Oxford Brookes University theological activities on the site, although theology was withdrawn in 2015. In October 2003, Oxford Brookes University became the first university in the world to be awarded Fairtrade status. Baroness Kennedy served as the university's Chancellor from 1993 to 2001. In 2007, Graham Upton retired as Vice-Chancellor and his successor, Janet Beer, was inaugurated in September. In July 2008, Shami Chakrabarti, Director of Liberty, replaced Jon Snow as chancellor of the university. In March 2015 Alistair Fitt was inaugurated as Vice-Chancellor, replacing Janet Beer. Dame Katherine Grainger British Olympic rower also replaced Shami Chakrabarti as Chancellor. Katherine is Britain's most
Yitzhaq Shami Damascus. He survived the 1929 Hebron massacre by hiding in the home the Mani family. Shami was deeply disturbed by the incident, and signed a petition condemning Arab propaganda efforts and urging a British investigation together with the chief rabbis of Hebron and other figures. Shami eventually left Hebron, settling in first in Tiberias where he worked as a teacher, then in Haifa, where he worked as a teacher and court clerk. He continued to miss his native city, and in a 1932 letter to his lifelong friend David Avishar, expressed a desire to write a book on the city's