EQAR General Assembly convenes in Sofia

EQAR’s 14th General Assembly (GA) was held in Sofia on 23 April, in conjunction with the BFUG meeting on 24-25 April.

Hosted by the Bulgarian Ministry of Education and Science, representatives of EQAR Members convened to review, discuss and adopt the EQAR Strategy 2018-2022 as well as the message to the EHEA Paris Ministerial conference that will take place on 24-25 May.

Yearly recurring agenda items such as the annual accounts, the budget, the workplan and the annual report were presented by the Board and considered and approved by the General Assembly. Other topics included a progress report on the Database of External Quality Assurance results (DEQAR) as well as an Analysis of Register Committee Decisions.

During a Thematic Session, two keynote presentations were given, followed by lively discussions:

• Enhancing Quality through Innovative Policy & Practice (EQUIP) Project: Key Messages for Policy-Makers.
  Tia Loukkola, Director for Institutional Development, EUA
• The European Education Area – Current EU Initiatives and their Link with Quality Assurance.
  Vanessa Debiais-Sainton, Head of Unit, Higher Education Policy, DG Education and Culture, European Commission

The General Assembly elected the following Executive Board for a two-year mandate as per 1 May 2018. According to the agreed annual rotation, the Executive Board will assume the following functions, with Karl Dittrich as President:

• Re-elected: Michal Karpisek (EURASHE) – Vice-President
• Re-elected: Tia Loukkola (EUA) – Treasurer
• Newly elected: Adam Gajek – (ESU) – Member
• Re-elected: Maria Kelo (ENQA) – Member