Joan Stringer

Professor Dame Joan Kathleen Stringer, DBE, FRSE, FRSA (born 12 May 1948) is a British political scientist and former Principal and Vice-Chancellor of both Edinburgh Napier University and Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh.

Biography

Education Stringer attended Portland House High School, Stoke-on-Trent, and Stoke-on-Trent College of Art. She then went to Keele University, where she took a B.A. degree with joint honours in History and Politics and completed a Ph.D degree in Politics in 1986.

In 2009, Stringer oversaw Napier University's change of name to Edinburgh Napier University in a bid to raise the institution's profile. In 2010–11, Professor Stringer oversaw a programme of redundancies at Edinburgh Napier University which resulted in 89 staff taking voluntary severance and a further anticipated 100 staff being dismissed on the grounds of compulsory redundancy.

Stringer has held a number of appointments outside of academia, including Chair of the Northern Ireland Equality Commission Working Group from 1998 to 1999, Lay Member of the Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland from 2002 to 2007, Senior Independent Director of the Institute of Directors, Member of the executive committee for the Scottish Council for Development and Industry, Chair of Education UK Scotland, Chair of Community Integrated Care, Convenor of the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations, and trustee of the David Hume Institute.

She is currently Chair of Capital Theatres in Edinburgh and a board member of Entrepreneurial Scotland.

Honours Stringer was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 2001, and promoted to Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2009 Birthday Honours.

In 2001, she was elected a Fellow of The Royal Society of Edinburgh. She is also a Companion of the Chartered Institute of Management and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.