tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6647938871165684602024-03-13T05:19:17.711+01:00Life is a Journey of LearningNobody can take away your education, nobody can deny it.Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.comBlogger290125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-30908647486787691512024-01-02T16:18:00.008+01:002024-01-05T20:35:04.346+01:00Gender and Economics: Dr. Claudia Goldin's 2023 Nobel Prize in Economics<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclGjCuqy5kxYkV_xNfM3_8aiUjeMTZWOf8n9tYlSocHrOhqA8BQcWAHua8sgMmb7AIcqNn0gVYOtW2LSav4wCVOEUQ7HJtNfiWKKcB0GdHhw7XqempLAlGbiLrqV4MLAxdHbNtjErTU97DVyQkI7QQBZmic3b5VGONzOXqK3KuIBviGi2xWX3fedLwn4/s592/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-05-23.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="330" data-original-width="592" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhclGjCuqy5kxYkV_xNfM3_8aiUjeMTZWOf8n9tYlSocHrOhqA8BQcWAHua8sgMmb7AIcqNn0gVYOtW2LSav4wCVOEUQ7HJtNfiWKKcB0GdHhw7XqempLAlGbiLrqV4MLAxdHbNtjErTU97DVyQkI7QQBZmic3b5VGONzOXqK3KuIBviGi2xWX3fedLwn4/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-05-23.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>Here is the link to the <a href="http://www.youtube.com/@albertschram" target="_blank">video introduction</a> on my channel.<br /><br />Good day, I am Albert Schram and I hold a doctorate in Economic History from the European University Institute. </p><p>Today, we will be discussing this year's Nobel Prize in Economics winner, Dr. Claudia Goldin, and analyzing her groundbreaking contributions to the field of economic history. As a bit of background, I grew up in the Netherlands where my father worked as a physicist at Utrecht University. Through his connections, I was frequently exposed to Nobel laureates from a young age, many of whom did not encourage my interest in exploring economic history or the intersections between the economic sciences and humanities. One physicist in particular always liked to jokingly say “You know, there is even a Nobel prize in economics”. Leaving the issue of whether economics is a science aside, let’s dive into Goldin’s revolutionary research, and what it reveals about the ongoing development of economics as an intellectual pursuit.</p><span><a name="more"></a></span><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZNK3LtUjcAmLVwyQnkoxjDN77sqDWwTuf9UmMvME_BRnbMr0gSN7zFg1DenXNJnWLaKcEpSCAj96Axt_Q-I6ST0QKNuvQrRk_ux5F2ZR2sE8oarct8thJF63Syzn760pGiZedWlEOu4Pgk6r8PQMCLmd4A4vckPih2PwS9wyeYqFvaD-WwqalxkFcvQ/s608/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-06-13.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="334" data-original-width="608" height="176" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjEZNK3LtUjcAmLVwyQnkoxjDN77sqDWwTuf9UmMvME_BRnbMr0gSN7zFg1DenXNJnWLaKcEpSCAj96Axt_Q-I6ST0QKNuvQrRk_ux5F2ZR2sE8oarct8thJF63Syzn760pGiZedWlEOu4Pgk6r8PQMCLmd4A4vckPih2PwS9wyeYqFvaD-WwqalxkFcvQ/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-06-13.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>Dr. Claudia Goldin of Harvard University was awarded the 2022 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for her work advancing our understanding of women's labor market outcomes over the past century. She becomes only the third female economist to win the prize, following Elinor Ostrom in 2009 and Esther Duflo in 2019. Lesser known predecessors who conducted pioneering studies on related topics in the 1990s include Carla Eugenia Nuñez for Spain, and Vera Zamagni for Italy. Goldin’s prize is especially impactful given the field of economics remains particularly male-dominated, with less than 25% of tenured professors globally identifying as women compared to over 40% across academia overall. Even textbook examples have historically strongly favored featuring men's names and scenarios over women's.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-fVVherFNCe7Zi0xGLINiQBiCafTzGT942eKv1X7hhaD-AF7Ie7pZHdO2M1mnGANCWZ0DuT3Izo2HjKA-QVWYjf_EmFC1DYh7A-wgxutDPs-U48GrEL7YIfX7kEdzK8W9LAR-TBC3MdcjZiS484c2FKcHqulI2O-VTfszsx35GQSOUSYs6bO1TXl3LEY/s595/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-06-49.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="336" data-original-width="595" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-fVVherFNCe7Zi0xGLINiQBiCafTzGT942eKv1X7hhaD-AF7Ie7pZHdO2M1mnGANCWZ0DuT3Izo2HjKA-QVWYjf_EmFC1DYh7A-wgxutDPs-U48GrEL7YIfX7kEdzK8W9LAR-TBC3MdcjZiS484c2FKcHqulI2O-VTfszsx35GQSOUSYs6bO1TXl3LEY/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-06-49.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p>Goldin’s body of research spans decades and analyzes women's changing employment patterns from multifaceted angles, and connects this analysis with insights from labor and education economics. A consistent theme throughout her work has been scrutinizing the complex causes behind persistent wage gaps between male and female workers. In the 20th century, as women rapidly outpaced men in educational attainment levels, earnings disparities stubbornly remained. By examining employment trends through different economic eras defined by agricultural, industrial, and service sector shifts, Goldin discovered women's participation followed a recurring U-shaped pattern influenced heavily by prevailing technological innovations and societal norms.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsfqNYNp0PJ2IoJ-9lU77vsne_5wTA-UjYzUbzsQnX4p8mfJYyLOhTB3Y_WBoAPCjJz7YdMhXV3BzvrK7NyUq-yAeUKNbxEEbWqLm0VymREyV2H9Xo5PsO7Xh28LE9kszNAosgDR2N_IGehMoL6CaWoOPhP-kG0rrIxX5_X76QSh32n4RFhzwW8vEPNk0/s592/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-07-10.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="334" data-original-width="592" height="181" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsfqNYNp0PJ2IoJ-9lU77vsne_5wTA-UjYzUbzsQnX4p8mfJYyLOhTB3Y_WBoAPCjJz7YdMhXV3BzvrK7NyUq-yAeUKNbxEEbWqLm0VymREyV2H9Xo5PsO7Xh28LE9kszNAosgDR2N_IGehMoL6CaWoOPhP-kG0rrIxX5_X76QSh32n4RFhzwW8vEPNk0/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-07-10.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>The details and implications of Goldin’s famous U-shape graph are truly fascinating. During America's agrarian past, high fertility rates and family farm labor needs meant married women's economic participation stayed relatively high. However, as factories dominated the late 1800s, rigid ideologies of separate gender roles took hold, and wives were incentivized to withdraw from the paid labor force once married or after bearing children. This low point extended into the early 1900s as well. Things began changing rapidly starting in the 1970s, which Goldin identified as a revolutionary period. Women started postponing marriage, prioritizing higher education, and leveraging new opportunities made possible by the widespread availability of reliable birth control like the Pill. Their workforce participation responded positively as a result.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPLjXDq-nxL1QoP2jvsctC6kkUi-VGxflhJy2atEay9h-3z2lwOzD_QqssWIIeRneG09bpcUiSJFvvI-w2bWo9YvN57IW-0Ji8NCj-hmv43gbtVgBUMc428YvOIrqswmqxL4PGZT0BpcfqmA0tU2wvi4hNnhS46sDQ3GvSL-9SPS_9AP2NknKRoaM9Ry8/s593/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-08-15.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="330" data-original-width="593" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPLjXDq-nxL1QoP2jvsctC6kkUi-VGxflhJy2atEay9h-3z2lwOzD_QqssWIIeRneG09bpcUiSJFvvI-w2bWo9YvN57IW-0Ji8NCj-hmv43gbtVgBUMc428YvOIrqswmqxL4PGZT0BpcfqmA0tU2wvi4hNnhS46sDQ3GvSL-9SPS_9AP2NknKRoaM9Ry8/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-08-15.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p>By unpacking these dynamic, long-term cultural shifts, Goldin demonstrated how the structure and composition of modern families have substantively redefined women's relationship with the labor market. However, she also acknowledged progress towards equality has been uneven and nonlinear. Today, American and European women still only earn 60-80 cents for every dollar earned by men in similar roles. Much of the residual gap stems from steep “motherhood penalties” faced after a woman's first child is born. Goldin’s work laid the foundation for new policies aiming to support female labor participation at all career stages while also advocating innovative workplace arrangements flexible enough to accommodate child-rearing responsibilities. Her research illustrates the magnitude of societal transformation still needed. She is hopeful about the future of work, pointing out that online working has introduced some flexibility into labour markets that can favour women.</p><p>[Dr. Goldin’s colleagues praise her trailblazing efforts to establish economic history as a respected field of quantitative study. By incorporating insights from demography, sociology, and other social science lenses, she helped enrich mainstream economic modeling beyond its initial limitations and assumptions of a gender-neutral labor force. Goldin has also been a hugely influential role model and mentor for younger female scholars pursuing related topics. Although some have critiqued her work for potentially overlooking the risks of certain “gender equity” policies, her preeminent career achievements and enduring contributions to shaping public debates around these complex issues are undeniable. Goldin continues academically producing at a high level well into her 70s, inspiring new generations to think creatively and rigorously about optimizing economic opportunities for all.]</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4VrhBJEbCOxR4tKeV_k16WetYxh8rPIkJFPjviwPTsGHOnj77svNlsSaD_DEVKSCIlaEsdl1wGo9QFF8CtnRrb0svHd0N02cJ2rF8uTiknjSVcqIV9q5vKzPR4RFAip2L37zR0tdnnpAz4lAL0F8hk7BdmhwAfKjfX4IryseeuB2fiGZFuAtoV-4Rfw/s597/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-08-34.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="597" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiw4VrhBJEbCOxR4tKeV_k16WetYxh8rPIkJFPjviwPTsGHOnj77svNlsSaD_DEVKSCIlaEsdl1wGo9QFF8CtnRrb0svHd0N02cJ2rF8uTiknjSVcqIV9q5vKzPR4RFAip2L37zR0tdnnpAz4lAL0F8hk7BdmhwAfKjfX4IryseeuB2fiGZFuAtoV-4Rfw/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-08-34.png" width="320" /></a></div><p><br /></p><p>In sum, this year's Nobel Prize affirms that data-driven economic history maintains vital relevance for addressing real-world problems today. The field has recognized its initial models fell short by excluding societal, psychological, and institutional factors disproportionately affecting specific demographic groups. As a response, leading researchers like Dr. Goldin broadened analysis to incorporate multi-disciplinary lenses examining everything from norms and stigma to the power of unanticipated innovations in shaping market forces. </p><p>Her work exemplifies economics' evolution away from rigid assumptions of purely rational actors towards appreciating humanity's complex, evolving nature. Perhaps most importantly, Goldin leaves a legacy of empowering more diverse voices that will undoubtedly strengthen economics as an academic pursuit dedicated to creating inclusive prosperity for all.</p><p>Thank you for your time and thoughtful consideration of this overview. I hope it provided valuable insights into both the groundbreaking scholarship of Dr. Claudia Goldin and larger developments currently reshaping economics as a discipline. Please feel free to contact me if you have any other questions!</p><div><br /></div><div>Work cited:</div><div><ol><li>Núñez, Clara Eugenia. (1992) in: Boyd, C. P. La fuente de la riqueza: Educatión y desarrollo económico en la España contemporánea. Madrid: Alianza Universidad. 1992. Pp. 355. Am. Hist. Rev., 98(5), 1621–1621. doi: 10.1086/ahr/98.5.1621</li><li>Dolar, Veronica (10 October 2023). Claudia Goldin’s Nobel Prize win is a victory for women in economics − and the field as a whole. Retrieved from https://theconversation.com/claudia-goldins-nobel-prize-win-is-a-victory-for-women-in-economics-and-the-field-as-a-whole-215330</li><li>The Economist (9 October 2023). Claudia Goldin wins the Nobel prize in economics. Economist. Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2023/10/09/claudia-goldin-wins-the-nobel-prize-in-economics</li><li>Goldin, Claudia (2023) The Nobel Lecture Prize 2023 prize lecture in economic sciences | Claudia Goldin. Youtube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBkLI5i-OC8</li><li>The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2023. (2023, December 31). Retrieved from https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/economic-sciences/2023/press-release</li><li>Zamagni, V. (2017). An Economic History of Europe Since 1700. Retrieved from https://www.amazon.it/Economic<br />-History-Europe-Since-1700/dp/19111163989</li></ol><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigUCSVru5wYo2NBE9Tlggh8WgKHU8yAciSfDPoJynBsnW8zIm7SjsqFHIGTE_JkgAU3CA8ZL8g39X3ppDtJKA1NwT8S-G9qtAYSRcil6r3nadEniz73EgB_Rp2jzAbeU2XhNVPPF1cY4ox41-7LoWQO95SzqpsXyxyzsuTd2d2TAKQmXOSp7j2_QgWX4M/s591/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-09-15.