- Trevelyan College
Durham_College_Infobox
cell|blackcells|2|#00ccffcell|black
Name = Trevelyan College
| Motto = " Vera fictis libentius "
Truth more readily than falsehood
Colours =
Named_after =Alec Trevelyan
Established =1966
head name = Principal
head = Prof Martyn Evans
Senior Tutor = Dr Ian Latham
JCR Name = JCR President
JCR = Darren Starling
Undergraduates = 625
Postgraduates = 42
Website = [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.college/ Trevelyan College]
JCR Website1 = JCR Website
JCR Website2 = [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.jcr/ Trevelyan College JCR]
Boat Club Website = [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan_boat.club/ Trevelyan College Boat Club]
Campus = Durham CityTrevelyan College, affectionately known as Trevs, is a college of the
University of Durham in North EasternEngland . Founded in 1966, the college takes its name from the eminent social historianGeorge Macaulay Trevelyan , Chancellor of the University from 1950 to 1957. Originally an all-female college (the last to open in England), the college became fully mixed in 1992. Trevelyan College is renowned for its friendly atmosphere and excellent degree results; it currently heads the collegiate academic league with an unprecedented 87.2% of those who graduated in 2006 doing so with first or upper second class degrees [Trevelyan College Website - http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.college ] . The college is further admired for the splendid display of daffodils that surrounds it every year and for its annual musical.Although Trevs is a separately registered higher educational institution (HEI), it is different from Oxbridge colleges in that it is owned (and for the most part run) by the University. Again, unlike Oxbridge, all academic tutoring takes place in the University's departments, though every student has a college tutor who acts in a pastoral capacity.
Trevs internal construction is very unusual, it comprises a string of
hexagon -shaped blocks, which means that many of the rooms contain somewhat unusual angles. One story is that the architect believed that women (for whom the college was originally designed) would be intimidated by a building full of right angles and corners. Others have speculated that the building is designed to minimise privacy, encouraging social interaction while making it difficult to 'misbehave', or that it is intended as a modern interpretatiton ofDurham Castle . The original blocks are labelled A-J, though there is no "I Block" to be foundand there is also a modern block of ensuite bedrooms, K Block.Otherwise, the layout is not atypical of an
Oxbridge college, featuring rooms based around staircases, landings and courtyards. The entrance hall is referred to as "the Cobbles", although said cobbles are no longer there having been removed during a recent modern refit (they are now considered priceless college artefacts). Trevs has its own comprehensive library, music rooms, bar, shop (or buttery) and fitness suite; it also possesses a distinctive chapel (the Barn).When the college became fully mixed, one of the central courtyards, 'The Cloisters', was roofed over to provide a new, much enlarged bar. The area above this new roof is nicknamed "The Goldfish Bowl" by students, due to the proximity of the windows looking into other rooms. It is not unknown for students to hang washing across this space, use it as a sunning spot, or to catch glimpses of fellow students in rooms opposite. The Undercroft, a relaxing seating area, links the bar with the rear of the college. All of these areas overlook the central quad (a setting for the college's famous musical events and formal ball) in which grows a magnificent silver-birch tree, garlanded in the summer with a stunning display of roses. To the rear of the college there are landscaped lawns and a tennis court.
The building's unique design, undoubtedly a factor contributing to its success as an institution, has won it a Civic Design Award. Modern additions include an en-suite block (the Macaulay Wing, or K Block) and the Sir James Knott Hall, catering for sports and conference events. A third of the college was fully refurbished in 2005. Approximately 320 fully caterered students can be housed in the building, and around 600 are members of the college, making Trevs the third smallest of
Durham 's seventeen colleges, and the smallest of those maintained by the university council. The college's shield bears the upper half of a horse swimming in water, representing the overcoming of adversity, an image humorously reflected in the title of the college’s alumni magazine, "Hippocampus" [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.jcr/clubsoc/committees.php] .Notable Alumni
*
Mo Mowlam (former cabinet minister)
*Minette Walters (thriller writer)
*Pippa Greenwood (garden expert)
*David Bodycombe (puzzle writer)References
External links
* [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.college/ Trevelyan College] official university website
* [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.jcr/ Trevelyan College JCR] undergraduate student body's website
* [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.mcr/ Trevelyan College MCR] postgraduate student body's website
* [http://www.dur.ac.uk/trevelyan.scr/ Trevelyan College SCR] academic and pastoral body attached to the college
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.