We are delighted to announce that Emeritus Fellow Professor Kathy Sylva OBE FBA FAcSS, has received an honorary doctorate from the University of Yvaskyla, Finland.
Kathy, a former Professorial Fellow of Jesus College and Professor of Educational Psychology in the Department of Education at the University of Oxford, was awarded the honorary doctorate for her research on early education and children’s development. At a special ceremony in May, she was given a doctoral hat and ceremonial sword, which were presented to her by the University’s Rector.
Professor Kathy Sylva pictured with Professor Marja-Kristiina Lerkkanen, her host from the Faculty of Education at the University of Yvaskyla, Finland
She said: “I am honoured to receive this degree, and especially the sword, which is given so that I may ‘Fight for Truth’. I’m afraid that I shall be engaged in constant battle now that (at long last) I have an appropriate weapon for this fight!”
Kathy took her BA from Harvard in Psychology and Social Relations, and also holds a doctorate in Development Psychology from Harvard. She is a Fellow of the British Academy, the Academy of Social Sciences, and the British Psychological Society. She was awarded an OBE in 2008 for services to children and families, and also the BERA Nisbett Award for Lifetime Educational Research. She has honorary degrees from The Open University, the University of Gothenburg and Oxford Brookes University.