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="329" data-original-width="591" height="178" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEigUCSVru5wYo2NBE9Tlggh8WgKHU8yAciSfDPoJynBsnW8zIm7SjsqFHIGTE_JkgAU3CA8ZL8g39X3ppDtJKA1NwT8S-G9qtAYSRcil6r3nadEniz73EgB_Rp2jzAbeU2XhNVPPF1cY4ox41-7LoWQO95SzqpsXyxyzsuTd2d2TAKQmXOSp7j2_QgWX4M/s320/Screenshot%20from%202024-01-02%2016-09-15.png" width="320" /></a></div></div><div><br /></div><div><div>(Prepared for a short video, 1,000 characters per slide)</div><div><br /></div></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-75508402787420999332023-10-07T21:47:00.017+02:002023-10-08T17:09:42.280+02:00Beyond Elitism: My Contributions to Establishing True Universities in Papua New Guinea<div style="text-align: left;"><div><i>“Nations fail because their extractive economic institutions do not create the incentives needed for people to save, invest, and innovate. Extractive political (and educational AS) institutions support these economic institutions by cementing the power of those who benefit from the extraction.”</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div><i>― Daron Acemoğlu, quote from Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty.”</i></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Introduction</h2></div><div>In February 2012, I, took on the role of Vice Chancellor at Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNGUOT), with the goal of transforming it into a true university that serves its students and produces competent and employable graduates. In this role, I was also Council member of the University of Papua New Guinea, and I became Vice-Chair of the National Rectors' conference in 2016. </div><div><br /></div><div>Although I had already worked 12 years in Central America, when these societies were recovering from decades of civil war, and I had read up in anthropology about Papua New Guinea, the reality of operating in such a violent environment ridden with crime and corruption was entirely new to me. Professionally, the challenges were less since I had already worked 5 years as Academic Director and Director of Development at leading universities in the Netherlands. However, nothing could have prepared me for what I was about to face.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcfhimzU8T7-08z9EFWUTA3v-3WbsjWDpwEbr2iMVLRfbtk6-1iDeY-KAHoG9gEVDAKoH0L5wDHUTWLJq8CJSZtZNur8FqMcde6Nc0aDCVa-t7jaiujLf2yUK2ghm4JHC9toDePJmjjMnVEncs-ja5xn4jg8UGSOMK963hRFiNuDhNNOXbCFw3ZFXJ1eA/s250/VC_bonnet.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="250" data-original-width="148" height="250" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcfhimzU8T7-08z9EFWUTA3v-3WbsjWDpwEbr2iMVLRfbtk6-1iDeY-KAHoG9gEVDAKoH0L5wDHUTWLJq8CJSZtZNur8FqMcde6Nc0aDCVa-t7jaiujLf2yUK2ghm4JHC9toDePJmjjMnVEncs-ja5xn4jg8UGSOMK963hRFiNuDhNNOXbCFw3ZFXJ1eA/s1600/VC_bonnet.JPG" width="148" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With bonnet, and Maastricht University tie</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div>My 6 years as Vice Chancellor, spread over two tenures, can be divided into three key phases: taking over the "worst university in the world" from 2012-2013, a period of exile and preparation from 2013-2014, and implementing reforms from 2014-2018.</div><div><span><a name='more'></a></span></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Part 1: Taking Over the "Worst University in the World" (February 2012 – February 2013)</h2><div><br /></div><div>When I arrived at PNGUOT in 2012, the university was plagued by deep-rooted corruption, poor facilities, unqualified staff, and a lack of vision or leadership. One Nigerian professor we had just hired said it was "the worst university in the world".</div><div><br /></div><div>The previous Vice Chancellor, Misty Baloiloi, had been in charge for 19 years but failed to address any of the university's pressing issues. Instead, he and other senior leaders like Chancellor Phillip Stagg and Pro-Chancellor Ralph Saulep used the university as their personal fiefdom, siphoning off funds for their own benefit. One Council member and chair of the university's commercial arm, <a href="https://bit.ly/pngrexpaki" target="_blank">Rex Paki</a>, was later exposed in The Guardian as having extensive links with international organized crime. The O'Neill government in 2012 immediately cancelled the university $250 million investment program in favour of unproductive white elephant construction projects in the capital, and during its tenure corruption rose to fantastic levels, as described in <a href="https://bit.ly/oneillmaseratis" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>. This investment plan, the result of the Independent Review of the PNG University System (the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2013/03/council-reform-and-financially.html#more" target="_blank">Namaliu-Garnaut report</a>) had been the main reason for me to accept the offer to become Vice-Chancellor. Later Prof. Garnaut was also denied entry to PNG by the O'Neill government.</div><div><br /></div><div>At then University, the learning environment was dismal, with no internet access, non-functional laboratories, and inadequate student and staff housing. Graduates were unemployable, as their degrees lacked substance or professional accreditation.</div><div><br /></div><div>Upon realizing the extent of the rot, I immediately began implementing reforms. I cancelled overpriced contracts that had been used to fund kickbacks, required competitive bidding for projects, lowered financial approval limits to control spending, and dismissed incompetent staff. I faced constant opposition from entrenched interests, including attempts by the Chancellor Stagg to dismiss me outright. However, I found allies in the student body, who protested against the corrupt regime. In 2012, Stagg tried to fire me unilaterally, leading to student riots where Stagg's car was burned. This "first student revolution" sent a clear signal - the students wanted reform.</div><div><br /></div><div>In 2013, trumped up allegations about my credentials by Pro-Chancellor Saulep led to my deportation and exile in Australia. But the students rallied again with strikes and boycotts, demanding my return. The depth of rot was confirmed by multiple investigations like the Sengi Inquiry and Sevua Report, which recommended prosecutions of the dismissed Council members. I also had to act on widespread instances of admission fraud, instigated by most provincial governors from the highlands regions. However, the new University Council comprised of many of the old guard refused to act. Nevertheless, my first year saw me halt some of the worst abuses and build student pressure for change.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Part 2: Exile and Preparation (March 2013 to March 2014)</h2><div><br /></div><div>I was never informed why the O'Neill government decided to deny my entry into the country for four times during this period. My period of exile in 2013-14, however, proved critical for preparing my return. I continued working remotely with student leaders and lobbied the government. I obtained backing from national politicians like Sir Nagora Bogan, who exonerated me of all false allegations based on official investigations (only later to reverse his position completely). The students kept up the pressure with strikes. In the end it took the students five ways of class boycott to obtain my return with a mandate to create transparent and accountable university governance. In this period, I also reached out to overseas universities like James Cook University and University of Queensland, building relationships that would later help PNGUOT.</div><div><br /></div><div>Social media enabled me to directly engage with students and counter misinformation against me. I delivered lectures via platforms like Facebook and Youtube. I also used my time to formulate detailed plans for reforms spanning infrastructure upgrades, financial controls, academic quality improvement and partnerships with industry.</div><div><br /></div><div>In April 2014, I finally returned to PNGUOT, lifted on the<a href="https://bit.ly/schramisback" target="_blank"> shoulders of cheering students.</a> Their pressure coupled with backing from leaders like Sir Bogan at the time, was instrumental. The stage was now set for me to implement changes for real.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Part 3: Implementing Reforms (April 2014 to April 2018)</h2><div><br /></div><div>Upon my return, I focused on three key objectives - controlling expenditures, raising revenues and improving campus infrastructure. In November 2017, the university finally achieved an unqualified, <a href="https://bit.ly/hooray0" target="_blank">clean external financial audit</a>, for the first time in its history. Measures like lowering financial approval limits for department heads saved millions of Kina (at the time the exchange rate was about 2 Kina per Australian dollar) by reducing corrupt contracts. I also assigned key revenue generating initiatives like the campus <a href="http://www.unitechpng.com" target="_blank">Master Plan</a> to trusted deputies. While they failed to deliver, I directly led efforts like building 25 staff houses and sealing campus roads.</div><div><br /></div><div>My biggest accomplishment was spearheading the construction of PNGUOT's satellite earth station. This enabled internet access through the O3B satellite network, making PNGUOT the first university globally on the <a href="https://bit.ly/O3Bfirst" target="_blank">O3B system</a>. The $1 million investment was funded through internal savings and ended the internet woes. Other infrastructure upgrades like generators and solar power made the campus more livable.</div><div><br /></div><div>Academically, I began partnerships with overseas universities to improve teaching quality. I signed agreements with institutions in Australia, India, Fiji, Hungary and the United Kingdom facilitated student and faculty exchanges. In these years, we arranged for 77 faculty members to receive training abroad, of which 27 went for a doctoral program. Alumnus support helped launch initiatives like the Industrial Advisory Board to align courses with industry needs. A key focus was getting international accreditation for engineering programs to make graduates more employable. However, my deputies responsible for this failed to make progress.</div><div><br /></div><div>While I achieved progress, by 2017 opposition reemerged, bizarrely voicing the same false allegations that had been disproved by the official Sevua Investigation.. The Chancellor and Council comprising government appointees spread false rumors triggered my premature removal in 2018. However, in 6 years I had stabilized finances, built infrastructure and laid the foundations to make PNGUOT a modern university. My successors failed to carry forward my reforms, as narrow interests again took precedence over students and quality.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Part 4: Conclusions</h2><div><br /></div><div>This memoir provides several lessons. First, establishing true universities requires overcoming entrenched mediocrity. At PNGUOT, genuine reforms were constantly obstructed by corrupt bureaucrats and politicians. Second, change is only possible by building broad coalitions. My ability to win over students, scholars and industry was crucial. Third, exiled leaders can leverage technology like social media to continue engaging. Finally, structural changes to governance are needed to sustain reforms.</div><div><br /></div><div>For PNG and the Pacific, improving universities is vital to create opportunities and end aid dependency. Students must remain vigilant and lead the change, aided by progressive leaders. Across the developing world, true universities uphold excellence and the freedom to inquire, empowering societies with knowledge. </div><div><br /></div><div>My efforts illustrate the challenges faced by voices of change, as vested interests oppose losing their grip. My memoir is a cautionary tale but hopefully also an inspiration.</div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Annex: key university reforms </h2><div><br /></div><div>Here are the reforms I implemented during my time as Vice Chancellor at PNGUOT from 2014-2018:</div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Financial Reforms:</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Instituted competitive bidding for contracts to end kickbacks and overpricing. This saved millions of Kina.</li><li>Lowered approval limits for department heads from K5,000 to K2,000 to improve oversight on spending.</li><li>Achieved a clean audit report in 2017 from the Auditor General's office for the first time in over 20 years through improved financial controls. Appointed internal auditor and created external audit board.</li><li>Balanced the university's budget by cutting operational costs by 20% or K2.2 million in 2017 through managing payroll and stopping wastages.</li></ul></div><div><br /></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Infrastructure Upgrades:</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Built a satellite earth station and installed the O3B broadband internet in 2014, making PNGUOT the first university globally on this network. Transformed internet access across campus.