Presentation of the university's plans for the future

The rector’s summer speech will focus on the academic development process this year. On 17 June, Rector Holm-Nielsen will communicate and comment on the decisions reached about the process at the University Board meeting scheduled for the morning of the same day. The speech will take place in the Main Hall (Aulaen) rather than the Lakeside Lecture Theatres this year.

All staff members are invited to attend the speech. Even if you are unable to attend the event in the Main Hall, you can still participate: the rector's speech will be streamed live.

The summer speech will take place in the Main Hall on Nordre Ringgade, Århus C, on Thursday 17 June at 3 pm.

Reactions to the academic development process

The Rector's Office is still working to complete the recommendation which will be submitted to the University Board, and the recent Sandbjerg seminar has provided valuable input.  Sixteen seminar participants have agreed to share their thoughts on the academic development process in general and their reactions to the draft recommendation in particular in a series of video interviews. These interviews are now available for viewing. 

Participants include Henriette Korsgaard, the chair of ASB Studenterforum, who expresses her views on the consequences of a closer relationship between ASB and SAM, and Center Director Niels Egelund (DPU, Centre for Strategic Research in Education and Competence Building), who expresses his thoughts on the process.

• Watch the video interviews (in Danish)

Recognition of Århus entrepreneurs

Several representatives from Aarhus University were among the finalists in this year's Venture Cup for entrepreneurs honoured on Thursday 3 June. Two startups with roots in Aarhus University research cultures, InvitroQ and Kkloud, won in the categories Life Science & Medtech and Software Concepts. The award-winning innovator businesses received a DKK 50,000 prize. The Rector's Office is extremely pleased with these results, as the university has made considerable efforts to foster a positive environment for entrepreneurship, technological development and knowledge transfer in recent years. Aarhus University was represented in three of the five categories at Venture Cup.

InVitroQ is the product of the innovative iNANO research culture. The company is working to develop a new type of petri dish which will make it possible to monitor the growth of human stem cells.  This invention could have great significance for the development of new treatments for a range of different illnesses including Parkinson's and Alzheimer's. Two students from the Department of Computer Science stand behind Kkloud, a file-sharing service that makes it possible to share original content on the internet.

• Press release (in Danish)

Denmark's largest research grant database goes online

Researchers at Aarhus University can now access Denmark's largest and most sophisticated online database of research grant sources. The Research Support Office (Aarhus University Hospital and Aarhus University) has developed the database, which contains approximately 600 foundations and sources of grants at present. The number of entries is expected to increase significantly in coming years.

The database offers a range of search options which allow researchers to find information about individual grant givers, including research fields supported, deadlines, application requirements, budgets, websites and contact information.

Researchers can also create a personal profile in the database which gives them access to email reminders on updates and application deadlines for selected foundations. Researchers can also receive news and information about new foundations which support research in their field.

• Link to the ResearchFunding.net database

PhD education in focus in annual report

The Aarhus University Research Foundation has published its 2009 annual report. The focus of the report is doctoral education, which is explored from different perspectives in a series of articles, including portraits of six award-winning PhD students and reports from the Sandbjerg Manor course facility.

Copies of the 2009 annual report are available from the Aarhus University Research Foundation. The report can also be read online.

• Read the Aarhus University Research Foundation's 2009 annual report (in Danish)

Double stone-laying ceremony at Katrinebjerg

Forskningsfondens Ejendomsselskab A/S (the research foundation property company) would like to invite all members of the AU community to attend a foundation stone-laying ceremony for two new IT City Katrinebjerg construction projects. The projects mark the further development of East Jutland's leading centre for digital research and innovation.

  IT-hjørnet ('the IT corner') at Finlandsgade 21-23 will cover over 8,300 m², and will house facilities for the Department of Computer Science, the Department of Information and Media Studies and the Alexandra Institute. The Engineering College of Aarhus'  9000 m² building at Finlandsgade 24-26 will become the base for the college's IT and electronics programme in Århus. The Engineering College of Aarhus (IHA) and Aarhus University run a joint partnership, the Aarhus School of Engineering (ASE).

Speakers at the ceremony will include Mayor Nicolai Wammen (Municipality of Århus), Rector Holm-Nielsen, who is the chairman of Forskningsfondens Ejendomsselskab A/S, Dean Bodil Due (HUM) and Dean Ove Poulsen (IHA). Coffee will be served after the ceremony.

Education topic of latest meeting of Regeringens Vækstforum (the goverment's growth forum)

Higher, faster and better education as a motor for growth were the key terms in the debate in the government's growth forum on 3 and 4 June. Rector Holm-Nielsen represented Aarhus University.

Although five central debate themes were on the programme, the discussion centred on primary school education.

The themes for discussion were: How can we get more - and better - education for our money? How can the primary school system be improved? How do we ensure that more students complete an upper secondary school education?

How do we improve the quality and tempo of higher education? How can Denmark get more out of its talents?

Regeringens Vækstforum consists of twenty-seven leading businesspeople, reseachers and administrators.

Farewell reception for Poul Bonde

After over forty years as an employee of Aarhus University, International Centre Senior Consultant Poul Bonde is retiring on 1 August. He was formerly head of the international area, which was previously known as International Secretariat.

Poul Bonde's farewell reception will take place on Tuesday 8 June in the lobby of the Faculty of Theology building from 2 pm to 4 pm.

Calendar

• 4 June: Annual celebration at the Faculty of Social Sciences
• 7 June: University management meeting
• 7 June: University Board meeting
• 10 June: Main Liaison Committee meeting
• 11 June: Summer celebration at NERI, Roskilde
• 11 June: Annual celebration at the Faculty of Humanities
• 11 June: Annual celebration at the Faculty of Social Sciences
• 17 June: University Board meeting
• 17 June: The rector's summer speech, 3 pm in the Main Hall
• 30 June: University management meeting

Kind regards
The Rector's Office
4 June 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.