Advisor, Presidential Commissioner for the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Support of Education, Science and Sports Olha Budnyk announced the launch of the pilot cycle of the "Leaders of University Transformation for Ukraine's Recovery" program, aimed at shaping a new progressive generation of higher education institution leaders and enhancing the competitiveness of Ukrainian universities.
The program was initiated by the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Support of Education, Science and Sports, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine and the British Council in Ukraine.
It is intended for educational institution leaders and seeks to create a high-quality leadership reserve equipped with modern competencies to strengthen the institutional capacity of Ukrainian universities.
"One of the key tasks of the Fund of the President of Ukraine for Support of Education, Science, and Sports is the internationalization of education. Taking it to a qualitatively new level will allow Ukrainian universities to have competitive advantages over foreign educational institutions, meet the quality requirements for educational services from Ukrainian students who require special skills and knowledge for the effective recovery of the state, as well as increase attractiveness to foreign students," Olha Budnyk said.
The program is also aimed at creating opportunities for joint research with international partners and universities, providing mobility for Ukrainian students, ensuring the financial sustainability and autonomy of universities, and more.
The program offers training conducted by both British partners (Cardiff University) and the best Ukrainian experts, intellectuals, and business trainers. This is intended to initiate a new level of support for leaders of Ukrainian higher education institutions.
During the training, participants will go through four modules, each dedicated to a relevant theme: "The New Role of Universities," "Strategies and Changes," "Leadership, Autonomy," "Finances, Projects."
"The creation of conditions and the development of modern competencies in the leaders of higher education institutions, which will make real competitiveness for Ukrainian higher education institutions possible, is one of the goals of the 'Leaders of University Transformation for Ukraine's Recovery' program. Education is an ongoing process and is necessary at all levels of leadership to ensure the growth of the quality of educational services," Deputy Minister of Education and Science of Ukraine Mykhailo Vynnytsky said.
The pilot cycle of the program will run from October 2023 to February 2024. Six leading universities in Ukraine are participating in it: Zaporizhzhia National University, Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Mariupol State University, Dnipro University of Technology, Lviv Polytechnic National University, and V.N. Karazin Kharkiv National University.
It is expected that after the completion of the program, the role of universities as centers for regional development and recovery, including the development of educational programs based on the experience gained in the conditions of war, will be strengthened.