LMH
Lady Margaret Hall
University of Oxford
LMH
Completing the New Era project
A New Era for graduate studies, and a new face to the world
LMH
Lady Margaret Hall
Our Mission
Since our foundation in 1878, LMH has been inspired to
achieve excellence in teaching, learning, and research,
and to open up opportunities for gifted students.
The mission of LMH is to benefit society by the
advancement of knowledge and understanding
through excellence in education and research.
Sustaining excellence underpins all that we do.
Ensuring that the extraordinary opportunity to study at
LMH is gained fairly, on academic merit, regardless of
background, is extremely important.
We provide the best collegiate education in the world.
We want the best students to benefit from it.
Our Strategy
We have a three-pillar development strategy for
delivering the resources needed to sustain excellence:
• financial support for students
• fellowships for teaching and research
• completing our new buildings project
The new buildings directly support our mission. Several
years ago, we decided to keep student numbers steady.
Every new study-bedroom we build enables a student
to live in College rather than in expensive commercial
accommodation. Each new room is thus the equivalent
of a student bursary, keeping living costs down as well
as giving students immediate access to outstanding
facilities for study, culture, sport, and College life.
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The New Era project 2007-2014
LMH launched the New Era Campaign in June 2007 to provide
substantial additional accommodation and facilities for both
undergraduate and postgraduate students.
The first phase, Pipe Partridge, was opened on 21st April 2010
by the Chancellor of Oxford University, The Right Honourable
The Lord Patten of Barnes CH. LMH now offers all undergraduates
the opportunity to live in College for three years. The new
theatre, and seminar, reception, and common rooms have
greatly enriched the intellectual and cultural life of the College
community. We are profoundly grateful to over one thousand
donors whose gifts at all levels enabled us to build Pipe Partridge.
We were proud that the architectural distinction of the
building was recognised in November 2010, when it won the
Georgian Group Architectural Award for the Best New Building in
the Classical Tradition. The award was presented to our architect
John Simpson and myself by Baroness Andrews OBE, Chairman
of English Heritage (right).
In June 2012, five years after the launch of the New Era
Campaign, and two years after the opening of Pipe Partridge,
LMH invites contributions for the final phase of the Campaign,
to complete the New Era project. This final phase will transform
graduate studies at LMH, and at the same time create for the
College a new face to the world.
LMH has approximately 180 postgraduate students, who come
from all over the world and work in an exciting array of different
disciplines. They are the scientists, researchers, university teachers,
and highly trained professionals of the future. Our postgraduates
go on to make a truly outstanding contribution to global society
in medicine and law, business and education, science and the
arts. The two new buildings planned at the front of College will
enable us to offer accommodation to all postgraduate students
for at least one year and will also provide excellent seminar and
common rooms. The new entrance and Porters’ Lodge will serve
the whole College community.
We plan to begin construction in the spring of 2013, and open
the new buildings for the new academic year in October 2014.
The cost of this final phase is £8m. We are extremely grateful
to have received three major lead gifts, including the generous
donation from the Clore Duffield Foundation that will name
the Clore Graduate Centre, and a number of other substantial
donations. The total already given is a magnificent £4.6m. In this
final phase of the Campaign we need to raise a further £3.4m.
I very much hope you will be able to help us complete this
great and transformative project.
June 2012
Frances Lannon
Principal
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Completing the new era project
LMH in 2007
LMH in 2010
LMH as it will
be in 2014
The extensive new facilities of Pipe Partridge include:
• 66 study-bedrooms, allowing all
undergraduates to live in College
for three years.
• A new JCR, with three elegant
inter-connecting rooms.
• Simpkins Lee, a magnificent 132 seat
Theatre, already well-known as a venue
for lectures, films, concerts, and theatrical
productions for members of the College,
University and local community.
• The Monson Room – a large reception/
function room with full catering
capabilities.
• The Amanda Foreman Room –
a Seminar Room that doubles as
a Green Room for productions in
the Theatre.
Pipe Partridge opened in 2010
New building containing Porters ‘
Lodge and student accommodation
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The second and final phase of the New Era project will see a
transformation at the front of the College, with facilities that include:
• The Clore Graduate Centre.
• A second new building
including a new Porters Lodge,
and reception area.
• 42 additional study-bedrooms
in the Clore Graduate Centre
and above the Porters Lodge.
• Additional Seminar, reception
and teaching rooms.
• A new front entrance
quadrangle.
“I am delighted to be
supporting LMH and
the creation of the new
Graduate Centre. Having
been an undergraduate
here, I am proud to
be giving back to the
College, for the benefit
of future generations
of students. The new
buildings will transform
the front of the College
in a very positive way.
And, just as important,
they will strengthen
LMH’s position among
the Oxford Colleges.”
