Scotland’s national conservatoire appoints new governors

Published: 22/11/2019

Five senior figures from the worlds of arts, higher education and business have been appointed to the board of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland.

Andrew Butcher, Morag Campbell, Stuart Cross, Dorothy Miell and Philip Rodney join the Board of Governors, responsible for overseeing the institution’s activities, determining its future direction and fostering an environment in which the mission of Scotland’s national conservatoire is achieved and the potential of all of its students is realised.

Nick Kuenssberg OBE, Chair of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, said: “We have made five exceptional appointments which will undoubtedly contribute to the quality of board discussion as we pursue excellence in teaching, research and international development.”

The new governors bring a wealth of experience, across the sectors, to the Conservatoire.

Andrew Butcher is a Managing Director at Bank of America, based in London and a member of the bank’s regional Executive Committee. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Andrew has also held senior positions at J.P. Morgan and Citigroup in Hong Kong, Tokyo and Singapore. He also serves as a director of Euroclear SA/NV, is chair of The Sherbourne Girls Foundation and has been a governor of the Ada National College for Digital Skills. Andrew holds an MA in Music from Cambridge University.

Morag Campbell was Chief Executive of NYCOS from 2012-2019. Previously, she was Assistant Principal at Stevenson College, Edinburgh where she commissioned the Music Box, a custom-built performance, rehearsal and practice space for students and the wider community. In the early part of her career, Morag taught music in nursery, primary, secondary and further education and was an examiner, marker, setter and vetter for the Scottish Qualifications Authority. Morag studied singing and has performed across the world as a soloist and member of various choral groups. She is also chair of Chamber Music Scotland and a trustee of IMPACT (Scotland).

Professor Stuart Cross is Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Dundee. Latterly Head of Dundee Law School, he was an academic lawyer for more than 25 years before which he was a practising solicitor and a partner in a leading Scottish commercial law practice. Founding Director of Dundee Contemporary Theatre, he has extensive experience of learning and teaching practice and strategy and has acted as an external examiner at eight universities. An expert in charity law, intellectual property and corporate law, he is a board member of OSCR, Scotland’s charity regulator and chairs OSCR’s audit committee.

Dorothy Miell is an experienced Higher Education practitioner and leader with a personal research record focused on the workings of the creative and performing arts, and extensive experience of designing, quality assuring, teaching and examining at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Dorothy has held senior roles at The Open University and the University of Edinburgh where as a Vice Principal she has developed extensive experience of the sector and how it operates both on campus and online. She has also been involved with national and international bodies and organisations working on professional accreditation and academic standards, as well as education and policy development in the creative arts.

Philip Rodney practiced as a lawyer for more than 40 years and is a Fellow of the Law Society of Scotland and a Global Scot. He was chair of Burness Paull until he left practice in 2018. He also previously chaired the Senior Lawyers Committee of the International Bar Association and the board of governors of the Glasgow School of Art and was a governor of Hutchesons’ Educational Trust.

On leaving legal practice, he set up Rimalower Consulting, providing strategic and leadership advice. In addition, he sits on the boards of Dunedin Consort and LAR Housing Trust and is also a business columnist for The Times in Scotland.

Read their full bios and find out more about governance at RCS here.