The issues shaping higher education – and the role universities can play in addressing them – will be explored in a new series of public debates launching at Keele University this year.
The Keele Debates series has been convened and will be hosted by the university’s new Vice-Chancellor, Professor Kevin Shakesheff. It is designed to encourage open disagreement and constructive discussion on the issues affecting – and influenced by – higher education in 2026 and beyond.
Speakers from politics, education, technology and enterprise will take part in the series, which will examine themes including internationalisation, artificial intelligence and graduate employability, and how universities can adapt to change while helping to tackle wider societal challenges.
The first debate, titled The Global University: Are we exporting education or exploiting students?, will feature a high-profile panel including the Rt Hon Jo Johnson, former Minister of State for Universities; Vivienne Stern, chief executive of Universities UK; Jessica Turner, chief executive of QS Quacquarelli Symonds; Professor Adam Habib, Vice-Chancellor of SOAS University of London; and Paul Lovegrove, CEO Europe and global chief operating officer at Navitas.
All the debates will be open to the public, with the option to attend either in person or online.
Professor Kevin Shakesheff, Vice-Chancellor of Keele University, said: “Higher education has a profound and transformative impact on society. Precisely because of that influence, universities must be open to challenge, scrutiny and debate, and be willing to ask difficult questions about how they serve students, communities and the wider world.
“The Keele Debates are designed to create space for disagreement and constructive dialogue across education, business and civic life. By bringing different perspectives together, we want to generate practical insight that helps universities adapt and continue to enhance lives locally, nationally and internationally as we look to the future.”
The first debate will take place at the university’s Westminster Theatre on Tuesday 17 February, starting at 6pm, and will also be livestreamed.
More information and registration details are available here.
