ELECTION OF THE NEW DEAN. In just a few days, on November 16, the advisory board of Sahlgrenska Academy will elect a new dean. The candidate put forward for election is Agneta Holmäng, who was also one of the final candidates in the elections that were held last spring. Freelance journalist Lotta Engelbrektson interviewed Agneta Holmäng for Akademiliv.
Should Agneta Holmäng be trusted with the responsibility of becoming the next dean of Sahlgrenska Academy, she will focus on boosting cooperation between the institutes, laying the groundwork for obtaining more external financing, and improving support for young researchers.
Ready to serve
Agneta Holmäng is Professor of Laboratory Medicine and long-time Head of the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology. She enjoys her leadership role. Agneta Holmäng has experience in helping to run a large and sprawling institute. She is attracted to Sahlgrenska Academy’s breadth and range of interdisciplinary collaborations. She believes in holistic environments – both interdisciplinary and translational – that incorporate research as well as stimulating learning opportunities, and where all staff members of all sorts feel happy and heard.
“Increased collaboration provides a greater understanding of the other people’s circumstances, and highlights the importance of making the most of each other’s skills,” she says.
The interview was conducted at Agneta Holmäng’s office at the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology.
“I’ve been Head of Department here for eleven years. It would be great fun and very inspiring to take the next step and lead Sahlgrenska Academy,” she said.
Although she must be selected in accordance with the rules, Agneta Holmäng is the only named candidate for the position of dean. If the academy’s employees do choose to entrust her with the job, Dr Holmäng says she is well-prepared.
“One of my most important tasks will be to attract external funding to the school. I have many contacts in the business world and at various foundations, and I know that there is a great interest in supporting Sahlgrenska Academy. We haven’t taken sufficient advantage of this opportunity.”
Wants to modernize the education program
She sees ample opportunities to increase Sahlgrenska Academy external research funding in the future, and she also wants to encourage more talented students to Gothenburg.
“We need to modernize our education programs and increase students’ opportunities to travel abroad in the course of their studies. By improving the quality of our curriculum, we can both attract new students and increase their interest in working as researchers once they have completed their studies.
Among other things, Agneta Holmäng believes that the modernization of the education program should include an increased use of digital technology and teaching methods that stress active classroom learning.
“The various programs have very different needs and circumstances, so this effort must be spearheaded by the course coordinators and program councils, but with the particular support of the Education Council and the Vice Dean for Education,” Agneta Holmäng explains.
The growing numbers of university students and the drive for a new pedagogical approach will also require new and more various types of teaching facilities, such as so-called Active Learning Classrooms. She would also like to highlight the teachers who go “above and beyond” that which is expected of them.
“We should review the career paths available to dedicated teachers. The rewards of quality teaching must be more clearly reflected in teachers’ salaries than is currently the case.
Increased interdisciplinary interaction
When the Swedish Research Council recently presented the list of grant recipients in its latest major announcement, the results showed promise. In the fields of medicine and health, Gothenburg University was awarded a total of 36 project grants, and only the Karolinska Institute received a larger sum than GU. On the other hand, the younger researchers were left virtually empty-handed. Out of the 31 establishment grants that were awarded, only four went to our university.
“We need to promote ourselves better, so that our young talents want to stay with us and more of them will choose to come here. Establishment grants are important to building a career as an independent researcher. The junior researchers are the future of our faculty,” emphasizes Agneta Holmäng.
She would also like to create a forum where experimental and clinical researchers can meet and discuss how they can work together.
“Just getting to know each other and get to hear about relevant research projects is often enough to spark the desire for interaction,” says Agneta Holmäng, who thinks that there are too few meeting places where researchers can get together.
Expanding research environments
She emphasizes that those at the leadership level must be in constant dialogue with the faculty’s established research group leaders, and should ask them how the academy can facilitate their activities. The research groups have no formal position in the organization, despite the fact that it is these teams of dedicated scientists that drive research forward.
