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Chancellor
Dame Jenny Abramsky
The Chancellor's formal duties include chairing the University's annual general meeting and conferring degrees at graduation ceremonies.
The Chancellor shapes their role in the way they feel best supports the values and aspirations of the University.
After graduating from UEA in 1968 with a BA in English, Dame Abramsky pursued a trailblazing career in news media, with her near 40-year legacy at the BBC spanning radio, television and online platforms.
Jenny joined the BBC as a programmes operations assistant in 1969, going on to become the first female editor of the Today programme and launch Britain's first continuous news and sport radio station, Five Live, as well as the television channel BBC News 24.
Jenny also launched the BBC’s news website in 1997, before moving back into radio as the corporation’s Director of Radio in 1999, with 1Xtra, BBC 7, 6 Music, Five Live Sports Extra and the Asian Network launched during her tenure.
By the time Jenny left the BBC in 2008, she was on the corporation’s Executive Board as Director of Audio and Music, and its most senior female employee.
Since leaving the BBC she has taken on senior roles as a number of prestigious organisations, including as Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund (now the National Lottery Heritage Fund), Deputy Chair of the Canal and River Trust, and six years as Chair of the University of London.
Jenny is a Fellow of The Radio Academy and is currently Chair of Trustees of National Life Stories and of the Royal Academy of Music.
She has also previously served as Chair of the Governors of the Royal Ballet and of Hampstead Theatre, and on the board of trustees for the UK's largest youth drama festival, the Shakespeare Schools Festival.
In 2003, Jenny was welcomed back to UEA as an Honorary Graduate, receiving an Honorary Doctorate in Letters from the University. She becomes the eighth Chancellor in UEA’s history.
The role of Chancellor is to act as a figurehead for the University, with formal duties including chairing the annual general meeting and conferring degrees at graduation ceremonies.