</li><li>Constructed 25 new staff houses in 2014-15 to attract qualified faculty.</li><li>Sealed campus roads in 2014 to reduce dust and improve accessibility.</li><li>Upgraded IT network and added generators, solar power (blocked by the current VC) and backup power supply with ExxonMobil gifting a large genset to improve electricity reliability.</li></ul></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Academic Quality Improvements:</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Signed agreements with universities in Australia, India, Hungary and Fiji to enable faculty/student exchanges, visiting scholars and other collaborations.</li><li>Launched the Industrial Advisory Board (IAB) comprising major companies to align courses with industry needs.</li><li>Started the international accreditation process for engineering programs to improve graduate employability.</li><li>Sent 77 faculty members abroad for training and higher degrees between 2014-2017 through partnerships and scholarships.</li><li>Held annual Career Fairs and strengthened industry linkages through events like monthly breakfasts with companies.<br /><br /></li></ul></div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Governance Reforms and Improvements:</h3><div><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Ended the practice of barring students from administration offices to improve access.</li><li>Instituted monthly management forums for informal consultations with students and staff.</li><li>Emphasized shared governance by ensuring student participation in University Council and Academic Board.</li><li>Signed the Magna Charta Universitatum in 2015, upholding principles of academic freedom, institutional autonomy and student involvement.</li><li>Participated in 7 European Commission Erasmus Mundus and Erasmus Plus programs and signed the Erasmus Charter.</li></ul></div></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-85221577856445525502023-10-06T14:28:00.001+02:002023-10-06T14:52:00.155+02:00How the University of Pennsylvania's Culture Failed Katalin Karikó and mRNA Research<h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2><p>Katalin Karikó is a Hungarian-born biochemist who is widely recognized as one of the pioneers of messenger RNA (mRNA) technology, which has revolutionized the field of vaccine development and led to the creation of the highly effective COVID-19 vaccines by BioNTech/Pfizer and Moderna. ¹²³ This year she received the Nobel Prize for medical physiology for her work.</p><p>However, before she achieved this remarkable feat, she faced decades of rejection, frustration, and demotion at the University of Pennsylvania, where she worked as a researcher from 1989 to 2013. ⁴⁵</p><p>In this blog post, I will explore how the university culture at Penn failed to appreciate and nurture Karikó's talent and vision, and how this reflects on the challenges and limitations of academic research in general.</p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Penn's Organizational Culture and Values: A Brief Overview</h2><p>The University of Pennsylvania is one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions of higher education in the United States. It was founded by Benjamin Franklin in 1740 as a secondary school, and later evolved into a college and a university with a strong emphasis on research and innovation. </p><p>Penn prides itself on being a leader in arts and culture, civic engagement, diversity and inclusion, global initiatives, interdisciplinary collaboration, and social impact. It boasts a vibrant campus life with hundreds of student organizations, clubs, and activities that cater to various interests and passions. It also claims to foster a culture that supports and celebrates diverse and visionary researchers who have the potential to change the world for the better. </p><p>However, Penn's culture is not without its flaws and contradictions. As a highly competitive and selective institution, Penn also has a reputation for being stressful, demanding, and elitist. It has been criticized for its lack of transparency, accountability, and social responsibility in some of its policies and practices. It has also been accused of neglecting or exploiting some of its faculty, staff, and students, especially those who belong to marginalized or underrepresented groups.</p><p> </p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Karikó's Story: A Case Study of Penn's Culture</h2><p>Karikó's story is a striking example of how Penn's culture failed to recognize and reward her genius and innovation. Karikó joined Penn in 1989 as an assistant professor of biochemistry, after completing her PhD at the University of Szeged in Hungary and working as a postdoctoral fellow at Temple University. She was fascinated by the idea of using synthetic mRNA molecules to instruct cells to produce proteins that could treat various diseases. She believed that mRNA could be used as a platform for delivering vaccines and gene therapies. </p><p>However, she soon realized that mRNA research was not a popular or lucrative field in the US either. She struggled to find funding and publish her papers, and faced constant skepticism and criticism from her peers and superiors. She was rejected by hundreds of grant agencies, including the National Institutes of Health (NIH), which deemed her proposals "too ambitious" or "not feasible". </p><p>She never received tenure or promotion at Penn. Instead, she was demoted to a lower rank of research assistant professor in 1995, and had her salary cut by $15,000. She was also excluded from faculty meetings and decision-making processes. She was told that her work was not "relevant" or "impactful" enough for the university. </p><p>Despite these setbacks, Karikó never gave up on her vision. She continued to work on mRNA with a small team of dedicated collaborators, including Drew Weissman, an immunologist who shared her enthusiasm for RNA therapeutics. Together, they made a breakthrough discovery in 2005: they found a way to modify the synthetic mRNA molecules to avoid triggering an unwanted immune response that would destroy them before reaching their target cells. This opened up new possibilities for using mRNA as a platform for delivering vaccines and gene therapies. </p><p>However, even this breakthrough did not change the attitude of Penn towards Karikó and her work. The university did not recognize or reward her achievement and did not offer her any support or protection for her intellectual property rights. Instead, it tried to force her to give up her patents and royalties to the university, claiming that she had used its resources and facilities for her research. Karikó refused to comply, and fought back with the help of Weissman and a lawyer. She eventually won the legal battle, but at a high personal cost. She felt betrayed and isolated by the institution that she had served for 24 years. </p><p>In 2013, Karikó decided to leave Penn and join BioNTech, a biotechnology company based in Germany that was founded by Ugur Sahin and Ozlem Tureci, two Turkish-German scientists who were impressed by Karikó's work on mRNA. At BioNTech, Karikó found a new home where she was valued and respected for her expertise and creativity. She became a senior vice president and led a team of researchers who applied mRNA technology to develop novel vaccines and therapies for various diseases, including cancer and COVID-19. </p><p>When the COVID-19 pandemic struck in 2020, BioNTech partnered with Pfizer to develop an mRNA vaccine based on Karikó's invention. The vaccine proved to be more than 90% effective in preventing COVID-19 infection, and was authorized for emergency use by several countries around the world. The vaccine has been administered to hundreds of millions of people, saving countless lives and helping to end the global health crisis. </p><p>Karikó's story is one of perseverance, courage, and innovation. It is also one of injustice, neglect, and discrimination. Penn failed to appreciate and nurture her talent and instead tried to undermine and exploit her work. Penn should be ashamed of its treatment of Karikó and should apologize and compensate her for the harm it caused her. Penn should also learn from its mistakes, and foster a culture that supports and celebrates diverse and visionary researchers like Karikó, who have the potential to change the world for the better.</p><p><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">A Reflection on Academic Research and University Transformation</h2><p>Karikó's story is not unique. It is a reflection of the challenges and limitations of academic research in general. Academic research is often constrained by factors such as funding, publication, tenure, promotion, reputation, competition, politics, bureaucracy, and bias. These factors can create a culture that discourages risk-taking, creativity, collaboration, diversity, and social impact. They can also create a culture that rewards conformity, mediocrity, self-interest, elitism, and exploitation. </p><p>Academic research is not inherently bad or evil. It can also produce great benefits for humanity, such as knowledge, innovation, education, and social change. However, academic research needs to be reformed and improved to overcome its flaws and contradictions. Academic research needs to be more transparent, accountable, responsible, inclusive, supportive, and ethical. Academic research needs to be more aligned with the needs and values of society, rather than the interests and agendas of institutions or individuals. Academic research needs to be more open-minded, curious, adventurous, collaborative, diverse, and impactful.</p><p><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion</h2><p>Katalin Karikó is a hero of science and humanity. She deserves our admiration and gratitude for her contribution to the fight against COVID-19 and other diseases. She also deserves our sympathy and solidarity for her struggle against the unfair and oppressive culture of Penn and academic research. There is no need to give this a fancy name, it is simply short-sightedness, discrimination and xenophobia. </p><p>Her story should inspire us to pursue our dreams and passions with courage and determination. Her story should also motivate us to reform and improve the culture of academic research with vision and action.</p><p><br /></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">References:</h2><p>Scientific Dilemma Named after Katalin Karikó. (2022, June 30). Retrieved from https://hungarytoday.hu/katalin-kariko-mrna-reserach-funding-stuart-buck-kariko-problem-drew-weissman</p>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-89593669236433675852023-08-06T17:36:00.021+02:002023-08-07T07:43:43.172+02:00How I wish to measure my life and career<h1 style="text-align: left;">Introduction</h1><p>One distinguishing feature of my career, it that I have lived and worked in many different countries, something I always chose to do out of my own initiative. In fact, two thirds of my working life I spent in the Global South. I lived in some of the poorest countries in the world, some ravaged by civil strife, where child mortality is high and life expectancy short. In some of these countries, polio, cholera and leprosy are still common. Sadly, in Papua New Guinea for example, even tribal warfare and witch burning are still regular occurrences and widely reported in the newspapers. In a few weeks, I will be starting a new professional challenge in a neighboring European country, a few hours' drive away. For me a minor transition.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0gaV1UTy4sXw9apq9Etar92GBkNLsxWHW9gSGN5W-ohiyN763gD_WTdnWjOatiVlV9hTtd6807RFYJjze0vLwcXIWz-APZrbiTbWhvsxBm0jpQHFtbrVZHHy9es2ouzkjVHnTsp1mJiKYFXvaMZ-JtQmbgDP57YWsNpSgTUbZn40UPSjEHYk0v3dA6WM/s1464/Canakkale_congress.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="976" data-original-width="1464" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0gaV1UTy4sXw9apq9Etar92GBkNLsxWHW9gSGN5W-ohiyN763gD_WTdnWjOatiVlV9hTtd6807RFYJjze0vLwcXIWz-APZrbiTbWhvsxBm0jpQHFtbrVZHHy9es2ouzkjVHnTsp1mJiKYFXvaMZ-JtQmbgDP57YWsNpSgTUbZn40UPSjEHYk0v3dA6WM/s320/Canakkale_congress.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lecturing about research support at universities in 2010 in Turkey</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Friends and family often ask me why I am moving again. The short answer is that I always seek decent, meaningful work and respectful employers so that I can contribute to my community and society at large. However, the longer answer is more complex. Looking back, the main reasons for moving about can be partly attributed to "Fortuna" or fate, partly my decisions to leave when prospects seemed dim, and partly due to my value-based choice for meaningful work and making a difference in the world.