Chemistry Fellowship Endowed
We are delighted to announce the endowment of the Whitford–Mullins Tutorial Fellowship in Inorganic Chemistry, a significant milestone in Keble’s continuing investment in academic excellence. Professor Stephen Faulkner will hold the Fellowship as the Whitford–Mullins Tutorial Fellow in Inorganic Chemistry, made possible through a generous legacy gift from Ivor K Whitford (1968) and a major gift from Paul Mullins (1990). This endowment strengthens Keble’s long-standing commitment to Chemistry and to the tutorial system at the heart of the College’s intellectual life.
Keble’s Chemistry community is both substantial and thriving. In addition to Tutorial Fellows in Inorganic and Organic Chemistry, the College has three College Lecturers in Physical Chemistry and a Professorial Fellow with research interests in supramolecular chemistry. Keble admits one of the largest cohorts of Chemistry undergraduates in the collegiate University — eight students each year — and benefits from its close proximity to the Chemistry laboratories on South Parks Road. This combination of academic depth, student strength, and strategic location makes Keble an outstanding environment in which to study and advance Chemistry.
I’m delighted to be the first person to hold the Whitford-Mullins Fellowship in Inorganic Chemistry, secure in the knowledge that it ensures Keble students will benefit from the tutorial system long into the future. Tutorial teaching is the life-blood of a college, and is a key part of the lifelong bonds that form between us.”
Professor Stephen Faulkner, Whitford–Mullins Tutorial Fellow in Inorganic Chemistry
Chemistry has been a defining strength of Keble for many years. The discipline underpins our understanding of the material world and drives innovation across technology, health care, energy, and sustainability. It explains the everyday world at the molecular level, from the lithium-ion batteries that power the digital age, to the synthetic chemistry that enables modern medicine. Progress in the field depends on probing what is not yet understood: designing and synthesising new molecules and materials, measuring their properties with precision, and developing theories that rationalise structure and reactivity. In this way, Chemistry spans fundamental discovery and practical application, with growing importance in areas such as molecular electronics, catalysis, energy storage and medicinal chemistry, all areas in which Keble scholars and students are actively engaged.
The completion of fundraising for this endowed Fellowship marks an important moment for the College. Endowed Tutorial Fellowships are central to sustaining Oxford’s distinctive tutorial system, ensuring rigorous, individualised teaching and close intellectual engagement between Fellows and students. By securing permanent academic leadership in Inorganic Chemistry, the Whitford–Mullins Fellowship will shape teaching, mentorship and research in the subject at Keble for generations to come.
The College extends its profound gratitude to Ivor Whitford and Paul Mullins.
