Steve Dayman will be presented with a Doctor of Laws in recognition of his achievements in raising awareness and money for meningitis research.
In 1982, Steve’s 14-month-old son Spencer fell ill with blood poisoning and meningitis. Sadly, Spencer passed away in little more than 24 hours.
On discovering how little was known about meningitis, Steve has worked tirelessly to improve the public’s knowledge of the symptoms of meningitis, ensuring the ‘glass test’ to check for a non-blanching rash is widely used. He’s also raised many millions of pounds for life-saving vaccine research.
Steve’s links with Bristol University go back to 1999 when he established charity Meningitis UK to fund a £500,000 state-of-the-art dedicated meningitis research laboratory in the School of Medical Sciences, which opened in 2002.
As the Executive Founder of Meningitis Now, Steve is a leading voice for the meningitis cause and drives many thousands of miles each year to offer support to bereaved families.
David Scott returns to Bristol 35 years after he first joined the University as an undergraduate, to be presented with a Doctor of Engineering for his innovative contributions to the world of computer science.
On completing his joint-honours degree in Computer Science and Maths, David gained employment at a global computer company. Since then he has enjoyed a highly successful 27-year long career in in the enterprise storage, software and server industry. He is currently Senior Vice President and General Manager of HP Storage.
Prior to joining HP, David was President and CEO of 3PAR. He led the company from its early stages as a start-up enterprise storage company, through a successful initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange. Under his guidance, 3PAR produced and introduced Utility Storage, a new category of storage designed for cloud computing.
David is recognised for his foresight and conviction that cloud computing would become the predominant mode of consuming computer power.
Princess Campbellis to be presented with a Doctor of Laws in recognition of her outstanding contributions to equality and community action in Bristol.
Princess Campbell arrived in Bristol from Jamaica in 1962. Since then she fought for equal rights in employment and housing and has been an active campaigner, giving a voice to a variety of vulnerable people across the city.
Princess’ first victory for equality was securing employment as the first black person to work in the Wills Tobacco Factory, at a time when the phrase ‘no black, no dogs, no Irish’ was commonplace.
After retraining as a nurse and gaining a job at Glenside Hospital in Fishponds, Princess noticed the unequal distribution of labour between the black and white nurses. Realising there was little chance of promotion in nursing, many of the other black nurses left. Princess was determined and after further training and continued struggles with racism, Princess’s next triumph was to become the first black ward sister in Bristol.
She continues to act as a role model to others, visiting schools around Bristol to encourage young people of all ethnicities to raise their aspirations and make the best of their abilities.
Princess’ work has been honoured locally and nationally. She received an MBE for services to the community in the 2011 Queen’s Birthday Honours list.
An honorary degree is a major accolade, awarded in recognition of outstanding achievement and distinction in a field or activity consonant with the University’s mission.