Welcome to our brand new newsletter!

Highlights of the Week

Hello, my lovely college mates!

It’s Week 9! Time flies when you’re having fun…or cramming to get your work done in time for the looming deadlines. Regardless of where you are in the submission stage (working on it, just submitted, or lucky enough to not have any upcoming deadlines), please make sure to keep in mind your personal wellbeing! There are a number of resources available for you. Please see the wellbeing section of this e-mail for further details.

If you’re looking for something to do in order to wind down, consider coming along to Wednesday’s Welfare trip to Bath, hosted by our wonderful welfare officer (and peer supporter), Brenda McCollum. Not free until the weekend? No worries! Our awesome social secretary, Victoria Strutt, has organized a holiday party on Saturday to get you into the festive spirit!

Staying in Oxford over the vacation? No worries. There are usually a number of Kellogians around. The MCR will be hosting some events as well, including board game night, which will take place every Tuesday over the vacation (except for December 24 and December 31). Stay tuned for additional events!

Note: Tonight was the last night of yoga for the term. It will be starting back up on January 13th, 2020!

Before continuing on, I’d like to give a shoutout to our absolutely incredible new communications officer, Kazuhi Kanai for all her work on our stylish new newsletter! We hope you enjoy it!

Newsletters will continue to be sent out throughout the vacation, so look out for upcoming events!

Have a lovely vacation!

Best,

Dominique Fortes
Kellogg College MCR President

Wellbeing Information

For peer support contact College. You can also contact our Welfare & Equality Officer, Brenda. The Junior Deans are available to chat confidentially about any welfare issues you might have, no matter how big or small. You can contact them from here. Information on counseling services can be found here.

Free condoms, lube, pregnancy tests, and sanitary pads are available in the white cupboard in the accessible toilet, near the Richardson Room. If you would like to have moral support while taking a pregnancy test, remember that you can contact the Junior Dean(s), the welfare & equality officer, or peer support.

This year, welfare team members (junior deans, peer supporters, welfare officers, etc.) will all be wearing bright yellow lanyards that say “Kellogg College Welfare Team 2019-2020” in order to increase their visibility as welfare resources. Please utilize them! We are here to support you. It’s never a bother to have a chat with us.   

To find out about exam support available, visit the University’s Stress Less webpage.

Welfare Committee Applications: Are you interested in welfare? Apply to be on the welfare sub-committee. There are many new positions open, so definitely consider! Apply HERE.

College Updates

• Early Closure in The Hub: On the 13 December The Hub will be closing early at 13:30. There won’t be any hot lunches served that day; however, breakfast, pastries and sandwiches will be available as usual.
• College Christmas Closure: College will be closed from 13:00 on Friday 20 December until 8:00 on Thursday 2 January. The Library will be inaccessible throughout this period.
• College Brunch: As many of you know, Kellogg offers brunch on most weekends during the term. The brunch consists of an English breakfast. However, the kitchen is considering switching to a rotating menu (similar to the lunch/dinner schedule style). Is this something you would be interested in? If so, let us know via this form!
• Payment Change: You will no longer have to sign in for meals at college. UPay is now going to be the “currency” of choice, with the line moving much quicker with a till this year rather than sign-in sheets! So set up your UPay account soon and top up! (upaychilli.com). Also, keep in mind that the bar does not accept UPay!
• Food Options: Are you keen to have more cultural meals on the menu during the term for formal and informal dinners? Let us know what meals you’d like to see via the Food Feedback form.
• Dietary Requests: Do you have a specific dietary request that you want the kitchen to be aware of when you come to college for a meal? Let us know via email 48 hours ahead of time via kitchen@kellogg.ox.ac.uk.

Other Opportunities

Seminar: What asylum and refugee policies do Europeans want?
Monday 9 December, 3:45 – 5:00 PM, The Hub at Kellogg College
Martin Ruhs, deputy director of the Migration Policy Centre at the EUI, and a co-author of a new study, What asylum and refugee policies do Europeans want?: evidence from a cross-national conjoint experiment, will be discussing public attitudes to asylum and refugee policies in Europe. Refreshments will be served from 3:30 pm, the seminar will commence at 3:45 pm. Booking is necessary.

Survey on Menstruation
Do you menstruate? Researchers at Oxford University are interested in your experiences the week before your period. Please help them with a 5-minute questionnaire. Why it matters? The Dphil student Gabriella Kountourides (St. John’s) at the School of Anthropology & Museum Ethnography: “Many menstruating people describe different experiences in the week leading up to their periods, however few surveys take into account the range of different experiences people have. I am working to build a questionnaire that encompasses all aspects of the premenstrual experience which will be important both to understand the social effects of premenstrual experiences, and medically”.

Cortex Club: Panel Discussion on Sleep: Features and Functions
Wednesday 11 December, 5:00 – 6:00 PM, Sherrington Library
For our final event of the year, in collaboration with the Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour (CNCB),  the Cortex Club will be hosting a panel discussion on Sleep: Features and Functions with Prof. Amita Sehgal, Prof. Penelope Lewis, Dr. Jason Rihel, Prof. Stuart Peirson. The Panel discussion will be followed by a Christmas-themed drinks reception, then everybody is welcome to join us to a pub for dinner with the speakers. Go check out our website, sign up to our mailing list here and keep up to date with our future events by following our facebook, twitter and instagram.

Summer Teaching in China
The Social Enterprise Gotoco has opened applications for its 2020 summer TEFL programmes. These take place in diverse locations across China. The Directors Daniel Parrott (St. Anne’s) & Richard Lloyd (Pembroke) are the Oxford alumni and you can find there stories here. Last year around 50 Oxford students joined our project in China, apply now to grab your place on the 2020 Gotoco China team: http://www.go-to.co/apply-now.

• Earn a TEFL certificate (Teaching of English as a Foreign Language)
• Explore China and its diverse culture
• Learn some Mandarin, and take part in fun cultural exchange activities
• Gain valuable work experience and references
• Begin a summer of backpacking across Asia
• Give Chinese students the chance to experience a new style of teaching
• See stunning scenery, including the Karst mountains around Yangshuo, Guangxi

Oxford University Anglo-Chinese Research Society – Recruitment
The Oxford University Anglo-Chinese Research Society, which is in the process of being established, is recruiting students for some positions. This society’s primary aim is to help foster an environment of collaborative research here at Oxford, particularly focussing on students in the early stages of their research careers. The aims of this Society are as follows:

• to promote collaboration between the UK and China generally, with a specific focus on collaboration in academic research;
• to improve the quality of research by UK and Chinese academics by learning from one another; and
• to provide a forum for UK-based academics to network with Chinese academics and vice versa.

The Society will host lectures, networking events for its members, and discussions over dinner with guest speakers (e.g. academics from Oxford and overseas, diplomats, etc.), as well as run termly essay competitions. Having already secured sponsorship for the society, all that is currently left is to find a suitable treasurer and secretary, who have a passion for international research relations and a capacity to fulfil the needs of these roles. Those interested in either role should email the DPhil candidate Ryan Veryard (Linacre), at Doctoral Training Partnership in Environmental Research (NERC DTP) at ryan.veryard@linacre.ox.ac.uk for more information.

Feedback Form

We want to hear from you! Please take a few moments to share your feedback and idea with us through: Kellogg MCR Events; Kellogg MCR Event Proposal/Suggestion; Kellogg College Brunch; Kellogg College Food. Thank you in advance for your help!

Dominique Fortes
E-mail: dominique.fortes@kellogg.ox.ac.uk
Phone: +44 7497 089727