News from the Rector's Office no. 40/2010
Public consultation on proposals for new departmental structure
A round of public consultation regarding proposals for the future organisation of the two new faculties, Science and Technology and Health Sciences, has been initiated. Staff members and students are encouraged to review and comment on the proposals which were submitted by the new faculties' working groups last week.
The deadline for staff and student input is 3 December.
The School of Business and Social Sciences recently concluded a round of public consultation which resulted in fifteen contributions. These will now be incorporated in the work of developing the new academic structure.
The Faculty of Arts has been granted an extension of the deadline in order to give Dean Mette Thunø who comes to AU from a position at the University of Copenhagen, more time to familiarise herself with the academic development process. The public consultation at the Faculty of Arts is scheduled to begin on 31 January 2011.
Two new student representatives elected to the University Board
Two new student representatives were elected to the University Board on Friday 26 November. After an election with record-high participation levels, the new representatives are Maria Juhler-Larsen, Aarhus University Student Council's leading candidate, and Christian Thyrrestrup, who ran for ASB Studenterforum. Both representatives are students at the Aarhus School of Business and Social Science.
They will replace Anna Juul Bager and Maja Viola Buskbjerg on 1 February 2011.
Student representatives are elected for one-year terms. The turnout for this year's election was 21.4%, 6.34% higher than in last year's election.
- Read more about the election (in Danish only)
Propose candidates to the University Board
In addition to new student representatives, it is time for AU to elect three new external Board members to replace Jens Bigum, Arne Rolighed and Johannes Riis when they step down on 1 February, as all three Board members have served the maximum term of eight years.
The Chairman of the Aarhus University Board, Jens Bigum, encourages staff members and students to propose candidates for the post of external Board member. The requirements for the Board's members are described in Chapter Two of the Rules and Regulations of Aarhus University.
Before being considered by the Board, all proposals will be discussed in an advisory group consisting of two members appointed by the university's committee of representatives, two representatives appointed from academic staff, and two members appointed by the Board.
The Board has eleven members. In addition to the six external members, there are two representatives of academic staff, one representative of technical-administrative staff, and two full-time AU students.
Proposals regarding candidates to the position of external Board member should be sent to jens.bigum@adm.au.dk before 15 December 2010.
Effective knowledge transfer to SMBs
Minister of Science Charlotte Sahl-Madsen has appointed Pro-Rector Søren E. Frandsen to a panel of experts charged with discovering ways to make the transfer of knowledge from public sector knowledge institutions to small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) even more efficient. The expert panel will investigate how knowledge can be transferred to more SMBs and how businesses might draw on a broader range of knowledge - for example, in relation to processes, marketing, management and technology.
- Read the press release from the Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation (in Danish only)
Strategic collaboration with the Central Denmark Region
Aarhus University has just signed a partnership agreement with the Central Denmark Region on regional business development and healthcare welfare benefits.
Promoting innovation and entrepreneurship in the region are two goals of the partnership. Aarhus University's new status as Denmark's Entrepreneurial University will help further these goals. The partnership agreement also includes initatives to support the internationalisation of the region's businesses, educational institutions and research, as well as increasing the number of young people who complete advanced degrees.
In relation to welfare benefits, the agreement is intended to ensure a high-quality, integrated healthcare system as well as to ensure and develop a high level of professional and research training for healthcare professionals at the university and in the healthcare system at large.
The agreement will come into effect on 1 January 2011 and will be reviewed every other year. The agreement also opens up the possibility of including additional strategic partners.
Regional Guidance Centers to visit AU
On Tuesday 30 November, study programme advisors from Regional Guidance Centers all over the country will visit Aarhus University. There are seven Regional Guidance Centers which offer guidance and information about advanced degree programmes to prospective students. The advisors will learn more about specific degree programmes as well as student guidance and recruitment intitatives, studieguide.au.dk and AUs plans to develop the 'inner education market' in order to give individual students more flexibility in designing their course of study.
The visit is intended to prepare advisors at the Regional Guidance Centers to explain what AU has to offer to prospective students in all parts of the country.
Young researchers honoured
Two young AU researchers have just received recognition for their work. Assistant Professor Jakob Lauring of the Aarhus School of Business Department of Management has been awarded the Tietgen Prize by the think tank DEA for his research on managing multicultural organisations and his extensive publications.
Lotte Holmegaard has been awarded the Lundbeck Foundation's Talent Prize for her PhD project at the Department of Chemistry. Her project was aimed at making it possible to videotape how the structure of molecules changes during a chemical reaction.
Earlier this year, Tomasz K. Wojdacz and Søren Dinesen Østergaard also received the Talent Prize for their research at the Faculty of Health Sciences.
Each of the four young researchers has received a cash prize of DKK 100,000.
Calendar
- 6 December: University management group meeting
- 7 December: Universities Denmark holds a debate meeting on quality in education
- 15 December: Farewell reception for Dean Just Jensen, the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences
- 16 December: Meeting of University Board
- 16 December: Farewell reception for Dean Søren Mogensen, the Faculty of Health Sciences
- 3 December: University management group meeting
- 6 January: reception for the four new deans
- 17 January: Meeting of the University Board
Kind regards
The Rector's Office
The Rector’s Office publishes a newsletter every week. This newsletter includes a brief description of current activities and discussions. You can sign up for the Danish version of the newsletter at http://info.au.dk/medarbbreve, after which you will receive an e-mail whenever the newsletter is issued.
If you would like to subscribe to the English version of News from the Rector’s Office, please go to http://info.au.dk/medarbbreve/index.asp?sprog=en. The English version of News from the Rector’s Office is available at http://www.au.dk/en/uni/rectorate/newsletter. You can read previous editions of News from the Rector’s Office at http://www.au.dk/en/about/uni/rektorat/newsletter/2010/.