Dame Vivien Duffield
DBE, 1963 French,
Honorary Fellow, Member,
LMH Advisory Council
The Clore Graduate Centre
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Completing the new era project
The Architect’s Vision
Architect John Simpson
explains the vision underlying
his design for completing
the New Era project
the next phase of our work will transform
the College by providing both a new
welcoming entrance for lmh and by
creating a social and residential centre for
graduate students, a facility offered by few
other colleges.
the area in front of the College off
norham gardens is currently neither part
of the street nor part of the College but
a jumble of cars and bicycles in front of
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the rather forbidding frontage of wolfson
west. the front of the College was never
intended to be like this; raymond erith,
the architect responsible for wolfson west,
envisaged his building as part of a new
entrance quadrangle but after 1964 the
work went unfinished. now, we have the
opportunity to complete the sequence of
spaces that should form the entrance and
transform the way the College is perceived.
the new porters’ lodge building on the left
and the new graduate Centre on the right
will enclose a new open and welcoming
quadrangle that frames wolfson west. on
the norham gardens boundary, a central
gateway flanked by elegant cast iron
screens will sit between two pedimented
entrance lodges. the new three-sided
entrance quadrangle will alter beyond
recognition the experience of arriving at
the College and will give it the appropriate
public presence it deserves.
the new graduate Centre will provide a
hub for graduates right at the front of the
College. whilst many colleges send their
graduates to the outer reaches of the city,
lady margaret hall will be able to offer its
graduates a place to call home within the
College itself. in addition to the normal
mCr spaces, the Centre also includes a
thirty-five foot long, double-height hall
that can be used for a range of different
uses. these rooms are arranged so that the
doors between them can be flung wide
to create a really large space for functions
both during and outside term time. each of
the two new buildings contains teaching
rooms to augment the College’s current
provision. Spread across the upper floors of
both buildings are forty-two new ensuite
graduate rooms and an accessible guest
room on the ground floor. Such a fine
graduate facility will help lmh attract
the best graduate students and encourage
them to integrate fully into the life of
the College.
“Aspiring to excellence alone is not
enough. Our New Era project sets
out the building infrastructure
needed to make LMH ‘fit for
purpose’ into the 21st century
and beyond. Pipe Partridge was
completed in record time and has
transformed life for undergraduate
students in College. The next and
final stage of the New Era project
will create essential postgraduate
facilities. The inspirational design
will also complete the harmonious
development of the front of
College, and integrate the whole
site. It is now crucial and urgent to
transform our vision into reality.“
Professor Dame Margaret Turner
Warwick DBE, 1943 Physiology,
Honorary Fellow, Member, LMH
Advisory Council
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how you can help
the generous donations of over one
thousand alumni and other friends of
the College helped us to realize the first
phase of the new era project through
the construction of pipe partridge.
the tangible results of their generosity
can be seen in a prize-winning
building containing facilities that have
tremendously enhanced the experience
of all members of the College.
please help us now as we bring
the new era project to a successful
conclusion. the two new buildings,
new front quadrangle and entrance, with
top-class accommodation and facilities
for our graduate students will complete
our vision to integrate the College site
and provide an lmh experience fit for
the 21st Century.
all donations to the project at this
time are gratefully received. a gift of
any size matters and each one helps us
move closer to the £3.4m we have still
to raise. we hope you will share in our
enthusiasm for lmh and will take the
opportunity to become involved with
this transformative development.
tax payers in the UK can add a
further 25% to their donation through
the gift aid scheme at no extra personal
cost. there are further incentives to
contribute to the project for higher rate
tax payers who may be eligible to reclaim
against donations, making their gift cost
even less. Donors outside the UK may
also be able to make tax-effective gifts
and should contact the Development
office for further information.
we are proud to recognise the support
of donors to our educational mission. the
new era project provides opportunities
at all levels of giving. Some naming
opportunities have been taken by donors
already, but there are many remaining
which are listed below. please also note
that you may help by making a gift in
support of graduate Scholarships.
Every gift to LMH at this time
makes a difference – your
participation matters and helps
us get ever closer to completion.
Naming Opportunities
Main Reception and Dining Room,
Graduate Centre
£250,000
Graduate Centre Colonnade
£150,000
Graduate Common Rooms (2)
£75,000
Colonnade Vestibule
£50,000
Parks Passage Entrance Vestibule
£30,000
Graduate Study Bedrooms (42)
£20,000
Arch on Donors’ Colonnade
£10,000
Donors’ Board
£5,000
Chairs in Graduate Hall (40)
£1,000
all donors will be entered in the new era Book of Benefactors that will be compiled as
the final record of the overall project.
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“In a tough economic
environment, we recognise it is
difficult for many to give. But
it is even more important that
we can provide our graduate
students with these facilities
to reduce the overall cost of
their studies. Every donation
will help us realise our vision
of completing the LMH
Masterplan.”
