EUA sets up new Ukraine task force

The aim of the task force is to provide strategic advice and guidance to support Ukrainian universities, both individually and collectively, during and in their recovery from the effects of the war in Ukraine, and in the reconstruction and long-term development of the higher education system. The task force has been established for a period of two years in the first instance. It will be chaired by Ivanka Popović, former Rector of the University of Belgrade in Serbia and EUA Board member.

Based on the principle of academic solidarity, the group will provide input, recommendations, and support on sector-specific issues. These can include, but are not necessarily limited to: governance and leadership; learning and teaching, including digitally-enhanced and distance learning; quality assurance; research and innovation strategies; system restructuring; and strategies to counter ‘brain drain’, a major concern for the Ukrainian higher education system.

The task force is composed of the following individuals:

• Gerhard Duda, Former Head of the Brussels office of the German Rectors’ Conference, Germany
• Milena Králíčková, Rector of Charles University Prague, Czech Republic
• Jerzy Lis, Member of the Presidium and Head of the International Affairs Committee of the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland (KRASP), and Rector of AGH University of Science and Technology, Krakow, Poland
• Jana Mojžišová, Rector of the University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice, Slovakia
• James Rodgers, Assistant Vice-President for Global Engagement, City, University of London, UK
• Mykola Trofymenko, Deputy Chair of the Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine, and Rector of Mariupol State University, Ukraine
• Anne Weyembergh, Vice-Rector for External Relations and Cooperation, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Belgium
• Mychailo Wynnyckyj, Associate Professor at the National University “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy” and Former Head of Secretariat of the National Agency for Higher Education Quality Assurance, Ukraine

Task force members were nominated by the national rectors’ conferences, EUA’s collective members, including the Union of Rectors of Higher Education Institutions of Ukraine, which recently joined EUA. The first meeting of the task force will take place after the summer.