Catherine Stihler: MEP, St Andrews grad, and Raisin weekend fan

If ever a woman loved St Andrews, it’s our new rector, Catherine Stihler.

Catherine not only received her undergraduate degree from St Andrews, but stayed on as Student Association President (one of the five women to ever hold the position), and then signed up for yet another year as an M.Litt in International Security Studies.

In addition to the impressive CV, Catherine also met her husband (an American) at St Andrews, marrying him in St Salvator’s Chapel. They still live in Fife.

Catherine now has two sons, one of them named Andrew.

(Catherine and her family)

I spent about an hour with Catherine on Monday, where I interrogated her on her plans for the university, her views on women in politics, and her own Raisin experience (her mum dressed her up as a mummy, in case you were curious). I also unabashedly pushed my own agenda, mostly by requesting that we get Reading Week back (“I can’t believe you don’t have reading week”) and can we please, for the love of God, get our exam schedule earlier (she’s all for it).

As the UK’s youngest MEP, Catherine is absurdly accomplished. Yet I felt oddly at ease talking with her, giving credence to her goal of being an “open and accessible” rector. We talked about everything from policy at St Andrews to the American midterm elections to the importance of accessible childcare.

(Catherine at her own graduation)

Here are six things I learned about Catherine:

1.) She’s keeping Raisin. With the wild drinking and accidents that ensue (read about this year’s carnage here), Raisin has always been controversial. But Catherine is a strong supporter of all St Andrews traditions and insists that “Raisin is such an important tradition here… I would hate to see it cancelled.”

2.) Catherine wants more women to run for Student Association President, and for political positions in general. “I honestly could not believe that was true,” Catherine said when we discussed the Student Association’s five (five!) women presidents. “I hope that we see some change, hopefully in the next couple of years.” She also had some inspiring insight about women in high powered careers in general, stating that “we just have to keep fighting the good fight, and hoping for change…if I can do it, you guys can all do it.”

3.) She’s a brave and dedicated politician. Catherine ran for MEP when she was just 25 years old (I rapidly developed an inferiority complex as the interview progressed). She ran for the position because she wanted to serve. “What motivated me – I wanted to make a difference, I wanted to change things.”

(Catherine on far right)

4.) Catherine is devoted to widening participation. Born in Dunfermline, Catherine plans on returning to her own high school to encourage people to apply. “If I can come here and have these experiences, so can you, don’t let this hold you back.” She thinks that St Andrews “is an experience like no other” and believes that there’s a lot we can do to encourage a wider variety of applicants.

5.) She really, really wants to fix housing. “We have to focus on the accommodation situation.” We discussed how the lack of guaranteed housing and the exorbitant prices could pose a huge deterrent for potential applicants, and really added a precariousness that was particularly unfair to students moving here from abroad. Catherine believes that the housing issue is at the root of many of our problems at St Andrews, and is intent on finding ways to fix it.

6.) Catherine is very concerned about students’ mental health. We talked about how difficult this age can be, and the importance of accessible services, such as Nightline, for students. “Sometimes the most vulnerable people are the most difficult to reach…the support structure needs to be there.”

Catherine might have breezed through the Rector election process, but I am confident she would have won regardless. She loves St Andrews (“my whole experience of being here was transforming, and made me who I really am today”) and I, for one, am very excited to welcome her back.

(Me, fangirl-ing with Catherine)