Richard Buxton (1982 English),
Deputy Chair LMH Advisory
Council
Some distinguished postgraduate alumni of lmh
“I spent seven years at Lady Margaret Hall.
I began as a graduate student reading for a
second BA, moved on to a history MPhil, and
finished with a DPhil in 18th Century British
history. By the end I was confident that I could
teach and write anywhere in the world.
Lady Margaret Hall stands out among the
Oxford colleges as a place where the pastoral
care of graduates is considered to be of
particular importance. Some people take the
straightforward route, but for others there are
many twists and turns before that Viva finally
comes into sight. I am absolutely certain that
I would never have achieved my goals without
the encouragement of the College. LMH always
took the long view; whether it was backing
me when I decided to change the subject of
my doctoral dissertation part way through
the course, or pushing me to think big when
I considered publishing my thesis.
My connection and affection for LMH
remains as strong now as it was when I first said
goodbye. The College is a community without
the burden of uniformity; a place of traditions
that is forever evolving, a home where
ambitions are born and dreams are made.”
“In 2003, I began my Master’s degree in
Criminology and Criminal Justice at Lady
Margaret Hall. I moved to Oxford from
California and did not know a single
person in England. Luckily, I was able to
secure accommodation in College and
I soon found myself swept up in LMH
life. The College brings people together
in very memorable ways. By living with
and among other graduate students at
LMH, I was exposed to a much broader
set of ideas than I ever could have known
otherwise. Without my time in the College,
my experience at Oxford would have been
more narrow and less interesting.
LMH’s faculty and staff is amazingly
responsive to its students and they
somehow helped make me feel at home.
I will always be grateful for the amazing
opportunities being a graduate student
has provided me.”
Conor Moore, 2003, MSc Criminology
Senior Regional Attorney, FDIC
(Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation),
San Francisco
Dr Amanda Foreman, 1991, DPhil History
Author of Georgiana, Duchess of Devonshire (1998),
A World on Fire: An Epic History of Two Nations
Divided (2010) and the North American edition,
A World on Fire: Britain’s Crucial Role in the
American Civil War (2011)
“During my time at Oxford doing
my Doctorate in Pharmacology/
Urology, I was extremely
fortunate to have LMH as my
College. I was proud to be a
member of the MCR and I have
warm memories of the kindness
and assistance I encountered,
especially the tremendous
support and teaching I received
from my supervisor Professor
Alison Brading. She was a
truly remarkable Fellow of the
College and I am delighted to be
donating to the new Graduate
Scholarship to be named in her
honour. When I first entered
LMH, it was the connection with
the Far East that made a deep
impression. The wisteria in the
Front Quadrangle is native to
China. The Chinese textile panels
hanging in the Talbot building,
written by a well-known Chinese
scholar, was presented to Sir
Cecil Clementi as he left Hong
Kong in 1930 after a six-year
term as the governor.”
Dr Kossen Ho, 1995, DPhil
Pharmacology, Surgeon,
Hong Kong Urology Clinic
“When I came up to LMH in 1965, I did not dream that one day concern about providing legal aid
to refugees would become my life work. I shall never forget the faith that LMH showed in me,
beginning in 1965. Despite my having responsibility for three children and lacking nearly every
qualification for entrance to Oxford, every possible obstacle to my matriculation was waived
when I joined LMH to study Anthropology. Even when I ran short of money in my second year
at LMH, it was Miss Kathleen Lea, my moral tutor, who personally stepped in. Friendships made
at LMH are lasting. Dr Sandra Burman (1965 PPE) and I collaborated in the 1970s on academic
activities (conference and publications)
C O M P L that
E T led
I Nultimately
G T H Eto my
N working
E W E with
R A refugees
P R O and
J E then
C T
to establishing the Centre for Refugee Studies at Queen Elizabeth House back in Oxford in 1983.”
Dr Barbara Harrell-Bond, OBE, 1965, DPhil Anthropology, Honorary Fellow,
Founder and Director the Refugee Studies Centre, University of Oxford.
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graduate Studies at lmh today
Current and recently qualified graduate students describe their experience at lmh
Zinta Zommers
DPhil Zoology, completed 2011
“I work to reconcile humans and their natural
surroundings. A Rhodes Scholar and lead author of
the UN’s Global Environment Outlook Report, I am
a member of the Wildlife Conservation Research
Unit. My research examines the interaction
between humans, chimpanzees and disease
evolution. I spent nearly two years following
chimpanzees in Budongo Forest Uganda. Outside
of the rainforest and back at LMH, I have enjoyed
working as Junior Dean, rowing and organizing
social events as an MCR social secretary. “
Gordon Stevenson
Current student,
DPhil Engineering Science
“My research investigates new ways
to measure the placenta in early
pregnancy using 3D ultrasound and
medical image processing. This may
lead to more accurate indicators of
how well pregnancy is progressing
and whether the fetus is at risk of
developing complications later in
pregnancy.
