Academic development process progressing rapidly

The academic development process is now well under way, and staff are increasingly interested in participating.

The second round of the academic strategy meetings took place on 18 March. Participants in these discussions expressed a desire to establish academic process working groups as a forum for discussing a range of issues in greater depth, including the promotion of interdisciplinary and interfaculty researcher networks, the organisation and structure of research activities and programmes, student and staff mobility and flexibility, and the educational, teaching and study environments of the future.

As a result, nine working groups have been established. Students, staff members and university management representatives will participate in the groups. The groups’ recommendations will be considered in May.

On Monday 22 March, AU staff members participated in an after work meeting in the Main Hall. The meeting provided an opportunity for staff members to ask the Rector’s Office and deans questions about the academic development process. Several main academic areas also organised local events at which staff members followed the meeting online. The university management team would like to thank all members of the AU community for their support and commitment, and for their valuable comments and questions, both during the meeting itself and via email. A video of the meeting in its entirety can be seen on the academic development process homepage (slides in English). The answers to questions which were not dealt with at the meeting will be published on the homepage as soon as possible.

Over the coming weeks debate and discussion will continue at the main academic areas in a range of local forums, including homepages and meetings. An extraordinary meeting of the Main Liaison Committee (HSU) has been scheduled for 12 April, in order to enable university management to continue engaging in the broadest possible dialogue with the AU community.

For the latest information on the process, please consult the English academic development process homepage, which will be updated regularly.

Academic development process meeting for students at the Student House (Studenternes Hus)

On Tuesday 6 April, Rector Lauritz B. Holm-Nielsen will meet with Aarhus University students to discuss the academic development process. The meeting has been arranged by the Student Council.

The Rector’s Office wishes to emphasise that no decisions regarding concrete outcomes of the development process have been made at this point. The process of exploring strategies to strengthen the university in the areas of teaching and research is still open-ended, and the university's future structure has not yet been determined.

The academic development process is not about cutbacks and economic rationalisation; rather, the process is motivated by such goals as creating an institutional foundation for more interdisciplinary study programmes and interdisciplinary and interfaculty collaboration, making it easier for students to design individual study programmes and improving the inner education market.

Major construction project at Aarhus University

The academic development process is taking place concurrently with the process of planning the development of Aarhus University’s physical infrastructure towards 2028. According to the plan, a multiple-story building on the Lille Barnow property at the corner of Nordre Ringgade and Nørrebrogade will become a central locus for the university's many activities.

To guarantee that the university will continue to provide a framework for creative research environments and to accommodate the projected increase in the size of its student body, the Lille Barnow-facility will include large lecture halls as well as classrooms and conference rooms.

The building is envisioned as the heart of a new intellectual, social and cultural meeting place for staff, students and the city's residents; elements such as a café, a bookshop and libraries are being considered for inclusion in the project. Potential users of the facility from the university are scheduled to meet with experts and architects on 25 March to discuss their visions and desires for the university’s future physical infrastructure.

The invitation to tender for the 61,000 m² construction project is expected to be issued in December 2010.

Read the prospectus for the Lille Barnow property (in Danish only).

Action plan for continuing and further education

Aarhus University has approved a two-year action plan to strengthen continuing and further education. The plan contains four concrete proposals to ensure the successful implementation of the many new initiatives in this area:

• A committee on continuing and further education under the Study Committee.
• Promote the visibility of five prioritised themes.
• Improved administrative support with regard to the development of continuing and further education activities.
• Knowledge sharing on new structures to move the process forward.

The plan is based on reports from three working groups as well as input from the reference group for continuing and further education. The action plan will be evaluated after two years.

Towards a less complex IT area

Aarhus University has approved a joint IT strategy and an action plan for the IT area for 2010 and 2011.

AU IT reviewed the university's IT systems over the past quarter, and it has become clear that there is a need to work towards a less complex and more standardised IT infrastructure. The IT strategy is intended to ensure that primary IT operations continue at the present high level of quality as well as to ensure optimal support of both academic and technical/administrative staff in their daily work.

The lights will be turned off on 27 March

Aarhus University will participate in the third annual global climate event Earth Hour at 8:30 pm on 27 March.  WWF and Trygfonden encourage the entire population of Denmark to turn off the lights for Earth Hour to show their support for and engagement in the climate issue.

Calendar

• 25 March: ’Vision seminar’ on the Lille Barnow project
• 6  April: Open meeting for students on the academic development process
• 8  April: Meeting with the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation
• 12  April: Extraordinary HSU meeting
• 13  April: Academic development process workshops
• 22-24  April: Festival of Research
• 26  April: Minister for the Environment Ms Karen Ellemann to visit the National Environmental Research Institute, Aarhus University (NERI)
• 29  April: Annual boat race in University Park
• 25-26 May Two-day academic development process seminar at Sandbjerg Gods  
• 28 May Rigmor og Carl Holst-Knudsens Videnskabspris award ceremony
• 14 June: HSU meeting
• 17 June: University Board meeting
• 17 June: Rector’s summer speech

Kind regards

The Rector’s Office

24 March 2010

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.