Meryl Kenny

I mean it’s one banana consultant, Rob, what could it cost, 10 dollars?

‘Nousferatu’: the notorious consultancy advising Edinburgh uni amid 'huge' cuts Scotland’s largest university has turned to Nous Group at the same time as it is making savings that could lead to nearly 2,000 job losses. Staff say they were misled about the extent of its work.

No matter how tough you say times are, there’s always enough money in the banana stand to pay an external consultant to scope ‘academic efficiency opportunities’ www.theferret.scot/consultancy-...

Amazing turn out of Edinburgh University staff outside the parliament building right now to defend education against needless cuts
@ucuedinburgh.bsky.social

Intervention from @alex.scotlibdems.org.uk on cuts and job losses at Edinburgh university as @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social UCU take three days of strike action this week to save jobs. Strike rally at the Scottish Parliament tomorrow, Wed, at 1pm #SaveHE #StopTheCuts #NoCompulsoryRedundancies

SNP minister told to intervene in Edinburgh University crisis to protect 1,800 jobs SNP ministers have been warned they must intervene in the University of Edinburgh's dispute with staff amid fears 1,800 jobs could be lost.

Question from @martinwhitfieldmsp.bsky.social in the Scottish Parliament on cuts and job losses at Edinburgh University as @ucuedinburgh.bsky.social take third day of strike action this week #SaveHE #StopTheCuts www.heraldscotland.com/news/2563152...

RALLY TOMORROW!

Join the fightback against job cuts!
Wednesday 19th November at 1pm at the
Scottish parliament.

Picket line at George square Edinburgh

Solidarity in action on the picket line at George Square! @ucuscotland.bsky.social

How is the dispute at Dundee University affecting students? Students say they are feeling the effects across studios, classrooms and workshops.

"How is the dispute at Dundee University affecting students?"

I mean, sure, iron levels but also that guy who repeats everything you say in every meeting but louder yet blanks you in the hallway on a daily basis, he also makes me tired

Tired all the time? There may be a simple reason for that Levels of fatigue among women in Britain are soaring, and this isn’t the kind that can be cured by a nap. What lies behind the exhaustion epidemic?

Really thought the answer to this was going to be patriarchy

www.theguardian.com/society/2025...

Gendering Party Politics: Feminist Institutionalist Perspectives Abstract. Gendering Party Politics explores the relationship between gender and political parties through a feminist institutionalist lens. Across 17 chapt

It’s here! Gendering Party Politics published with Oxford University Press & available in all good bookshops in hardcover & paperback.

Edited by @merylkenny.bsky.social and @elinbja.bsky.social

academic.oup.com/book/61464

Interesting piece “From my experience of universities, one of the most important elements of that is the culture around the senior management table, which is not the governing body,” he said. “You cannot have…an overbearing culture where essentially the executive is run in a hierarchical system.”

UCU slams Edinburgh University claims that cuts won't impact student experience A university email sent to students claimed the cuts will not diminish the student experience

‘We know how much you value the academic and professional staff who teach and support you across the University, and that you may be concerned when some staff choose to leave the University voluntarily…’

Russian tech workers rethink UK ties after settlement rules change Digital entrepreneurs turn to US in search of higher pay and opportunities in test of Labour plan to lure ‘global talent’

Huh. If you say you’ll mess with indefinite leave to remain rules it turns out talented migrant workers start looking at their other options. This could never have been predicted!
on.ft.com/3JiZxbM

In less jest - yes, it's good if universities can help students develop skills for the labour market. However, the pointless venom of the current government about one of the few world class sectors in the British economy is tiring, enervating and just plain sad. Get a grip lads.

An actual quote from the Secretary of State for Business and Trade

Too often people go to university to ‘explore research and knowledge’

Look forward to Wes S saying 'too often people go to hospital to have operations' or Heidi Alexander saying 'too often people go to the station to catch a train'

Edinburgh uni boss pressured over outside earnings as job losses mount The boss of the University of Edinburgh is facing calls to “come clean” over earnings from a second job, amid staff strikes and mounting redundancies.

As staff at Edinburgh Uni strike over job cuts, the principal is under pressure to reveal whether he’s being paid for a second job at a company with historic ties to the university.

Our latest: theferret.scot/mathi...

New British Academy report shows degree course cold spots across the UK | The Political Studies Association (PSA) Our friends at the British Academy (BA) have produced a hard-hitting new report which shows that financial difficulties or strategic choices in our universities have led to large swathes of the UK…

*NEW PSA BLOG* A hard-hitting report by @britishacademy.bsky.social illuminates how large areas of the UK are/becoming cold spots for #HE degrees in #SocialSciences & #humanities. PSA CEO @seasonedcomms.bsky.social highlights the issues and impact

Unfunded research is by definition, free. It’s the funded research, that never fully covers costs and requires massive cross-subsidy, which is a major contributor to the HE funding crisis.

Again, UUK show a total failure of their role.
Their lack of vision, and inability to show responsibility & leadership means they are yet again punching down on overworked, underfunded academics, rather than lobbying Govt for proper HE funding models.
Let's shift away from low quality UUK members.

University course closures leave students unable to study many SHAPE subjects close to home - report A new report shows that students are shut out of SHAPE education in their home regions, as large swathes of the UK are ‘cold spots’ for humanities, social sciences and arts degrees.

We've got a chunky @britishacademy.bsky.social report out looking at the emergence of 'cold spots' where you can't study arts, humanities or social science subjects close to home. We call for an urgent review of HE funding & monitoring of at risk subjects
www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/news/univers...

Governor announces New Mexico will now provide free universal child care NEW MEXICO (KRQE) – New Mexico is becoming the first state in the U.S. to offer free early childhood education to every family in the state. Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham announced a universal ch…

Governor announces New Mexico will now provide free universal child care

I need people to also understand that faculty have been harassed like this - specifically with staged protests and secret recordings- for decades

The ESCALATION (and this matters!) is the president so pathetically caving and firing the dean and department head

The Edinburgh connection to London's tax-evading gift shops Plus: A chat with the Transport for London boss running the tube strike negotiations — and how the "hardworking businessman" putting up flags in south London tried to scam an insurer.

Here's something a bit different. We've been reporting from Edinburgh to try to get to the bottom of a mystery in London. Princes Street is the Scottish capital's most famous shopping street — and it's gaining the *exact same* tatty gift shops as London. www.londoncentric.media/p/edinburgh-...

The takeaway:

👉 Accommodating the radical right on immigration doesn’t win back voters.
👉 It alienates the progressive base.
👉 And it raises the salience of the very issue the radical right owns.
In short: it’s electoral self-harm.

I have finally gotten round to writing my AI Use Statement for a grad. course I'm teaching in Gen AI...

I would be grateful of your thoughts!

Sage Journals: Discover world-class research Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.

📝 Don't miss this #openaccess article from the current issue of #BJPIR - Volume 27, Issue 3 (August 2025)

'Experiencing the executive: Gender, ministers and institutions in Scotland ' by Alan Convery & Meryl Kenny.

🔗: buff.ly/IDGFiBM

@polstudiesassoc.bsky.social

Sitting on my porch, writing, and the elementary school just let out, because the kids are starting to walk by on their way home. I cried when I saw the first kid. Kept crying when the second one walked past my house. They’re safe. Alive. Maybe oblivious.

This country needs a hard reset.

Frey: And don't just say, this is about thoughts and prayers right now. These kids were literally praying. It was the first week of school. They were in a church.