As of 1 January,
former vice-dean Dirk-Jan de Koning is the new deputy dean at the VH Faculty, with
research as his area of responsibility. The role of the deputy dean is not
clearly defined, and more broad-ranging than you’d expect. It will change over
time and in relation to the role of the vice-deans and will be communicated in
cooperation with the dean.
“The role
of a deputy dean is partly to support and act as a sounding board for the dean.
Rauni and I will share the work between us. We had a lot of good discussions
when I was a vice-dean so we’ll just continue in the same way” says Dirk-Jan,
adding that the new faculty board will now have to establish its working
methods.
On 27 January, the new VH Faculty Board had its first meeting. The agenda had only one item, appointing new faculty vice-deans.
“Defining areas of responsibility for the vice-deans is a delicate task. Their work is so important and must benefit all of the faculty. We run a complex operation where every part matters”, says dean Rauni Niskanen.
At last, it is possible for the VH-faculty to arrange a long-awaited faculty day. We much look forward to see you all in person again. So, reserve Wednesday September 28 in your calendar for inspiring lectures, new thoughts, conversations and good company with VH colleagues.
It will be a full day topped off with a dinner together, in the evening. We will come back with a theme, content and a proper invitation closer to the date.
A warm welcome to you!
Dean Rauni Niskanen and and the rest of the faculty management
Update on the expansion of the Veterinary and Veterinary Nursing programmes
The development is progressing fast, but is still at an early stage. The sub-project groups work on several issues in parallel. Certain areas overlap each other and needs to be viewed and prioritised as such. It is too early now to set deadlines for coming decisions, but much will be decided during spring.
The project board has a new chairman, Pär Forslund, deputy vice-chancellor and also chairman of the Board of Education. He looks forward to the assignment and also gives a first statement on the project's webb (in Swedish).
Clarification on the ethical assessment of animal experiments
The latest VH newsletter had an article on the ethical assessment of animal experiments and publishing in international journals. We would like to clarify that information.
Most international journals require that studies on animals must have undergone ethical approval to be published, regardless of whether the experiment causes the animal pain or suffering. In Sweden, ethical approval is the responsibility of the regional animal experiment ethics boards. Some experiments are exempt from the requirement to obtain ethical approval. For researchers who have performed studies that, according to Swedish legislation, do not need ethical approval, the SLU Board for Animals in Research and Teaching can issue a certificate to enable them to publish in international journals.
The Swedish regional animal experiment ethics boards do not process applications for experiments that will be conducted abroad. For SLU researchers performing animal experiments in countries that do not offer ethical approval of animal testing, the SLU Board for Animals in Research and Teaching can review the experiment schedule and prepare a statement that will facilitate publication of the study.
More information is available on the web pages of the Board for Animals in Research and Teaching (FDN).
Senior lecturer Ann-Sofi Bergqvist has now started as
a research officer at VH. Many already know Ann-Sofi as she has previously
worked at the Department of Clinical Sciences. Ann-Sofi is a veterinarian with
a degree in 1995. She has taught, has done research and supervised in reproduction. Since 2006, Ann-Sofi has a PhD and
is an European specialist (diplomate). Ann-Sofi is also
associate professor in domestic reproduction.
The SLU Centre of Statistics (Statistics@SLU) is available to address
your question about study designs or statistical data analysis.
Are you unsure about which method and model to use, how to interpret
results or how to answer reviewer comments? Or do you want to discuss potential
alternatives to data analysis in an upcoming research application or need a
statistician as a co-applicant in a project?
In the faculty's newsletter you can read about current events relevant to you who are an employee at the VH Faculty. Head of Faculty Administration Caroline Carlström is responsible for the content. The newsletter is produced in cooperation with the internal editorial team in the Division of Communication.
The newsletters are usually issued in connection with faculty board meetings. The remaining meetings during the spring are the following dates: March 23, April 27 and June 13. Next newsletter will be published on March 16.