</p><span><a name='more'></a></span><p>To identify and pursue meaningful work, it is essential to have a clear understanding of your career goals. You can create a "goal tree" that consists of initial, intermediate, and final goals to help you identify your career aspirations. This will help you realize more profound ideas and purposes and give you a sense of direction in your career. Evidently, this requires some idea of what you will be doing in the mid- and long-term. It is also important to find the meaning in your work and to have a purpose that drives you. Without a purpose, life can become hollow, and your career can lack direction. My purpose is to contribute to societies development, which means to help increase its levels of prosperity, health, and education, by understanding better the role of business and technology in the development process.</p><p>During my own life time, I have had the opportunity to work in various countries and take advantage of some remarkable technological innovations that have made frequent changes of jobs and locations possible: first cheap air travel, the personal computer and the internet, and of course now the smart phone and machine learning. However, it is crucial to find stability in your career. It is also important to be valued and respected as a professional, which can be challenging in some countries.</p><p>Therefore, pursuing meaningful work and having a clear sense of direction in your career is essential to making a positive impact on others and society at large. It is also important to find stability and be valued and respected as a professional. By reflecting on my career and the reasons for my moves, I hope to inspire others to pursue meaningful work and find purpose in their careers.</p><h1 style="text-align: left;">1- Defining Success</h1><p>When it comes to measuring my life and career, I don't rely on the size of my wallet, the quantity of my possessions, or societal status. Instead, I focus on the positive impact I have on others, particularly through the work of my students, and how they contribute to prosperity, education and health in their communities. Growing up in a family of educators, I have always valued the importance of teaching and mentoring. From being a concierge to a high school teacher, professor, and even Vice-Chancellor, I have stubbornly stuck to working in education, which is always bound to be a long game. Below I will briefly share personal stories of my family members who shaped my values, as well as highlight the significance of finding purpose and meaning in life to positively impact others.</p><p>Education runs deep in my family. My great grandmother, grandfather, grandmother, and even my Dutch grandmother were all educators at some point in their lives. This background has greatly influenced my perspective on the value of education and the impact it can have. Let me focus on the stories of my grandfather, mother, and father to illustrate this further.</p><p>Giovanni Battista, my Italian grandfather, not only briefly served in an <a href="https://bit.ly/pighiww1" target="_blank">Italian heavy machine gun unit</a> on the Monte Grappa as an officer during World War 1, but dedicated his life to education. In the trenches he told his Sardinian soldiers stories from Virgil’s Eneid, and brought a pocket edition of Dante’s Divina Comedia. Despite earning two silver medals for courage during his service, he didn't measure his life by his accolades or the hundreds of publications he wrote. Instead, he focused on creating a group of scholars with similar interest, who would carry forward his approach to studying classical language. His exceptional knowledge of ancient languages landed him a professors post when only 28 years old at a private university in Milan, and later he became Dean, and Vice-Rector at the University of Bologna. He played a crucial role in internationalizing this university after a period of isolationism under fascism.</p><p>My mother, <a href="https://bit.ly/laurapighiobituary" target="_blank">Laura</a>, shared the same passion for learning and teaching. She was an outspoken advocate against fascism, racism, discrimination, and violence. As a university lecturer, she published numerous articles and books, dedicating much of her time to mentoring and guiding her students. After retirement however she really spread her wings and published half a dozen or so significant scientific publications on the history of Italian literature in a European perspective. Her impact was evident when a dozen of her "paper children," as she called them, showed up at her funeral. Her dedication to education and her work for Italian migrants in the Netherlands earned her high recognition from the Italian state.</p><p>My father, Kees, a brilliant theoretical physicist, instilled in me a love for technology and a commitment to honesty and integrity. As a university lecturer, he taught a challenging course on Newton's classical mechanism with lots of mathematics, inspiring countless students with the beauty of maths and physics, including myself. Like my mother a member of the silent generation and teenager during World War 2, he emphasized the importance of staying informed about international news and being aware of the world around us. His influence shaped my appreciation for facts and critical thinking.</p><p>Interestingly, despite the educational achievements of these family members, they did not amass the family’s wealth. In fact, many actively diminished their family's wealth. It was my Dutch grandfather, Ernst, and my Italian great grandfather, Bortolo, who worked in the postal office, that ensured a better future for their children. They acquired properties through hard work and built strong relationships in their communities. This reflection on my family history taught me that it is better to combine wealth-building with meaningful work in education. However, for this to happen it is crucial that the work in education is stable and not precarious.</p><p>In short, I therefore measure my life and career not by material possessions or societal status, although I do not mind pursuing either occasionally, but by the positive impact I have on others, especially my students. As a young professor of education in Maastricht once remarked: “We're not there to teach anyone, we're not there to train anyone. We are there to help them develop. And that's not prescriptively. So it's really about relations and networks and connections that you have to build on the basis of trust, and that takes time.” My family's background in education has shaped my values and reinforced the importance of finding purpose and meaning in life. By sharing these personal stories, I hope to inspire others to embrace meaningful work and make a difference in the lives of those around them.</p><h1 style="text-align: left;">2- What have I achieved so far?</h1><p>Looking back on my life and career, I am filled with happy bewilderment and amusement. I have lived long-term and worked in 10 different countries, and completed work assignments in over 40, acquiring considerable experience and developing communication, teamwork, and leadership skills. While uprooting one's family to go where the work is seen as a badge of honor in the USA, it is often viewed as an act of treason in Europe. I have driven motorcycles, cars, and boats in many of these countries and explored coral reefs and shipwrecks while scuba diving. Although I did not father any biological children, I was adopted as a father by 10 sons in Papua New Guinea and 2 daughters, and I feel honored by their choice. Imagine if nothing of this would have happened, and if I had been offered a tenured position at a university after my doctorate, does the world really need another ivory tower historian?</p><p>As someone who had mostly an academic career, I probably should be proudest of my 50 plus academic publications. Of course, I am proud of my book with Cambridge University Press which underlines the important of the state not being captured by private interests and taking a strategized approach to the widespread adoption of new technologies. This is an important finding both for the railway as the machine learning age. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7osEiF3nIfdEmeKodakaN-WGebPIqFNGHpQX-vXNErmZhEDTBdfBdWU_WdAORNflCUvmUEEBWpK9O5sawNdJbrIqn0YSMJXqGNJmW4BZSXbb28VCW9cG4WdrY7gpDvxejAoizMQ2IwazmDkpsvFwhTotWVvUR00UXYOR0o9petfs8FoS2BENM7sm-_cQ/s639/CUP_book.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="459" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7osEiF3nIfdEmeKodakaN-WGebPIqFNGHpQX-vXNErmZhEDTBdfBdWU_WdAORNflCUvmUEEBWpK9O5sawNdJbrIqn0YSMJXqGNJmW4BZSXbb28VCW9cG4WdrY7gpDvxejAoizMQ2IwazmDkpsvFwhTotWVvUR00UXYOR0o9petfs8FoS2BENM7sm-_cQ/s320/CUP_book.png" width="230" /></a></div><br /><p>I am also happy I published across several disciplines, with one journal article in an economics journal and another one in an engineering journal. I am also proud with the number of my publications, because only for half a dozen of years of my almost 30 years career, or so I had “normal” tenured academic roles combining teaching and research, where I had one day (20%) to do my own research.</p><p>Nevertheless, I am acutely aware of the total lack of societal impact of most academic publications, outside the small group of specialist to which they are directed. The policy documents or environmental audit protocols I wrote, the work as advisor for the Costa Rican Minister of the Environment, or with the European Commission, at least were more widely read, and may have done some good.</p><p>Throughout my lifetime, I have been fortunate to take advantage of extraordinary technological innovations, such as cheap air travel, personal and mobile computing, the internet, and now machine learning. These innovations have made frequent changes of jobs and locations possible, and also allowed me to work outside the confines of academia. As an early technology adopter, I sometimes got carried away by the opportunities these technological innovations offered. However, there is such a thing as too much international experience, and my life and career may be an example.</p><p>Going back to my moving about, I enjoyed working in Gent and in Antwerp in Belgium, where arrangements are clear and meritocracy is valued. I have also worked with great pleasure for US-based institutions in Central America, the Caribbean, and Italy. US higher education institutions have shown their true meritocratic nature by focusing on the value I could add, rather than who I was. Some of these organizations even offered me stable employment, which I chose to decline due to better opportunities elsewhere at the time.</p><p>Paradoxically, I have had the most trouble being valued or respected as a professional in the two countries of my parents' nationality: the Netherlands and Italy. I am not sure why this is. In the Netherlands, I worked for some wonderful organizations for several years, but apparently, the love and admiration were only one way. In Italy, frankly, I did not enjoy working for any of the four employers due to the chaotic circumstances and toxic organizational cultures, maybe that was just bad luck. Moreover, in both countries, the reforms of the labor laws meant that senior hires from abroad are offered a one-year contract at first, without any compensation for relocation expenses, which would come with a three-year contract. Penny wise and pound foolish. Fortunately, my new location in Europe has not yet reformed its labor laws in this counterproductive sense. Support for newcomers is offered regardless of their nationalities, and an open-ended contract can be offered at the outset for senior hires.</p><p>Despite the challenges, I have made a positive impact in many of the countries where I have worked. For example, while teaching environmental economics and policy and working for the Ministry of the Environment in Costa Rica, two of my doctoral students created the first wastewater charge decree in the country. In Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean, one brilliant student convinced the local owner of a fish processing plant to install a water filter, greatly reducing the use of chlorine for washing lobster tails and reducing pollution. In Turks and Caicos Islands, working for a US-based University organization, through her research using jelly fish as a bio-indicator of pollution, a brilliant student managed to convince the local fish processing plan owner to reduce the use of chlorine by installing a water filter. We also wrote a paper together, but I am more proud of the filter. </p><p>In Papua New Guinea, for example, my assistant set up "internet in a box," a system that makes teaching materials available to students in schools that lack reliable power supply and/or internet access. What is remarkable is that I did not spend a lot of time supporting these individuals, except trying to encourage and create favorable conditions for them.</p><p>My time in Papua New Guinea from 2012 to 2018 with my wife was challenging but ultimately rewarding. I had my <a href="https://bit.ly/schramisback" target="_blank">15 minutes of fame</a> there, when students celebrated my return after boycotting classes for 5 weeks. I had been kept out of the country by the PNG government for my efforts of establishing good and transparant governance at the university. </p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcNDz5coGaVz_iuhUEDJRwbeTPACggPw8OnIFkyTsJJXtW1OPm9kjL5FrZHgTaoeXa4LC9feLPCwYps7U4gisHCs1Gi7l2jl5DBQfL1fT9yALBrv8fT30YbTkhD4TqXHv8q_1tBaVwua5D-KRrtF9vvkw3xEytjwdGHeD86HOhiMy2bV3Wpip0DXiZ-k/s800/Welcome_UNITECH.