The University of Nottingham

Margaret Jackson’s name and passion for her subject will live on at The University of Nottingham thanks to her special bequest.

The former long-standing member of staff and alumna was passionate about mathematics and had been a member of the London Mathematical Society for more than 60 years before her death in October 2012, aged 88.

Dr Jackson (Mathematics PhD 1952) taught at the University for 30 years, her career as a senior lecture was balanced with her long term care of students both within the Mathematics Department and as a tutor in Florence Boot Hall. In a recent obituary one former colleague said: “She was a well-liked, energetic member of staff with valued expertise in her field and communicated her passion for the subject with breathless enthusiasm.”

It is believed that she was one of the first women to receive a PhD from the University and she was the first to receive a PhD in Mathematics from the University. Now, thanks to her generous legacy gift The Dr Margaret Jackson Bursary has been established. This will encourage women as an under-represented group to undertake short-term research internships as a gateway to the pursuit of postgraduate research degrees and academic posts within the School of Mathematical Sciences.

Dr Jackson’s nephew, Neil Jackson (Maths with Computing 1986), himself a Nottingham alumnus and a maths teacher, visited the School and said many students kept in touch with his aunt after she retired in 1982 and she was immensely proud of their achievements.

To find out more about leaving a legacy for generations to come:

w: nottingham.ac.uk/legacies

t: on +44 (0)115 951 3664 (Andrew Wright)