Description
Book SynopsisSwansea University: Campus and Community in a Post-War World, 1945–2020 marks Swansea University’s centenary. It is a study of post- Second World War academic and social change in Britain and its universities, as well as an exploration of shifts in youth culture and the way in which higher education institutions have interacted with people and organisations in their regions. It covers a range of important themes and topics, including architectural developments, international scholars, the changing behaviours of students, protest and politics, and the multi-layered relationships that are formed between academics, young people and the wider communities of which they are a part. Unlike most institutional histories, it takes a ‘bottom-up’ approach and focuses on the thoughts, feelings and behaviours of people like students and non-academic staff who are normally sidelined in such accounts. As it does so, it utilises a large collection of oral history testimonies collected specifically for this book; and, throughout, it explores how formative, paradoxical and unexpected university life can be.
Trade Review“Deeply researched and elegantly written, this book is essential reading for alumni, staff, and students at Swansea. And it deserves a wider readership. It will appeal to all historians of higher education, to policy makers and university leaders, and to anyone interested in how the past may help shape the future of teaching and research in Wales and beyond.”
-- William Whyte, University of Oxford
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements vi List of Figures x List of Tables xiv Abbreviations xv Note on terms and place names xvii Note on oral history interviews. xviii Introduction 1 Chapter 1 - ‘Communities of learning’: Intellectual and Economic Reconstruction, 1945–1956. 40 Chapter 2 - ‘A Quiet Revolution’: Campus and Community Life, 1947–1964. 102 Chapter 3 - ‘How in hell can we cool them down?’: Politics and Protest, 1964–1973 157 Chapter 4 – ‘Don’t be so Complacent!’: Crisis and Cutbacks, 1973 – 1988. 219 Chapter 5 - ‘Change with the times’: Marketisation and Commercialisation, 1988–2020. 272 Conclusion 330 Bibliography 340 Appendices 373