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpcNDz5coGaVz_iuhUEDJRwbeTPACggPw8OnIFkyTsJJXtW1OPm9kjL5FrZHgTaoeXa4LC9feLPCwYps7U4gisHCs1Gi7l2jl5DBQfL1fT9yALBrv8fT30YbTkhD4TqXHv8q_1tBaVwua5D-KRrtF9vvkw3xEytjwdGHeD86HOhiMy2bV3Wpip0DXiZ-k/s320/Welcome_UNITECH.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />I initiated many projects that were "firsts", such as becoming the first university in the world to provide campus-wide broadband internet through the <a href="https://bit.ly/O3Bfirst" target="_blank">O3B satellite system</a>.<p></p><p>In an effort to improve university university, we became the first university from the South Pacific to sign the Magna Carta Universitatum in Bologna. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-wOX4dQdGqfImZ1pPI-ICXH-kUe-tJlLnjlA4_dYOAI0Uhiwb_wHhLQprnEAKPMiRXgAmuRscsE7qqKbjXQ4v5nLtJyXbd-t_P-kEpFYm54C-pIXvjEiSf_VMD55F49VKc7GYBZvhSurahx-TK57V4MvbpAyj_yQkQ6Pb3gNPQFYdsfNuQTjyNKDZC6Y/s499/MCU_signaroties2.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="499" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-wOX4dQdGqfImZ1pPI-ICXH-kUe-tJlLnjlA4_dYOAI0Uhiwb_wHhLQprnEAKPMiRXgAmuRscsE7qqKbjXQ4v5nLtJyXbd-t_P-kEpFYm54C-pIXvjEiSf_VMD55F49VKc7GYBZvhSurahx-TK57V4MvbpAyj_yQkQ6Pb3gNPQFYdsfNuQTjyNKDZC6Y/s320/MCU_signaroties2.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signing the MCU as Vice-Chancellor</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Surprisingly, I also managed to balance the budget of the university by rigorous cost cutting, and obtained the first ever unqualified, <a href="https://bit.ly/hooray0" target="_blank">clean financial audit</a> in the history of any public university in the country. In the university community in Lae, however, most staff members resented how I had rocked the boat, and only the students were in support of my strategy. The university council managed to dismantle the student representative council, and then used this to undermine my position and authority.</p><p>Nevertheless in PNG, my wife, also an educator, and I were adopted by another well-known neigbouring community: <a href="https://amzn.to/3trDRPL" target="_blank">Busamang village</a>, about an hour away by boat from Lae. This village is famous because an anthropologist lived there for decades and wrote a number of books. I facilitated some students and lecturers to do fieldwork there, but I also worked directly with the men and women. The women needed better health care, and to ensure no project partners would die, I would bring a suitcase full of medicine every month with antibiotics and other essentials. Fortunately, there was a fantastic nurse in the village, <a href="https://bit.ly/anneboleyn1" target="_blank">Anne Boleyn</a>, who trained other nurses and midwives, and I am sure she saved several lives, and delivered several babies with the supplies we brought. She also built her own clinic because the official clinic had never been opened due to funds disappearing due to corruption. I also promised the community to give a lesson at the village school, so I will need to go back. The challenges these communities face keep me grounded now when I meet people who complain about rich, white-people's problems.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUv3t6hxIN8AZUT43I9A8E326I4VtDL9-ZkWOItMnCX_qV8Nm9Qi1wdtSTe_ydRMKkmKHZSxXWnBCtFqfL2f-mRMu9I-MQwf6hQYN1AgMY5Md7Xh1CNdbS-VrY5irFo-XQ14c0jkl8z3eTN6TfMh5eaLY5diKcROefHyqUQSdKt_J9-qS2UOK-a_Q58E/s600/Busama07_children_AS.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="449" data-original-width="600" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiAUv3t6hxIN8AZUT43I9A8E326I4VtDL9-ZkWOItMnCX_qV8Nm9Qi1wdtSTe_ydRMKkmKHZSxXWnBCtFqfL2f-mRMu9I-MQwf6hQYN1AgMY5Md7Xh1CNdbS-VrY5irFo-XQ14c0jkl8z3eTN6TfMh5eaLY5diKcROefHyqUQSdKt_J9-qS2UOK-a_Q58E/s320/Busama07_children_AS.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">With Busama children who are now not learning English at school</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In conclusion, my international experience has been both challenging and rewarding. Despite the obstacles, I have made a positive impact in most of the countries where I have worked. I have learned that finding purpose and meaning in life is crucial to making a positive impact on others. By sharing my personal reflections, I hope to inspire others to embrace meaningful work and make a difference in the lives of those around them.</p><h1 style="text-align: left;">3- Measuring progress: ‘Fortuna’ and opening doors</h1><p>When measuring impact indirectly and being precariously employed, one starts to experience the futility of plans. As General Eisenhower famously said, "Plans are useless, but planning is essential." The Romans believed that Fortuna, the goddess of fate or destiny, can change one's environment in unexpected ways. This in turn, requires a high degree of adaptability. Julius Caesar, who won almost every battle he fought, frequently invokes her. The Romans believed that by having a bias for action over being passive and complaining, Fortuna would favor you, and doors would open. </p><p>A certain path dependency is related to my experiences. As a European, once you leave your tribe, you are made to pay a price. First, there was strong resistance from my Master's thesis supervisor for me to study abroad. For me, however, it was a no-brainer since the Dutch doctoral programs at the time were in a state of disarray, and on average, only 5% finished their thesis within 4 years. This professor refused to write a recommendation letter for my application to the highly competitive and prestigious 3-year doctoral scholarship. I won it anyway because the selection was meritocratic, and they ignored his omission.</p><p>After finishing my doctorate in 1994, the only Dutch professor in economic history in the country almost panicked when I asked him about a post-doc position over lunch at the European University Institute in Florence. He admitted that I was one of the more promising historians of my generation, especially having secured a publication contract for my thesis with Cambridge University Press. The things he responded, however, made no sense, but I understood I was not welcome. Therefore, I closed this door because, at the time, I had other, better prospects. After many decades and comparing my fate with other Dutch graduates from this institute who went back, I know I did the right thing by not returning to the Netherlands at that time. </p><p>When I did go back to the Netherlands in 2003, I was almost offered a lecturers job at a University college. This time I did not get the job because a former lecturer of mine, and a notorious alcoholic, needed to retire in his hometown. The price I had to pay.</p><p>Anyone who is treated with disrespect, meaning it is made clear his or her personality, religion, race, experience, or education is not valued, will naturally close the door on an opportunity and look for other opportunities elsewhere. The lesson society should learn is that by being exclusive rather than inclusive, the price it has to pay in the long run is much higher than the cost of accommodating newcomers or outsiders. It is their loss.</p><h1 style="text-align: left;">4- Where do I fit in?</h1><p>Unsurprisingly, I have found myself fitting into communities that value learning, prioritize inclusivity and have an international outlook. These communities have been instrumental in shaping my experiences and impact.</p><p>Before we delve into the importance of communities, let's discuss the concept of tribes. For thousands of years, humans lived in tribes, where rules were not the same for everyone and innovation was limited. The Romans, however, played a pivotal role in creating a rule-based society that promoted technological advancements. It is disheartening to see current nativists, exclusive tendencies in European societies, where migrants are unjustly blamed for issues they have no control over, and foreigners are marginalized in education and culture.</p><p>Tribes can be a perplexing concept for Europeans who are unfamiliar with them, although tribal, clanish or cliquish attitudes persist widely. From my experience, indigenous tribes often lack democracy, and individual opinions often hold little weight. The opinions of the headman, chief, or elders are the only ones that matter, and the law is not applied equally to all. On the positive side, some tribes are outward-looking and well-led. These tribes can adapt and innovate relatively quickly, and they tend to embrace people who are different. European societies could learn a great deal from these inclusive tribes.</p><p>I am continually amazed by the importance of leadership in any community or organization for curbing negative human traits such as selfishness, complacency, and envy. As you saw, I have experienced exclusion, even as a white male. Today, I have little patience for those who proudly embrace ignorance, indifference, and a lack of willingness to learn. These attitudes, that should have no place in our liberal, open societies undermine meritocracy and preclude organizations from becoming more inclusive.</p><p>In our increasingly diverse society, it is crucial to recognize the value of different cultures, backgrounds, and identities. Oddly, it was my reading at school of Livy’s <i>Ab Urbe Condidata</i> that impressed the power of cultural exclusivity. While the Romans gave citizenship to the tribal leaders whom they had conquered, the US armed forces today's work hard to create the cultural melting pot that sadly American society is not yet. Embracing diversity enriches humanity and allows us to come together to solve common problems. Building relationships with people from different cultures is essential for achieving community goals. By integrating aspects of different cultures into our activities and consciously incorporating inclusive and anti-discriminatory attitudes, we can create a more inclusive society. </p><p>In conclusion, it is evident that inclusive communities and diverse perspectives are vital for personal growth, societal progress, and for an educator to make a positive impact. By embracing diversity and fostering inclusive environments, we can create a society that values and respects all individuals, regardless of their background or identity.</p><h1 style="text-align: left;">Final Remarks</h1><p>Apart from where do you live, another question I am frequently asked is about my favorite place to live. There are several place which my wife and I really loved: Puerto Rico in the USA, and Cairns in Australia. Without a doubt, the place where I felt most at home, however, is Busamang, a small fishing village in Papua New Guinea. The community there is well-led and inclusive, offering me friendship and a sense of belonging. In fact, my retirement plan consists of returning to Busamang, where they have promised to build me a hut and provide for me, although this is not a very practical option.</p><p>I consider myself extremely privileged that while I was teaching, writing or enjoying myself, driving up active volcanoes, hiking in the rain forest, scuba diving on coral reefs, and driving my boat to the remote islands of Papua New Guinea, I was not a tourist or hasty traveler. I had time to build meaningful relations with the people I met from all walks of life, and hopefully in this way contributed to more mutual understanding. I learned much more from them, then they ever could have learned from me.</p><p>Reflecting on my experiences, I hope that these notes have been helpful to you on your own journey towards well-being, self-fulfillment, and wisdom. Now, my wife and I have found a new home as educators in an apparently more meritocratic educational institution that has offered us stable employment, an internationally minded community, and the opportunity to contribute to a wider society. </p><p>Being more experienced and a bit wiser now, I will focus on establishing these relations with my students based on trust, that really make a difference to their learning, and help them connect to the communities they want to be part of. I invite you to follow along as we embark on this new chapter, making a positive impact in our community and beyond. Together, let us continue to strive for a more inclusive and enlightened world.</p>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-39397512233899852132023-04-25T10:41:00.007+02:002023-04-27T13:43:17.576+02:00Tackling the Global Education Crisis: how combining a modern pedagogical approach with today's learning technologies can boost the quality of education<p><span face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #3c3c3c; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700;">For concrete examples of how to use AI apps in writing, see my low-priced e-products such as mini-guides, Notion or ClickUp templates in my Gumroad </span><a href="https://albertschram.gumroad.com/l/jjuyz?_gl=1*s7l0bh*_ga*NzM2NzA1NTI3LjE2Nzk3MzQ0MDA.