The Governing Body of St Edmund’s College has elected Professor Chris Young to be the next Master of the College. Succeeding Catherine Arnold OBE, whose five-year term concludes in September 2024, Chris will take up the post from 1 October 2024.

Chris Young is Professor of Modern and Medieval German Studies at the University of Cambridge and Head of the School of Arts and Humanities. He is also Director of the Cambridge DAAD Research Hub for German Studies, and founder and Director of the Cambridge-LMU Strategic Partnership, Cambridge’s first institution-wide partnership with any university. He is both a medievalist and a prize-winning historian of modern sport. He is currently co-curating a major exhibition this summer at the Fitzwilliam Museum on the 1924 Paris Olympics (best known through the film ‘Chariots of Fire’) and serving on the German government’s Historical Commission on the terrorist attack at the 1972 Olympics in Munich.

Professor Chris Young said of his appointment, “St Edmund’s has a unique heritage and global vision within the Cambridge landscape. I am delighted to be able to continue the work of Catherine Arnold and her predecessors and look forward to serving the College and working with its Fellows and students in the next exciting phase of its development”.

As set out in the College’s Statutes, the Master of St Edmund’s presides over the College “as a place of education, religion, learning and research” within the University of Cambridge. The Master will be a champion of our core values of open-mindedness, inclusiveness and integrity.

Professor Chris Young will join the College community as Master Elect in September 2024, and take up the office of Master on 1 October. Chris is looking forward to meeting and getting to know the College community.

The Vice-Master of St Edmund’s College, Dr Gemma Burgess, says “I am delighted to welcome Chris as the next Master. Chris impressed us with his leadership skills and ideas for working together to take the College forward. St Edmund’s is moving into an exciting future and Chris is personally aligned with our strategic vision and values. I am very happy to welcome such an eminent academic as our next Master and look forward to working with Chris to deliver the many exciting plans in the pipeline for the College”.