Sir David Stephen Eastwood, (born 5 January 1959), is a British academic and long serving university leader who was

Vice-Chancellor A chancellor is a leader of a college or university, usually either the executive or ceremonial head of the university or of a university campus within a university system. In most Commonwealth and former Commonwealth nations, the chancellor ...

of the

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

between 13 April 2009 and December 2021.

Early life

Eastwood was born on 5 January 1959 in

Oldham Oldham is a large town in Greater Manchester, England, amid the Pennines and between the rivers Irk and Medlock, southeast of Rochdale and northeast of Manchester. It is the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, w ...

, Lancashire, and educated at

Sandbach School Sandbach School is a free school in Sandbach, Cheshire, north-west England. It was established in 1677 by local philanthropists, including Richard Lea, who donated the land for the school, and Francis Welles, who helped to fund the schoolhouse. I ...

. In 1980, he graduated from St Peter's College, Oxford, with a First Class Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in Modern History, and was promoted to

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

(MA) in 1985. He completed his Doctor of Philosophy (DPhil) in 1985, also from the University of Oxford.

Career

Eastwood has held the posts of Chief Executive of the Arts and Humanities Research Board and Pro-Vice-Chancellor of

Swansea University Swansea University ( cy, Prifysgol Abertawe) is a public university, public research university located in Swansea, Wales, United Kingdom. It was chartered as University College of Swansea in 1920, as the fourth college of the University of Wales. ...

. His academic specialism is

modern history The term modern period or modern era (sometimes also called modern history or modern times) is the period of history that succeeds the Middle Ages (which ended approximately 1500 AD). This terminology is a historical periodization that is appli ...

, and he was

fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

and senior tutor of

Pembroke College, Oxford Pembroke College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford, is located at Pembroke Square, Oxford. The college was founded in 1624 by King James I of England, using in part the endowment of merchant Thomas Tesdale, and was named aft ...

. He was Chief Executive of the

Higher Education Funding Council for England The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) was a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom, which was responsible for the distribution of funding for higher education to universities and further education colleges in Engla ...

(HEFCE), a post he had held since September 2006. His former posts also include Vice-Chancellor of the

University of East Anglia The University of East Anglia (UEA) is a public research university in Norwich, England. Established in 1963 on a campus west of the city centre, the university has four faculties and 26 schools of study. The annual income of the institution f ...

and Chief Executive of the Arts and Humanities Research Board. On 13 April 2009, he succeeded Michael Sterling as

of the

. In March 2011, Eastwood announced plans to raise the undergraduate tuition fees at the University of Birmingham to the maximum of £9000 (subject to OFFA approval) for courses commencing 2012/13. Eastwood retired from the position in December 2021 and was succeeded by Adam Tickell. Eastwood is also Chair of the QAA Steering Group for Benchmarking and a member of the QAA Board. He has contributed numerous times to several newspapers, among them ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...

'', ''

The Sunday Telegraph ''The Sunday Telegraph'' is a British broadsheet newspaper A broadsheet is the largest newspaper format and is characterized by long vertical pages, typically of . Other common newspaper formats include the smaller Berliner and tabloid ...

'' and ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...

''. His specialist subject is 19th- and 18th-century British and American politics. He has been a member of the board of the

Universities Superannuation Scheme The Universities Superannuation Scheme is a pension scheme in the United Kingdom with £89.6 billion under management as of August 2021 (up from £67 billion in 2019). It has over 400,000 members, made up of active and retired academic and aca ...

since 2007.

Honours

Eastwood was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Historical Society A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

(FRHistS) in 1991. On 25 January 2012, he was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of the West Midlands. He was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the G ...

in the

2014 Birthday Honours The 2014 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for services to higher education.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eastwood, David 1959 births Alumni of St Peter's College, Oxford Honorary Fellows of St Peter's College, Oxford Fellows of Keble College, Oxford Fellows of Pembroke College, Oxford Vice-Chancellors of the University of East Anglia Academics of the University of East Anglia Academics of Swansea University Living people People educated at Sandbach School Deputy Lieutenants of the West Midlands (county) Vice-Chancellors of the University of Birmingham Knights Bachelor Fellows of the Royal Historical Society