*_ga_6LJN6D94N6*MTY4MTEyNzY2OS4xMS4xLjE2ODExMjk4MDcuMC4wLjA." style="background-color: white; color: #1250d5; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none;">shop</a><span face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #3c3c3c; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700;">.</span></p><h2>Addressing the Global Crisis in Education</h2><p>During the past two centuries, most countries have successfully established primary and secondary school systems and made education compulsory for a number of years. However, the emphasis has primarily been on access and enrollment, and many children who attend school are not actually learning. Shockingly, over 600 million children and adolescents worldwide are unable to reach the minimum proficiency levels in reading and mathematics, despite two-thirds of them attending school according to <a href="https://www.unicef.org/education" target="_blank">UNICEF</a>.</p><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a>Moreover, the gulf in average levels of education between rich and poor countries remains enormous. According to an influential report by the Brookings Institution from 2015: "Without a fundamental rethinking of current approaches to education, it’s going to take <a href="https://www.brookings.edu/research/why-wait-100-years-bridging-the-gap-in-global-education/" target="_blank">another 100 years</a> for children in developing countries to reach the education levels achieved in developed countries."<p></p><p>Therefore, education is facing a global crisis, with primary and secondary education systems failing to meet the demands of the 21st century, as was discussed in New York last September at the United Nations "<a href="https://bit.ly/tescrisis" target="_blank">Transforming Education Summit</a>". There continues to be a significant disparity between the demand for education and the availability of quality education, especially in low and middle-income countries. </p><p>To address this global education crisis, it is crucial to invest in education systems, enhance access to quality education, and improve the quality of teaching. But how? Innovative approaches to education, such as integrating technology and alternative pedagogical approaches and schooling models, can help narrow this gap and ensure that all children have access to a high-quality education.</p><p>While technology can be a valuable tool in education, it is not a magic solution on its own. Andreas Schleicher, for example, the man behind the OECD PISA surveys that measure learning outcomes of 15-year-olds globally, has observed that <a href="https://larrycuban.wordpress.com/2023/02/04/high-performing-teachers-with-low-tech-classrooms/" target="_blank">the best-performing educational</a> systems are not necessarily the ones using the most advanced technology in the classroom. This highlights the importance of first having a solid pedagogical approach that is subsequently combined with the latest learning technologies.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZvtOfFM_8XKEBdHSYZWii70Prmxgb-_pLeWUmsuNGQtu0rUPguMKSUgIcst5PX16KbRqju1ZSiEBnX5byQ0I-uZ0DKg1upfi7vJerzhM088bmXYgTRvNGfIfkDr82scaH1x_8_9HgXsco_yDwq92aowWg9khSY-CulaBj4Ex5mpOGrNLZSv8U-Sh2/s1024/AI4TL_blog12.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1024" data-original-width="1024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZvtOfFM_8XKEBdHSYZWii70Prmxgb-_pLeWUmsuNGQtu0rUPguMKSUgIcst5PX16KbRqju1ZSiEBnX5byQ0I-uZ0DKg1upfi7vJerzhM088bmXYgTRvNGfIfkDr82scaH1x_8_9HgXsco_yDwq92aowWg9khSY-CulaBj4Ex5mpOGrNLZSv8U-Sh2/s320/AI4TL_blog12.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Typical classroom in Africa</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In many countries today, the current education system is stuck in the past, with schools still producing graduates who are trained to be obedient, semi-literate factory workers of the 1st industrial revolution. However, we are currently in the midst of the 4th industrial revolution, where human and robotic systems merge, and that presents a whole new set of challenges and a demand for much higher quality. Regrettably, primary and secondary education systems globally are failing to address these challenges, even by the low standards they set for themselves.</p><p>To address this crisis, it is essential to combine a robust pedagogical approach with the latest learning technologies. One promising approach is problem-based learning, which emphasizes active learning and the integration of new information with prior knowledge. Constructivist education, or constructive education, focuses on empowering students to take control of their own learning process and develop lifelong learning skills. Unfortunately, many teachers still demand absolute silence, obedience, and order in the classroom, which is counterproductive to problem-solving and deeper thinking.</p><p>The key question then becomes: How can we effectively combine a robust pedagogical approach with the latest learning technologies? How can generative AI tools contribute to this effort?</p><h2>Positive Education and Problem-Based Learning</h2><p>In the 1990s, Professor <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9A13RWOs6oA&list=PLiJAu6VY_CMejV78gmeiqIrKfJ8x8Xdb8&index=28&t=15s" target="_blank">Carl Wieman</a>, a Nobel Prize winner in physics and innovator in university science education, asked himself why PhD candidates at <i>Stanford University</i> were still unable to do physics. He concluded that they had been taught in the wrong manner and demonstrated that by putting the problem first and giving learners more agency in an improved pedagogical approach, learning outcomes would improve dramatically. </p><p>The origins of giving learners more agency and autonomy can be traced back to the movement started in primary and secondary schools by Maria Montessori in Italy at the beginning of the 20th century. However, due to pressure from the fascist regime, the movement's headquarters moved to the Netherlands. In the 1970s, at <i>McMaster University</i> in Canada, <a href="https://learning-theories.com/problem-based-learning-pbl.html" target="_blank">Problem-Based Learning</a> a similar approach was developed for adults in tertiary education, initially only in the medical field.</p><p>Problem-Based Learning is a constructionist, positive pedagogical approach that emphasizes active learning. It goes beyond the traditional method of memorizing facts and figures and encourages students to gain knowledge through interactions with their environment and experiences. PBL focuses on integrating new information with prior knowledge to form well-founded opinions, acquire new knowledge, and truly understand the subject matter.</p><p>Self-directed education is a key component of constructivist education, which is positive and non-coercive nor punitive. In this approach, students manage their own learning process, while tutors and lecturers are available to provide guidance and support. By planning, monitoring, and evaluating their learning process, students become motivated and effective self-learners. This skill is invaluable, enabling them to continue learning for the rest of their lives. </p><p>When teachers are trained to develop and facilitate problem-based learning activities, the main thing they learn is to let go. Unfortunately, many teachers still demand absolute silence, obedience, and order in the classroom, which is counterproductive to problem-solving, deeper thinking, and teaching responsibility and autonomy. When PBL is properly applied, teachers will find course preparation is not necessarily more, but different in nature. The extra effort, however, is more than offset by having all students deeply engaged, while making teaching also more interesting.</p><p>Problem-Based Learning is a hallmark of constructivist education. In this approach, students work together to solve real-life, wicked problems. By sharing ideas, exchanging feedback, and taking collective responsibility for learning, students develop a deeper understanding of the subject matter. This approach also helps them to develop important skills such as critical thinking, problem-solving, and teamwork.</p><p>Constructivist, positive education emphasizes learning in a relevant context. Students study true-to-life cases that have real meaning in today's society. This helps them to make the leap from theory to practice and to develop skills that are useful in the real world.</p><p>Positive education is a holistic approach that fosters lifelong learning. It empowers students to take control of their own learning process and develop important skills that will serve them well throughout their lives. Problem-Based Learning is a key component of constructive education that emphasizes active learning, self-directed education, and learning in a relevant context. By embracing these principles, we can create a more effective and engaging learning experience that prepares students for the challenges of the 21st century.</p><h2>Learning Technologies and AI</h2><p>Today's power learning technologies and generative AI provide new opportunities for education to evolve and meet the demands of the 21st century. While technology is not a magic solution on its own, it can enhance and support a solid pedagogical approach. Group work in PBL for example can easily be organized online. AI-powered tools can facilitate the research process which is an integral part of PBL.</p><p>One helpful approach developed by <a href="https://u.osu.edu/lightle.16/" target="_blank">Dr. Kimberly Lightle</a> from <i>Ohio State University</i> in the context of teaching science is matching today's digital tools with the well-known revised Bloom learning hierarchy. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiPCmgAjgrKgBOCyx4LJJhB4ckmkJKe72N-Zlhvfeb2H04uzZfWB5nG3BUS_USzSxExFNsJlbKhH-C4VNFdUkSRGS8p-DWJpdWlpfP1rD28_WhdyZlHuNlviPeFXAtNS-cVUdO7wldYe1I2heaiJnZXU1eSu5dXkF9yWsTSLYXjXXAwAATnnHCMwJ/s1200/Blooms_digital.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="380" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjiPCmgAjgrKgBOCyx4LJJhB4ckmkJKe72N-Zlhvfeb2H04uzZfWB5nG3BUS_USzSxExFNsJlbKhH-C4VNFdUkSRGS8p-DWJpdWlpfP1rD28_WhdyZlHuNlviPeFXAtNS-cVUdO7wldYe1I2heaiJnZXU1eSu5dXkF9yWsTSLYXjXXAwAATnnHCMwJ/w380-h380/Blooms_digital.jpeg" width="380" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From: <a href="https://bit.ly/bloomdigitalasu">https://bit.ly/bloomdigitalasu</a>.</td></tr></tbody></table><p>Subsequently, some added "sharing" as another Bloom level, which is particularly relevant for Problem-Based Learning where social interaction and sharing in small groups is an essential activity.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZIxD5olvppOPx6vpiWo-N4A456r-u_ep8TCSmYGhT9EzjRZm_pNOG7N5yNcSqwJG1U5eJOrif0K7DkeHMosirmcwb4Rfhaezpdz7LO5pB4kGFUHa2v7xdLiLfs23LKH2n_NFnhd4OINOIgk9Ex0DMeuE5dQDF6CdmgN92JdnBVKtrmYEDZCjyfpd/s2542/bloom_taxonomy_1280.png%20(1280%C3%97905).png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1806" data-original-width="2542" height="444" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibZIxD5olvppOPx6vpiWo-N4A456r-u_ep8TCSmYGhT9EzjRZm_pNOG7N5yNcSqwJG1U5eJOrif0K7DkeHMosirmcwb4Rfhaezpdz7LO5pB4kGFUHa2v7xdLiLfs23LKH2n_NFnhd4OINOIgk9Ex0DMeuE5dQDF6CdmgN92JdnBVKtrmYEDZCjyfpd/w624-h444/bloom_taxonomy_1280.png%20(1280%C3%97905).png" width="624" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From: <a href="https://bit.ly/digitalbloom2">https://bit.ly/digitalbloom2</a><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>As we outlined in earlier blog posts, generative AI tools can contribute to education by helping provide more easily personalized learning experiences tailored to each student's unique needs and learning style. These tools can also help educators to assess student progress and adjust their teaching strategies accordingly. By leveraging the power of AI, educators can create more effective and engaging learning experiences that better prepare students for the challenges of the future.</p><h2>Conclusions</h2><p>In conclusion, a combination of robust pedagogical principles and the latest learning technologies is essential to ensure that education keeps pace with the changing demands of the world. In order to face today's emerging challenges, we need responsible, ethical and critical thinkers, self-directed learners, team players and a human-centred approach in education.</p><p>Paradoxically, as teachers, our purpose is not to teach or train anyone. Rather, our objective is to assist individuals in their positive development. Our approach is not punitive or prescriptive but rather focuses on fostering relationships, communities, and networks built on a foundation of trust. It is important to recognize that building such connections takes time.</p><p>A constructivist approach to education, with its emphasis on problem-solving, and self-directed learning, provides a solid foundation for this approach. By embracing new technologies such as virtual classrooms and generative AI, we can create a more personalized and effective learning experience that empowers students to succeed both in school and in life.