2012 Annual Report - Jesus College - University of Cambridge

THE DEAN I Jesus College Annual Report 2012 33
Life in the Day of the Dean of College
Garth Wells
F ortunately, the duties of the Dean of College do not fill a full day. It would be a concern
if they did. What follows is a collage, or perhaps a term rather than a day in the life of
the Dean of College. It is not a dull college office to hold.
I usually receive the more interesting emails to the Dean of College at around 8:30am.
By this time the Head Porter has vetted any Incident Reports from the night before, and any
deemed worthy of further attention are sent to me. No two reports are the same, although
some junior members do tend to feature in more than two reports. There can be confusion
with regards to dates as most reports tend to be written either side of midnight. When I
receive an Incident Report in the morning I will usually take some time to mull over
whether or not action is required, and if action is required whether or not it is urgent. Some
issues require immediate meetings with the protagonists, while in other cases the best
course of action can be to leave the perpetrators in uneasy anticipation for a few days.
At any time during the day electronic party permit requests come in. Any gathering in
College requires a permit, with the primary concern always being safety. The advice of the
Head Porter is invaluable in deciding whether or not to grant a permit – he has a very good
nose for what goes on in College. Almost all permits are approved, subject occasionally to
conditions related to safety (usually the presence of a sober fire marshal). Some permit
requests do raise eyebrows; memorable recent requests have included a bouncy castle in
a Chapel Court room for a birthday party, a twelve-hour long party and a toasted sandwich
party starting at around midnight. Seeing the permit applications makes me cognisant of
the remarkable breadth and diversity of social, cultural and sporting activities that junior
members of the College engage in.