Academically, LMH has been
incredibly generous in contributing
toward conference expenses and
outside the lab the College’s rowing
and rugby clubs have provided a
superb sporting outlet. Now I am at
the end of studies, I look back with
fondness at being a member of the
MCR at Lady Margaret Hall.”
Mike Wagner
Current student, DPhil History
“My thesis concerns three trading
companies - the Hudson’s Bay
Company, the Levant Company and
the Russia Company. I am using
the experience of the companies to
examine British economic and political
responses to commercial competition
with France during the period 1714-63.”
Veronika Andrasova
Current student, MPhil Politics
“During my time at lmh, i have been
surrounded by the most supportive
community of friends and fellow
academics. even when writing my
thesis on the topic of the corruption ties
between media owners and politicians
in Central europe, i would be regularly
checked upon by my friends, who would
often provide me with mental as well as
practical help. Feeling i should give back
something to the College for the great
time i have had, i decided to become
the welfare secretary for the mCr and it
is now my job to take care of the welfare
of my fellow students.”
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Graciela Iglesias Rogers,
DPhil Modern History,
completed 2011
“Lady Margaret Hall is home…and
this is quite a statement coming
from an Argentine-born Spaniard
who spent a good proportion
of her adult life in France and in
England and lives outside College!
My journalistic profession brought
me to Oxford over a decade ago
(I am a Thomson-Reuters Fellow)
and since then I also completed my
undergraduate studies in history
in another Oxford college. But
nowhere have I felt as welcome
as at LMH. It is impossible to
feel an outsider here - and this
is not merely because of the
cosmopolitan nature of the College.“
Marinella Capriati
Jun Han
Current student, BPhil Philosophy
Current student, DPhil Sociology
“i am working on the philosophical
analysis of human rights, focusing on
the positive actions needed to respect
these rights, such as providing food or
setting up courts and tribunals, as well
as health care and education services.
lmh is a great place to tie together
academic and non-academic life: it is
always easy to meet people who are
curious about each other’s research
and are happy to sit down talking
about it for hours!”
“after completing a master of laws from
peking University, i came to lmh in
october 2011 to pursue a Dphil degree
in Sociology. i am now exploring the
interactive area between public sector
reform and the industrialization of
civil society organizations in China
under a broad political/fiscal sociology
framework. i am really enjoying
studying and doing research here:
the staff are friendly and helpful, the
College library is open 24/7, the
beautiful gardens provide an excellent
place to relax, and the mCr offers
exciting opportunities to make friends
and get involved in both College and
University. all in all, i find lmh an ideal
and supportive place to live and study.”
Charlotte R. Potts
DPhil in Archaeology,
completed 2012
“my Dphil research analysed how
and why religious buildings in preroman italy developed a distinctive
architectural style. i examined the
remains of huts, shrines, and temples
in tuscany and lazio, and then
compared them with similar structures
in greece and the near east. generous
support from lmh and others meant
that this project has taken me literally
and metaphorically around the
mediterranean.”
Arturo Ibanez Leon
Current student, Magister Juris
“i am focused on topics related to tort law,
that is, the law about protecting people
who have suffered a specific civil wrong
called ‘tort’. after my magister juris my idea
is to pursue a Dphil. i want to carry out a
research on strict liability (liability without
being at fault) in english tort law. my
experience both at oxford University and
at lmh has been wonderful. i have enjoyed
a stimulating academic environment
which has enriched my legal knowledge
and my research skills.”
Jasmine Chiu
Current student, DPhil History
“it is a great honour to have been awarded
the lmh renaissance Scholarship to
pursue continuing doctoral work that will
explore the iconography of dance and the
intersection between performance and
the visual arts during the late medieval
and renaissance periods in italy. the
opportunity to serve as one of the lmh
Curatorial assistants is a thrilling experience
that enriches my present art historical
studies and has allowed me to
become more familiar with the
College’s own unique
artistic heritage.”
Sylvestre Burgos
Current student,
DPhil Financial Mathematics
“After completing the MSc in Mathematical
and Computational Finance at LMH in 2009,
I was happy to come back for my DPhil
in Financial Mathematics. I am now in my
third year, working on novel simulation
techniques allowing for an efficient
evaluation of financial risk exposure. This
gave me the opportunity to be published
by Springer and to give talks at international
conferences. I will soon be able to put my
research into practice as a quantitative
analyst for JP Morgan, London.”
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LMH
Lady Margaret Hall
Lady Margaret Hall
Oxford OX2 6QA
Tel: +44 (0)1865 611024
development@lmh.ox.ac.uk
www.lmh.ox.ac.uk/alumni.aspx
Registered Charity No. 1142759