</p><p><span face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #3c3c3c; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700;">For concrete examples of how to use AI apps in writing, see my low-priced e-products such as mini-guides, Notion or ClickUp templates in my Gumroad </span><a href="https://albertschram.gumroad.com/l/jjuyz?_gl=1*s7l0bh*_ga*NzM2NzA1NTI3LjE2Nzk3MzQ0MDA.*_ga_6LJN6D94N6*MTY4MTEyNzY2OS4xMS4xLjE2ODExMjk4MDcuMC4wLjA." style="background-color: white; color: #1250d5; font-family: Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700; text-decoration-line: none;">shop</a><span face="Verdana, Geneva, sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #3c3c3c; font-size: 13.2px; font-weight: 700;">.</span></p><p><br /></p>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-75020597761598592502022-09-18T09:45:00.007+02:002023-03-17T10:56:10.384+01:00The use of video for teaching and learning<p></p><div><br /></div><div><h1 style="text-align: left;">METHOD OR MEDIA: </h1><h2 style="text-align: left;">10 Do’s and some Don’ts for using media in online post-secondary education</h2><div><br /></div><div>Albert Schram, <i>Ph.D.</i></div><div><i>University of Maryland Global Campus</i> (Adelphi MD USA – Vicenza Italy) </div><div><br /></div><div>Paper prepared for the European Distance Education Network (EDEN) virtual annual conference, </div><div>Madrid 21-24 June 2021. </div><div><br /></div><div>Link to the session <a href="https://www.eden-online.org/2021_madrid/session/a2-learning-analytics-media/">https://www.eden-online.org/2021_madrid/session/a2-learning-analytics-media/</a></div><div><br /></div><div><u>Abstract</u></div><div>For effective online teaching and learning there is no short-cut for good instructional design, as well as following well-established pedagogical practices. For universities today, the main challenges for delivering quality online programs are, first, to provide good access through high quality digital infrastructure, and, secondly, to assure that all lecturers are trained in modern pedagogical approaches, basic instructional design principles for online teaching, and media usage. </div><span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br /></div><div>In my own experience, following the eight QM “Quality Matters” standards, will go a long way in improving online instruction and student engagement. These standards provide a simple, proven and robust framework, even for the inexperienced to design and deliver an effective and engaging course. Universities that have consistently applied QM standards, for example, dominate the rankings for best online programs in the USA [QM 2020]. Uniquely, QM offers a low-cost training program on online teaching that can be rolled out at scale for lecturers at member universities and schools, that includes all elements for developing and delivering effective online courses, including the use of media.</div><div><br /></div><div>The use of media in any course is always optional. Recent research, however, shows that the use of media, in particular asynchronous video in combination with other learning materials, can lead to substantial improvements in learning. This research found that the combination of solid instructional design and the appropriate use of asynchronous media in online or hybrid courses can be more effective than traditional face-to-face teaching, due to more focused content, and students being able to rewind thus avoiding feeling overwhelmed [Noetel et al. 2021]. Finally, I offer 10 helpful pointers for developing and delivering online courses using media, for those of us who are not experienced online instructors, or instructional designers. </div><div><br /></div><div>Keywords: Instructional design, media, asynchronous video, quality standards.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Introduction</h2><div>In this paper, I will discuss some of the implications of using media in teaching adults, following a recently published, and rather definitive meta-study on the topic [Noetel et al. 2021]. First, I will give a general introduction to what constitute good pedagogical practices and solid instructional design during an ongoing technological revolution in both face-to-face as well as online teaching and learning. Secondly, I will summarize research showing that the use of asynchronous videos in courses can substantially improve learning. Thirdly, I will list the practical implications for development of online courses, and the practices and tools for delivering them effectively. Some media turn out to be more apt for specific learning objectives than others, and this must be taken into account when designing a course, or when selecting specific type of media.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2><div>The history of technology of the past centuries suggests that broad impact of a technological innovation often occurs four decades or more after initial implementation, when the technological revolution really takes place [David, 1990]. Since the mobile internet is now barely twenty years old, what we are seeing today therefore may just be the start of a technological revolution. The use of media in teaching adults has become more common, since now every cell phone has good a camera and microphone with the capability to produce high-quality videos or audio. </div><div><br /></div><div>Recently, we have seen false optimism about how technology can improve learning. The emergence of Massive Open Online Course (MOOCs) with recorded lectures in the early 2010s, for example, turned out not to be such a technological revolution after all, with only a small percentage of participants actually finishing the courses [Parr, 2013]. </div><div><br /></div><div>In post-secondary education, the process of digitalization and use of artificial intelligence, has meant services once delivered by a single institution can now be offered separately, or in different combinations. This unbundling of educational services driven by digitalization was recently accelerated by the need to develop online teaching due to the COVID19 pandemic. As Lawrence Summers, President Emeritus of Harvard University wrote: “Certainly there are challenges ahead, but surely also opportunities for those bold enough to seize them. The potential unbundling is a certainly a threat, but those who rebundle well will find they have reinvented higher education for the 21st century.” [Barber et al., 2013, p. v]</div><div><br /></div><div>The discussion on what works and what does not in education can be confusing and spans the whole range from overly simplistic and optimistic techno-visions about dynamic classrooms [Craig 2017], to utter pessimism about the possibility to measure educational outcomes in adults. The truth is somewhere in the middle. It seems unlikely that there are simple technological fixes for good teaching, such as superior recording equipment or systems that mimic the physical classroom. Conversely, it is too pessimistic to say that no agreement will ever be achieved about what the desired learning outcomes for post-secondary programs will be, as the ill-fated AHELO surveys by the OECD showed [OECD, 2013]. </div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Method: what works and what doesn’t in face-to-face and online teaching and learning?</h2><div>For face-to-face teaching, educational research gives a good indication of what works, and what does not. Some of us, intersperse our lectures with probing questions which we sometimes call “the Socratic method.” Nobel Prize winner Carl Wieman at Stanford was mystified by their PhD students still being unable to do physics. He developed what he called experimental teaching, which “puts the problem first”. Through rigourous experimental research he was able to show that with improved teaching learning gains increased an order of magnitude [Adams & Wieman, 2011] [Deslauriers, Schelew & Wieman, 2011][ Wieman, 2014]</div><div><br /></div><div>When sticking to the traditional lecture format, however, it is hard to consistently “put the problem first” in all your classes. Since the 1960s problem-based learning (PBL) has addressed this challenge. It has taught the lecturers to withdraw and leave more control to the students. PBL is widely used in medical education, but also in engineering, though only a dozen or so universities in the world use it consistently across all disciplines. Maastricht University, for example, has developed a structured 7-step PBL approach, which is quite robust and at the same time flexible. There is extensive literature on the benefits of PBL, including higher retention rates [Moust, 2007]. PBL is more effective because it starts with a problem, and it challenges the learners to take responsibility for their own learning and progress by formulating learning objectives and producing content themselves. Though it is essential an small group teaching method with lots of interaction among students, it can be adapted to larger groups [Roberts et al., 2005].</div><div><br /></div><div>In addition to face-to-face pedagogy, what are the particular challenges in online teaching and learning? About 15 years ago several universities in the USA decided to set up QM “Quality Matters”, a non-profit that has now over 1,700 members in 27 countries. QM is based on the premise that there is no short-cut for good instructional design and alignment. It starts with research and then incorporates best-practices identified by a community of practitioners. According to QM, there are essentially six variable that determine the success of online teaching and learning: tarting with course design, course delivery and course content, which the lecturer can control. Institutional infrastructure, the learning management system, faculty members and students’ readiness also play an important role.</div><div><br /></div><div>Moreover, QM has formulated a eight standards presented in a rubric form on which online teaching and learning should be based. These standards are support by leading educational research, but also on extensive experience of lecturers at member university who form a community of practices and discuss regularly what works and what does not in online education.</div><div><br /></div><div>The eight general standards of the QM rubric cover the following themes:</div><div> 1. Course Overview and Introduction</div><div> 2. Learning Objectives (Competencies)</div><div> 3. Assessment and Measurement</div><div> 4. Instructional Materials</div><div> 5. Learning Activities and Learner Interaction</div><div> 6. Course Technology</div><div> 7. Learner Support</div><div> 8. Accessibility and Usability</div><div><br /></div><div>The key challenge for course development is to achieve alignment between Learning Objectives (Competencies) (2.1, 2.2), Assessment and Measurement (3.1), Instructional Materials (4.1), Learning Activities and Learner Interaction (5.1), and Course Technology (6.1). When these elements work together, students achieve desired learning outcomes. As to standard 3 regarding assessment and academic integrity, we assume here that issues of academic corruption and plagiarism are successfully being addressed by the institutions general policies and quality standards [Schram, 2014]. QM has separate and somewhat different standards for higher education, K-12, and Continuing Professional Education, but the 8 general standards remain the same [QM 2021]. Similarly, general pedagogical principles discussed above still hold, and can easily be combined with the 8 standards.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Media: what role for asynchronous video?</h2><div>While it may seem like it is important to know whether instructional design or media use makes the largest difference in learning gain, in reality that both are important. Good course design can work without videos, while videos cannot work without good course design. According to cognitive theories of multimedia learning, both face-to-face classes and video conferences, as well as asynchronous videos can all maximize the use of our cognitive infrastructure, since operate both visually as well as through sound [Mayer 2008]. A picture says more than a thousand words, and a video with text can be even more eloquent.</div><div><br /></div><div>The meta-analytic study by Noetel et al. [2021] analyzed 105 past randomized trial studies including 7,776 students, and examined at the effects of videos on learning as compared to the use of other teaching mediums, such as in-person lectures and assigned readings. Overall, when students got videos instead of usual form of teaching their average grades increased from B to B+, but when videos were given in addition to their existing class, the effect was stronger, moving students from a B to an A. The study found that videos were more effective for teaching skills than for transferring knowledge. The two main explanations for these results are that first, videos give students the ability to better control their own pace of learning, thus reducing the likelihood of them feeling overwhelmed, and secondly that pre-recorded videos allowed lecturers to fine-tune how they present information, and thus avoid some of the noise and confusing information that can creep into in person lectures.