The issue of Sahlgrenska Academy’s Core Facilities is a prime example of an area where the needs of researchers must take precedence. Agneta Holmäng is of the opinion that the faculty needs to build a more methodological infrastructure that both promotes its own operations and can serve as a national resource. The issue of facilities must also be discussed.
The planning of several major redevelopment projects involving Sahlgrenska Academy (such as Sahlgrenska Life and Naturvetenskap Life), is currently ongoing, but the realization of these plans is still a long way off.
“We need be able to expand our research environments and future centers more quickly, both at Medicinareberget and at Östra Hospital, as well as the other places where Sahlgrenska Academy carries out operations. Moreover, we must create a campus environment that is attractive for both staff and students,” asserts Agneta Holmäng.
Safeguarding the collegium
Age: 58
Current position: Head of the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology.
Family: A husband (also a doctor) and four children. The youngest is 19 and still lives at home.
Lives in: Kullavik
Interests: Exercises every day after work, and has two Shetland sheepdogs. Loves to cook.
Current undertaking: Candidate for the position of dean of Sahlgrenska Academy.
Important issues that are to be addressed and decided by the faculty board must first be discussed and worked through in collegiate forums. If Agneta Holmäng is named to the deanship, she wants to give the collegiate leadership more power. One way to do so is to activate our existing collegiate councils.
At the same time, she points out that it is also important that the institutes retain a high degree of autonomy and that they be able to work under stable financial conditions, because recruitment initiatives and other efforts are largely dependent on their activities.
As dean, one is also dependent on having a well-functioning administration. Agneta Holmäng believes that Sahlgrenska Academy possesses this strength. Cooperation with the heads of department (who have primary responsibility for the development of the institutes) must also be good.
Agneta Holmäng sees many similarities between her own institute (where she is currently head of department) and Sahlgrenska Academy as a whole and has a clear plan regarding what she hopes to accomplish should she be elected to the deanship.
“There’s much to be done, and I want to set clear goals for when and how the changes will be implemented. But this is a team effort,” she emphasizes.
When asked about her leadership style, she replies:
“I’m optimistic and committed, and I like to solve problems. I am also considerate of my colleagues and am good at delegating. I hope they feel that I only want the best for them.
Selected professional experience
- Professor of laboratory medicine, certified physician.
- Since 2006: Head of Department at the Institute of Neuroscience and Physiology.
- Many years of teaching in endocrine physiology.
- 2003-2005: Member: The board of the Department of Emergency and Cardiovascular Medicine (now a division of the Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine) at GU’s Institute of Medicine
- 2006-2014: Chairperson: The Sports Research Council’s Scientific Council for Medicine (now a board member)
- 2006-2015: Board member: Swedish Brain Power
- 2004-2006: Chairperson: The Associate Professorship Committee, Sahlgrenska Academy
- Since 2007: Member: The Sten A Olsson Foundation’s Travel Scholarship Committee
- 2009: Admitted to Styrelsekraft, the national women’s leadership program initiated by the Ministry of Enterprise and Industry
- 2009-2011: Chairperson of the board: Food & Health Concept Center (FHCC) (board member from 2007-2008)
- Since 2012: Member: Steering Committee for the Center for Sport Science, GU
- 2010-2013: Chairperson: Review Board, the Norwegian Research Council
- Since 2015: Board member: The Swedish Society for Medical Research (SSMF)
- Since 2015: Chairperson: Review Board, SSMF
- Has completed evaluations for research councils and foundations in Norway, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Austria, Australia, Iceland, Qatar and Italy.
- Has served as a member of the assessment group at Visualization Research (VR) Gothenburg Assessed ALF-applications at Lund and Umeå Universities.
- Agneta Holmäng’s VR-supported research (both clinical and experimental) deals with obesity and gestational diabetes. She has acted as a supervisor or co-supervisor for many PhD students.
TEXT: LOTTA ENGELBREKTSON
PHOTO: THOMAS JOHANSSON
