ity System
· Greek universities have unclear missions, inadequate goals and uncertain futures. There is an unclear division between undergraduate four-year technical institutions and research universities. It is important for the Ministry of Education to initiate a process that will help revisit and clarify the mission of all Greek universities. The ministry should re-establish strategic goals and identify a system of institutions of higher education with memoranda of understanding between these institutions that promote collaboration and coordination rather than encourage competition and friction.
· The Greek Higher Education System is missing a very important component of post secondary education. These are the two-year, Regional Colleges. These vocational institutions play a key role in educating the society and in contributing to economic development. The usefulness and importance of these colleges is in their ability to:
§ Provide a thorough foundation to students who may wish to learn a vocation and to work in professions that do not require higher education.
§ Provide education to students who at present, through the national assessment tests, have no access to a Greek public institution of post-secondary education.
§ Allow students to receive a solid education without having to leave their homes and move to other communities, kilometers away from their own towns and families.
§ Allow the top students to have the means to matriculate to four year colleges under well described articulations and processes.
§ Become an engine of economic development for the surrounding towns and communities
B. Strengthen the Autonomy of the Greek Universities: The University Board
· Universities should forge links with the international academic community to ensure a robust exchange of ideas, to set and maintain standards and to connect with Greek scholars abroad.
· Universities should be autonomous in terms of managing their resources, independently appointing the leadership and administration and making academic decisions that promote their strategic goals. Each institution must be able to manage and support its choices and identify additional resources that will help the institution in achieving its goals.
· The universities should be managed and overseen by an appointed, independent Board of Overseers which is responsible for the well-being of the university (ies) they oversee. There are many examples around the world to select from, but the two most common approaches are: (a) an independent board for each institution or (b) an independent board for a group of institutions that share common characteristics.
· In an effort to strengthen the independence of universities, the rectors, vice-rectors, department heads and other academic administrators should be chosen by dedicated search committees with representation from alumni, faculty, students, non-academic staff and external appointees who enjoy great respect for their professional or civic contributions and their integrity. These committees should be tied to the university governing board or council. University leaders should be appointed with due process and should be regularly reviewed. Their re-appointments should be based on a thorough independent internal and external merit review.
C. Strengthening Faculty Governance: the Faculty Senate
· To achieve a meaningful and successful self-government and succeed in a continuous improvement of academic quality, each institution should have strong faculty governance. Toward this end, a new system is proposed that will include a Senate for each institution. If the universities are grouped into systems by mission or by any other attribute, it is appropriate to also consider a System Senate that is comprised of all the chairs and co-chairs of the participating university senates and other faculty specifically elected for participation in this Senate.
· Academic appointments in addition to faculty reviews and faculty promotions should be the prerogative of the Faculty Senate with the decisions (appointments or promotions) to receive revi