University of Greenwich appoints New Head of Humanities & Social Sciences
The University of Greenwich has appointed Professor Joanne Finkelstein, from Victoria University in Melbourne, Australia, to the post of Head of the School of Humanities & Social Sciences.
In her new role, Joanne Finkelstein will be responsible for 85 staff and 2,500 undergraduate and postgraduate students. The school’s broad subject range includes law, journalism, drama, history and sociology. It has a developing research portfolio and a particular emphasis on working with creative and cultural industries in the region.
Professor Finkelstein brings a strong track record in scholarly research, exploring contemporary attitudes to consumption and products such as food, film and fashion. She has a particular interest in the visual imagery of the consumer culture, including labels, advertisements and packaging and has published widely in Australia, USA and Europe. She has recently been a Director of the Board of Food Science Australia, part of Australia’s premier science research organisation CSIRO (Commonwealth Science and Industry Research Organisation).
An experienced academic leader, Joanne Finkelstein is currently Executive Dean of the Faculty of Arts at Victoria University. She has also held a senior management post at the University of Sydney, where she was Associate Dean of the Faculty of Arts, and prior to that held teaching and research posts at Monash University and the University of Melbourne. She took her first degree from La Trobe University in Victoria, Australia, then a Master in Education from Monash University. She went to the USA for her PhD, studying at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.
Joanne Finkelstein says: “This position offers the appealing challenge of contributing to the good reputation of the University of Greenwich in the fields of applied research and professional education. I am keen to help produce graduates who are ‘job-ready’ and able to respond to the needs of employers in the 21st century.”
Tessa Blackstone, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Greenwich says: “I am delighted that we have attracted such a strong candidate to this important post in the university. Professor Finkelstein combines research expertise and leadership skills with an understanding of the challenges facing higher education – and how to deal with them. I am confident that she will be a great success in the job.”
For further information please contact
University of Greenwich Press Office
Caron Jones
Tel: 0208 331 8248
Email: caron.jones@gre.ac.uk