A slightly different Warwick Wonders celebration this month, with an opportunity for staff to offer their support or guidance to young people who might not believe that university is on the cards for them.
Read on to find out more about the man at the centre of this work - and the winner of October's Warwick Wonders award.
Want to say well done? You can congratulate our winning colleagues in the comments section at the bottom of the page.
Warwick Wonders
The Warwick Wonders Award celebrates the people we are proud to work with at our University. It recognises colleagues who have gone above and beyond to make a positive difference and enrich our community.
This month, Stuart and the Internal Comms team travelled away from campus - to Hollymount School in Worcester, where Warwick's own Nick Barker is based. After working in schools outreach as part of his role in the Chemistry department, Nick was given permission to leave the Warwick campus and continue his mission from the classroom.
Nick Barker - Strategy Group
Nick's well known in the Warwick community for his schools outreach work and passion for supporting and inspiring primary school children who may not ever have considered that university is a future option for them.
Nick's nominator said:
"What I've noticed about Nick is that he really does care about these children. They are captivated by him and can sense that he cares.
Over the last few years, he's worked with several children who are now determined to reach university. In each of these cases, they would be the first of their family to go to university... it would be their passport to a new world.
I think Nick - and the University itself - should be admired for supporting this work. It's a fantastic investment that will make a real difference to the lives of many under-privileged children."
After celebrating Nick's win with him, our Vice-Chancellor Stuart Croft said:
"Nick’s done some amazing outreach work in schools. He’s such a powerful advocate for change, for justice, for opportunity, and he’s absolutely inspirational about it."
Stuart: Well it's time for more Wows and Wonders, and this time it's Wows and Wonders on tour, we are off campus. Obviously most of us work all the time on campus, but some of us work some of the time off campus.
And it's somebody in that category who's won today. Nick Barker, who does this amazing outreach work in schools. And we are here at the school, Hollymount School in Worcester, where Nick is based.
So let's go see him. I've gotta do a terrible thing everybody, Ah! I've gotta interrupt you. I'm really sorry. Hello! My name is Stuart Croft. I'm the Vice-Chancellor at Warwick University and this man loves this place, but he also loves Warwick University where he works.
And do you know what? We have 8,000 members of staff and every month people nominate somebody, one of those 8,000 who are brilliant and wonderful and inspirational. Guess who's won? It's not me. It's Nick.
You are a winner. Thank you. From our Wows and Wonders, this is Wows and Wonders on tour. Normally we do it inside the University, of course. But you're here today. You're working here today.
And he's been brilliant, hasn't he? Is he brilliant? Do we love him? Yes. Yes. Tell us what's he like?
Student: Funny!
Stuart: What else?
Student: Intelligent!
Stuart: Intelligent is a good one. This is good. He's got to suffer now.
Student: Kind!
Stuart: One more?
Student: Old!
(Laughter)
Stuart: this is a little golden thing. Don't lose it. Thank you. This is the award of Wows and Wonders. Nick, you are a winner, but most important, this is the moment.
Nick: Thank you.
Stuart: He is our star! Applause.
Nick: I got a star.
Stuart: You're a star.
Nick: Thank you for coming so far.
Stuart: So, Nick, tell us, when did you first come to Hollymount School?
Nick: September, 2018. So before the pandemic.
Stuart: And why, why, why did you come to this school? What was it about this school that made it appealing to you?
Nick: I found a school in a, serving an area which is quite challenging and the school is very successful.
And so the idea was if I could be based in a school, would that change people's outlook in terms of what might be possible for them in terms of their educational outcomes in life.
This year at Warwick in the first year, there is now an undergraduate who came here to school. Fantastic. To even have a hand in that, to even know her name feels like a privilege. Yeah. Yeah.
And she deserves it. She's brilliant. The school was built in 1935 and people weren't going to HE, and now they are. And there's a young man who I don't know so well, who's at Cambridge now, who grew up not very far away.
So yeah, there are success stories and it does work.
Stuart: So I think the thing is, Nick, although you don't like me to say this, I'm going to say this. You are such a powerful advocate for change, for justice, for opportunity, and you're absolutely inspirational about it.
And of course that is why we wanted to make this award to you today. Don't say it wasn't me. I do nothing. 'cause that's all you always do. Just take it and accept it. Thank, thank you.
Nick: Thank you, Stuart. Thank you very much. Thank you.
When Nick found out he'd won the award, he said:
"Many members of Warwick's community do a lot for young people and I'm happy I can be a small part of that.
Thank you for this award and especially thank you to Stuart and Kulbir for visiting me, the teachers and, most importantly of all, the children at school.
The children and young adults I work with enjoy meeting new people, hearing their stories and learning about their jobs. It helps them to see what things are possible in life. If you'd like to visit, or would be able to let some of them visit you, please do get in touch."
Congratulations to ourwinners and thank you to everyone who submitted a nomination in September. We received so many high-quality nominations - and now we're ready to start revealing them! Keep an eye on inbox insite and the insite homepage over the coming months to see who'll be named a winner.
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