New appointments

Chief Executive

Dr Rhona Alcorn has been appointed Chief Executive with effect from 4th September. A native Leither, Dr Alcorn is a lecturer in Linguistics and English Language at the University of Edinburgh, where she also serves as Depute Director of the Angus McIntosh Centre for Historical Linguistics and as co-investigator on a research project tracking the evolution of Older Scots. Rhona also brings extensive management experience from her earlier public sector career.

Administrator

We have also appointed a new Administrator, Fiona Stewart, with effect from 29th August. Ms Stewart is an experienced book-keeper and administrator.

We look forward to welcoming both Rhona and Fiona to SLD.

Questionnaire and staff changes

New Scots dictionary app

We are looking into creating a new Scots dictionary app, to replace and expand our existing one. You can help us by filling in this survey – https://kwiksurveys.com/s/cDWdfOcB#/0

Thanks!

Staff changes

At the end of March we said good bye to two members of staff: Elaine Webster, Outreach and Education Officer, and Catherine Mcdonald, Administrator.

Elaine has retired after nearly eight years with SLD, during which she built up and expanded on our links with a large range of organisations and individuals. Her enthusiasm and hard work forged new relationships both in the sphere of education and in the wider Scots community.

Catherine was our Administrator for nearly three years and helped the wheels of SLD to run smoothly during a period of change.

They will both be missed.

Member of staff honoured

Pauline Cairns Speitel, one of our Senior Editors, has been invited to become an Honorary Fellow of the Association for Scottish Literary Studies.

This is an award given ‘to women and men who have made a substantial and distinctive contribution to the Scottish literary tradition as writers, scholars, teachers, publishers, and in other related fields’. We’re delighted that her contribution is being recognised in this way.

Many congratulations Pauline!