Professor Amanda Taylor-Beswick presented her inaugural professorial lecture from the University of Cumbria’s Lancaster campus.
A special event has taken place to mark the conferment of Professor Taylor-Beswick as a University of Cumbria professor.
Professor Taylor-Beswick, a qualified social worker with extensive experience in psychiatric social work and social work with d/Deaf children and their families, took her audience at the University of Cumbria Lancaster campus on a journey through the experiences that have shaped her professional and academic career at the recent inaugural professorial lecture.
Throughout her lecture, Professor Taylor-Beswick was joined by academic peers, including Emeritus Professor at the University of Denver, Walter LaMendola, who opened the lecture by joining online from his base in the United States.
Professor Taylor-Beswick was also joined by Isabelle Trowler CBE, Chief Social Worker for Children and Families, England, youth work co-researcher Ishrat Hussain and Dr Eva Hornung, who has co-authored with Amanda the recently published book Doing Phenomenography.
In her lecture Professor Taylor-Beswick reflected on her formative years in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, sharing how this experience, marked by conflict and division, has influenced her perspective on difference and ultimately led her to a career in social work.
Her professional career began in community mental health work and progressed through various roles as a social work practitioner, educator, academic, and researcher.
They brought new challenges, opportunities, and curiosities, culminating in her current work examining digital intersections and their impact on individuals, rights, and opportunities.
Through collaboration and practical engagement, Professor Taylor-Beswick continues to explore the digital age. She remains committed to cutting-edge education and professional practices, paying close attention to the intended and unintended consequences of new technologies.
Throughout her 90-minute lecture, Professor Taylor-Beswick shared insights from her research, emphasising the need to embrace technology while acknowledging the inherent conflicts and threats to hard-won rights. She stressed the importance of equipping students with critical thinking skills to navigate the complexities of the digital world while maintaining a deep sense of social responsibility.
During her time in academia, Professor Taylor-Beswick remains focussed on the contemporising and real-world relevancy of higher education. She has a particular emphasis on professional disciplines and how curriculum design, content, delivery, and assessment supports graduates to be ready to work in a digitally focussed world.
Professor Taylor-Beswick continues to be affiliated as a steering group member for the Better Tomorrows programme.
Professor Taylor-Beswick said: “It was a complete honour to have close family, close friends, colleagues, past and present, alongside me as I gave my inaugural professorial lecture. Equally special were the reflections offered on my work and contributions by University of Cumbria’s Deputy Vice Chancellor Professor Brian Webster-Henderson, Professor Walter LaMendola, Isabelle Trowler CBE, Ishrat Hussain, and Dr Eva Hornung.
“I am the sum of all of those I have met and all the experiences I have had. I am now at another new juncture having been conferred as a Professor of Digital and Social Sciences within the Institute of Health at the University of Cumbria and I hope that this will be as productive and memorable as the work and years that have led me to this point.”
