Rector Nikolic: Education Ministry Does Not Own Higher Education

Mirjana Nikolic Photo: Youtube/Printscreen

The rector of the University of Arts in Belgrade, Mirjana Nikolic, has stated that “in a situation when the relevant Ministry (of Education) should be thinking strategically about developing educational policies, preparing and realizing action plans, following educational trends and defining risks, and laying down the path for higher education, the universities are being questioned, interrogated and are in constant fear of repression, under threats of being shut down or restructured.”

“The Ministry of Education does not own higher education; it is a channel that, in cooperation with the representatives of universities, creates official policies, with a mandate to disburse the taxpayers’ money according to the rules and priorities and be responsible for the system’s functioning,” Nikolic said in an interview to the Danas daily, commenting on the Ministry’s announcement that the state should have the final word in the functioning of institutions of higher education.

Asked to comment on the prognoses in a part of the public about the current authorities wishing to destroy the state-owned universities and replace the objecting professors with those who would “toe the line,” Nikolic stated that she “genuinely” did not wish “to think about and believe in a dystopian future of Serbia without state-owned higher education.” “Attacks and pressures do exist, but I honestly believe that there is at least a minimal amount of fear of the fatal consequences of decisions that would lead in that direction. A responsible and self-conscious society must think about, consider and accept (or not) criticism, especially if it comes from young, uncompromising educated people who want to have a future in their own country,” Nikolic concluded.