THE UNIVERSITY of Reading has announced a number of honorary degrees which have been awarded to individuals who have made outstanding achievements to contributions this year.
Among them is Dorothy Dix, co-founder and CEO of the charity Creating Better Futures, who received the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters in a ceremony on Thursday, July 24.
Born and raised in Zimbabwe, Dix was the first in her family and village to attend university.
She received a scholarship to study Psychology and Physiology at the University of Reading, graduating in 2001, and, after her own life was transformed through education, she dedicated herself to helping others do the same.
She co-founded Creating Better Futures alongside her husband in 2012, since which the charity has helped change the lives of thousands of vulnerable and orphaned children in Zimbabwe.
Her work as a visiting lecturer, keynote speaker, and through award-winning coaching programmes, she has been recognised as in industry expert in the small charity sector.
Professor Simon Mortimer, Head of the School of Agriculture, Policy & Development at the University, said: “Dorothy Dix embodies the transformational power of education and represents the very best of our alumni community.
“Her journey from scholarship student to global changemaker demonstrates extraordinary resilience and vision.
“Through Creating Better Futures, she has transformed thousands of lives while providing invaluable opportunities for our students.
“Her compassion and unwavering belief in human potential, along with her tireless advocacy for diversity and inclusion, make her an inspirational role model and a truly deserving recipient of this honour.”
University of Reading alumna Ruth Pearse, founder and CEO of Reading-based charity Parenting Special Children (PSC), received the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Letters.
Pearse established PSC in 2006 after her own experience of receiving her daughter’s diagnosis of global developmental delay in 2002.
Faced with no post-diagnostic support and mounting feelings of frustration and isolation, she started the charity with like-minded friends around her kitchen table.
Under Pearse’s leadership, the charity has grown to employ 20 staff members, supported by 15 volunteers and five trustees, most of whom are parents of children with special needs themselves.
The organisation has positively impacted the lives of over 15,000 families in Berkshire and beyond, while also offering training to around 2,000 local health, education, and social care professionals.
In December 2020, PSC was recognised by HM The Queen as one of four charities in Berkshire that made a significant contribution to society during the Covid-19 pandemic, and the Duchess of Edinburgh attended PSC’s 15th anniversary celebration the following year.
This year Pearse was nominated to represent the charity at HM The King’s garden party at Buckingham Palace.
Dr Jo Billington, from the Centre for Autism Wellbeing Hub at the University of Reading, said: “Ruth Pearse is a powerful example of how personal challenges can be transformed into meaningful, lasting change.
“Through her vision and leadership, she has built not just a charity, but a thriving, compassionate community that makes a real difference to the lives of thousands of families and professionals.
“We are proud to strengthen our partnership with Ruth and Parenting Special Children as we work together to create a more inclusive future for autistic young people and their families.”
Victor Koroma, former CEO of the Alliance for Cohesion and Racial Equality (ACRE), received the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Law, following 25 years dedicated to advocating for the rights of minoritised and marginalised communities in Reading.
After he arrived in the UK in 1988 from Sierra Leone, he earned a law degree after experiencing racial discrimination firsthand, and served as Deputy Director of the Reading Council for Racial Equality for over a decade.
By 2012, he was the CEO of ACRE, having developed proposals to merge two organisations and create a unified voice for community advocacy, until his retirement in December last year.
In that time, he established the first major conference on culturally based violence against women and girls with a focus on Female Genital Mutilation in 2015, and created the pan-Equalities Alliance in 2014, which monitors hate crime and community safety.
In 2017, ACRE established the Rose Centre, providing a safe space for survivors of cultural domestic violence, forced marriage and FGM.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Koroma supported NHS efforts to increase vaccine uptake in minoritised communities and helped establish a Community Wellbeing Hub in 2022, which now attracts 120-150 participants weekly.
This led to the Community Participatory Action Research on inequalities in health in collaboration with the University of Reading and the NHS.
Dr Alice Mpofu Coles, from the Department of Geography and Environmental Science at the University of Reading, said: “It is with great pride that we can honour Victor Koroma for his leadership and commitment to advocating for the rights of seldom heard, racially marginalised communities in Reading and elsewhere for over 25 years who need their voices heard.”
Tony Leandro and his charitable foundation, the Oakwell Trust, have been inducted into the University’s College of Benefactors.
Launched in 2014, the College of Benefactors celebrates the generosity of supporters who have made exceptional gifts to the University of Reading.
Tony retired from his role as a founding partner of consultancy firm Barnett Waddingham LLP, he established the Oakwell Trust, which delivers information and decision-making tools to small-scale farmers and their families in the global south.
It does so in partnership with the University’s Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA).
To date PICSA has reached more than a million households across 30 countries.
As well as its support for PICSA, the Oakwell Trust is also a valued supporter of the Empowering Students Scholarship, which provides essential living costs support for international Master’s students.
Dr Graham Clarkson, Senior Research Fellow and PICSA Manager, said: “Tony and the Oakwell Trust have been one of PICSA’s biggest supporters.
“As a result they have contributed to transforming the lives of hundreds of thousands of farming households around the world.”
