessary to establish their independent research careers in the UK.
The aim of Dr Skerratt-Love’s Fellowship is to develop glass and glass-ceramic materials that can be utilised in space to enhance astronaut’s health.
Using her expertise in materials engineering and her experience from working in the glass industry, Dr Skerratt-Love aims to develop a new type of glassy material capable of resisting galactic cosmic rays and radiation emitted from the sun, where the material could be utilised in space vessel and solar cell constructions.
Dr Skerratt-Love joins the University from industry where she previously worked for Glass Technology Services in Sheffield and more recently Glass Futures Ltd in St Helens.
She studied for both her undergraduate and PhD at Sheffield Hallam University, where her focus was on materials engineering and nuclear waste vitrification, respectively.
On taking up her new role in the School of Engineering, Dr Skerratt-Love said: “I am grateful to the Royal Society for their support through this new Fellowship and I am really excited to join the University and to get started on this fascinating research project.
“I consider myself a glass science engineer keen on its practical industrial applications, hence my research encompasses both materials and space science, where I am keen to engage with researchers across the university and in industry who are working in both these research areas.
“I am really passionate about promoting science and engineering to people of black heritage, those from disadvantaged and or minority backgrounds, where I plan to develop and support outreach activities to inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers.”
Royal Society CDFs
Currently running as a pilot programme with researchers from Black and Mixed Black heritage, the CDFs offer four years of funding (up to £690,000), mentoring and support to kickstart the careers of researchers from underrepresented groups.
The scheme was launched in response to 11 years of higher education data which showed Black heritage researchers leave academia at higher rates than those from other groups. The impact of this higher attrition rate is pronounced at senior levels of academic careers.
Sir Adrian Smith, President of the Royal Society, said: “We need an academic system where talented researchers can build a career, whatever their background. But we know that is not the case in the UK today – particularly for researchers of Black heritage.
“The variety and quality of research being undertaken by this first cohort of Royal Society Career Development Fellows suggests a bright future ahead if we can ensure more outstanding researchers develop their talents and follow their research passions.
“I hope this pilot and the support it offers can be a launchpad to achieve that.”
In addition to their fellowship funding and support from the Royal Society, the award holders will have access to networking and mentoring opportunities supported by the Black British Professionals in STEM (BBSTEM) network.
If the pilot is shown to be effective, the CDF programme could be expanded to include researchers from other groups, where the data shows there is persistent underrepresentation.