The Rector of UNWE Prof. Dimitar Dimitrov, member of the Board of Rectors of ENGAGE.EU – The European University engaged in societal change, of which UNWE is an integral part, participated in the online kick-off meeting for rectors working under the European Commission’s “European universities” initiative. The event took place in two parts – the first part was a kick-off meeting for rectors of the 24 European Universities selected under the second call, while the second part was intended to bring together the rectors of the 41 European Universities alliances (1st& 2nd calls) and Directors-General responsible for European higher education.
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Ms Themis Christophidou, European Commission, Director-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture (DG EAC) opened the event, highlighting the fact that the 41 alliances, built up by more than 280 universities, serve as an inspiration for the remaining 5,000 higher education institutions in Europe. These universities are the enablers of the transformation in the European higher education – stronger connectivity among HEIs (including European degree, quality assurance, among other things), lifelong learning (including the common European framework to micro-credentials) and inclusion (tackling the social, economic and cultural reasons for exclusion), she pointed out.
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| Ms Themis Christophidou |
Rectors from the first 17 alliances shared their first experiences and lessons learnt from the European Universities selected under the first call. Three students presented their views on student engagement and involvement in European Universities.
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| Rectors of the first alliances approved in 2019 |
The European Commission conveyed to the rectors the clear message about its unconditional support for the European Universities initiative. The Commission has already suggested that this initiative should be fully rolled out under the future Erasmus programme that will run from 2021 to 2027, in close cooperation with other European funding instruments such as Horizon Europe, Digital Europe and the Structural Funds. We will monitor closely the 41 on-going European Universities selected under the first two calls for proposals, and will continue co-developing this initiative in close cooperation with all stakeholders, Member States and the European Parliament. We will also set up an expert working group which will advise the Commission on further policy developments regarding higher education transformation, including on legal reforms related to the European degree, micro-credentials, improved quality assurance, and a possible legal statute for European Universities alliances.
Ms Sophia Eriksson-Waterschoot, European Commission, Director for Youth, Education and Erasmus+ (DG EAC), closed the event with the words that this is not a project, this is our common ambition for transformation and success; a progress we can achieve only through close cooperation. We are well aware that you will face a host of challenges and obstacles along the way. You can rely on our full support.
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| Ms Sophia Eriksson-Waterschoot |
All the news about the ENGAGE.EU - our European University can be seen here.