</div><div><br /></div><div>From this study, it seems clear therefore, that as a complement to traditional text-based teaching materials, asynchronous videos can be a very power tool to enhance student engagement and learning.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Teaching Strategy and Your Toolbox</h2><div>The key question concerning teaching strategy is: what do you want the students to do before class, and what do you want to do during and after the class? It is hear that media can play an important role. Before class, we need to have assurance that students understand basic concepts and have mastered essential information. Given the diverse educational backgrounds of especially non-traditional students, those with families and older than 24 years, this has become essential to conducting any meaningful class discussion.</div><div><br /></div><div>The instructor is left to figure out how better curriculum design and course delivery can enhance active learning and student-centred teaching. The bewildering diversity of types of media can make this task challenging. Video, and audio can be used for course introduction, course promotion, personal introductions, module introduction, instead of traditional lectures or for lecture capture, student feedback, course announcements, interview, event or debate recording, role play, case study or scenario, students’ presentations in project, problem or case-based learning, etc. Media is more than just video, and you can use audio recording, voice over slide presentation or screen-casting to demonstrate a website or software.</div><div><br /></div><div>So what can I recommend based on my recent experience teaching online? I found it most efficient to prepare the whole structure of the course with its learning objectives offine in a spreadsheet, with matching self-assessment, quiz and examination questions. This assures maximum coherence and minimizes waiting times of working online directly in the Learning Management System. Next classify selected video into three categories: short introductory 2-3 minutes, and somewhat longer content rich, teaching videos 5-10 minutes for students to do before each class, and finally mini-lectures or traditional lectures cut up in pieces of 10-15 minutes to stimulate class debate and reflection.</div><div><br /></div><div>For activating existing knowledge or going over the basics, identify short video’s with transcripts and provide it to the students, either auto-generated on YouTube. Provide transcripts for the mini-lecture videos, and complementary readings, providing self-assessment questions for each step. You can produce an introductory video, but the students really don’t need to see your face online each session. Classify video’s to stimulate interest and engagement vs. video’s to stimulate thinking and discussion. Include an online discussion board when appropriate, and provide a message reinforcing what has been learned at the end. Finally, for a high-flex design, those students who can not attend your (online) class can be asked to answers self-assessment questions and contribute online to the class debate, using Google Docs, or a discussion tool like Kialo or Perusall. To stimulate reflection after class, you can post a recording of presential class debates, or record a short video summary yourself.</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">10 Do’s</h2><div>In order to break online course development down even further, keeping in mind what I said above about method and media, here are 10 Do’s and a 5 don’t, reflecting what I learned from over a decade of online teaching. I hope it will be useful for you, although you will have to adapt according to your own objectives and teaching style.</div><div> 1. IT: set up your PC properly, including automatic backups. If you don't have a new computer with the latest proprietary operating system, you should consider installing open-source linux distribution. </div><div> 2. Course structure. Curriculum development need not be done online, rather you can prepare the whole structure of the course with its learning objectives in your spreadsheet, with matching self-assessment, quiz and exam questions.</div><div> 3. Video selection. Select short videos three kinds: short introductory 2-3 minutes, and somewhat longer content rich, teaching videos 5-10 minutes for students to do before each class. In class, you can use recorded lectures, your own or other people’s, but you need to chunk it up in sections of no more than 10 or 15 minutes. Provide transcripts of the videos, and optionally complementary readings, providing self-assessment questions for each step. You can produce an introductory video, but the students really don't need to constantly see your face online each session. </div><div> 4. Distinguish video’s that stimulate interest and engagement vs. video’s that stimulate thinking and discussion. Include activities, either self-assessments for all activities and polls to stimulate discussion.</div><div> 5. Transcripts and Youtube lists. For activating existing knowledge or going over the basics, identify short video’s with transcripts and provide it to the students, either auto-generated on YouTube. Remember some students are good at listening, others need to read the text. </div><div> 6. Learning Management System. Use any Learning Management System, but remember no LMS offers all functionality you may want. Use the import function on your LMS to assure consistency in the self-assessment, quiz and exam questions.</div><div> 7. Formative assessment. Include mandatory self-assessment, and feed these into slightly more complicated quiz questions. These can all be automatically graded multiple choice, true/false of fill-in-the-blanks questions. Rather than an examination, it is advisable to include some assignments with open questions or problems to solve.</div><div> 8. Required vs recommended materials. Provide additional information in text or video, so as to show multiple perspectives or extensions. Give links to Youtube list, but do not rely on it as the only source.</div><div> 9. Online discussion boards. Include an online discussion, and provide a message reinforcing what has been learned at the end. Summarize the online discussion by conducting and summarizing online polls. </div><div> 10. Chunking. Finally, in the classroom provide extra material by presenting a video lecture in bite sized bits of no more than 10 minutes with self-assessments. </div><div>Elsewhere, I have described which software tools I personally use to make it easy to include media into your courses, including Google slides, Polleverywhere, Edpuzzle, Nearpod, and others [Schram, 2020].</div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Some Don’ts</h2><div>Here are some things that I suggest should be avoided:</div><div> 1. Do not try to replicate a face to face lecture online. Effective teaching is like parenthood, it is all about letting go. Do not try to control all content, all dynamic, and make yourself the center of to the students’ learning experience.</div><div> 2. Do not fixate on giving your own lectures, and acting as if only synchronous activities can produce learning. On Open Course repositories or Youtube you will find instructional vidoes, or recordings of public lectures and debates of people much more knowledgeable than yourself on specific topics.</div><div> 3. Do not believe technology will fix your teaching issues, you will need to become familiar with basic pedagogy, instructional design concepts.</div><div> 4. Do not have your groups of students sit for hours and hours behind their screens looking at you lecture, without engaging with each other, with learning materials or doing any other meaningful learning activity.</div><div> 5. Do not talk about online learning and teaching as inherently inferior to face to face teaching, and something to be avoided as soon as the pandemic is under control. </div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Final Remarks</h2><div>Using asynchronous videos in your courses can be a powerful tool [Noetel 2021], but you have to be clear for what purpose you want to use media by consistently applying widely accepted instructional design standards such as QM. In addition, it helps to have a theory-based, student-centered pedagogical approach such as Problem Based Learning.</div><div><br /></div><div>With the right tools, course preparation does not have to take much longer than for any other regular class. Finding alignment between materials, activities and assessments through proper preparation, certainly beats the centuries old tradition of producing the teaching materials on the white board in class for one time use only. </div><div><br /></div><div>The avalanche of digital and information technology, online delivery of courses, and unbundling of services is coming towards us. How fast it travels and whether it will affect all players in equal measure is still unclear. The COVID pandemic has certainly accelerated these processes, and lecturers and students alike have found positive things about online teaching, which will be here to stay.</div><div> </div><div><u>References </u></div><div>Adams, W. K., & Wieman, C. E. (2011). Development and Validation of Instruments to Measure Learning of Expert‐Like Thinking. International Journal of Science Education, 33(9), 1289–1312. <a href="https://doi.org/10/cfzxhr">https://doi.org/10/cfzxhr</a></div><div>Craig, R. (2017). The Top 10 Higher Education Issues We All Agree On. Forbes. Retrieved from <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryancraig/2017/01/20/the-top-10-higher-education-issues-we-all-agree-on/#1c7f3a61fa87">https://www.forbes.com/sites/ryancraig/2017/01/20/the-top-10-higher-education-issues-we-all-agree-on/#1c7f3a61fa87</a></div><div>David, P. A. (1990). The Dynamo and the Computer: An Historical Perspective on the Modern Productivity Paradox. The American Economic Review, 80(2), 355–361. <a href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/2006600">http://www.jstor.org/stable/2006600</a></div><div>Deslauriers, L., Schelew, E., & Wieman, C. (2011). Improved Learning in a Large-Enrollment Physics Class. Science, 332(6031), 862–864. <a href="https://doi.org/10/c3jj3m">https://doi.org/10/c3jj3m</a></div><div>Moust, J. (2007). Introduction to problem-based learning : a guide for students ([2nd rev. ed.]). Wolters-Noordhoff.</div><div>Noetel, M., Griffith, S., Delaney, O., Sanders, T., Parker, P., del Pozo Cruz, B., & Lonsdale, C. (2021). Video Improves Learning in Higher Education: A Systematic Review. Review of Educational Research, 91(2), 204–236. <a href="https://doi.org/10/gjmdv6">https://doi.org/10/gjmdv6</a></div><div>OECD Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2013). Higher education and adult learning. <a href="http://www.oecd.org/edu/ahelo">http://www.oecd.org/edu/ahelo</a></div><div>Parr, Chris. (2013, May 10). New study of low MOOC completion rates. <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/05/10/new-study-low-mooc-completion-rates">https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/05/10/new-study-low-mooc-completion-rates</a></div><div>Roberts, C., Lawson, M., Newble, D., Self, A., & Chan, P. (2005). The introduction of large class problem-based learning into an undergraduate medical curriculum: an evaluation. Medical Teacher, 27(6), 527–533. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/01421590500136352">https://doi.org/10.1080/01421590500136352</a></div><div>Schram, A. (2014). University Governance and Transparency in the PNG University System. Journal of Pacific Studies, 34, 77–90. <a href="http://pimrisregional.library.usp.ac.fj/gsdl/collect/jps/index/assoc/HASH0749.dir/doc.pdf">http://pimrisregional.library.usp.ac.fj/gsdl/collect/jps/index/assoc/HASH0749.dir/doc.pdf</a></div><div>Schram, A. (2020). 7 Tips to Make Your Online Classes and Lectures More Engaging. Retrieved 31 March 2021, from <a href="https://albertschram.medium.com/7-tips-to-make-your-online-classes-and-lectures-more-engaging-94c47b1b3578">https://albertschram.medium.com/7-tips-to-make-your-online-classes-and-lectures-more-engaging-94c47b1b3578</a></div><div>Wieman, C. E. (2014). Large-scale comparison of science teaching methods sends clear message. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(23), 8319–8320. <a href="https://doi.org/10/gd6fw3">https://doi.org/10/gd6fw3</a></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBrHoGIKBmp9h4MuSsq7GV8ZJftRsxp9_Z-s2RsJtKerquHUw1VPsf1HKwEOmWRe29G09-Z_OcFFyMC9VpIjtqOjL2TOmd7U7G99sMOYtdguzCAOVTfl9Qt57zDqBEwRAKvfTOxhEjTOdVGEyW7FC2O5CrMFj6I3ZnX5wSR9zNNOVQmrMrvMw4ucI/s1132/MWALIMUlogo.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="284" data-original-width="1132" height="80" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQBrHoGIKBmp9h4MuSsq7GV8ZJftRsxp9_Z-s2RsJtKerquHUw1VPsf1HKwEOmWRe29G09-Z_OcFFyMC9VpIjtqOjL2TOmd7U7G99sMOYtdguzCAOVTfl9Qt57zDqBEwRAKvfTOxhEjTOdVGEyW7FC2O5CrMFj6I3ZnX5wSR9zNNOVQmrMrvMw4ucI/s320/MWALIMUlogo.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><p></p><p><br /></p></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-68174595719145383182022-04-17T20:37:00.007+02:002022-09-18T10:15:36.550+02:00Necrologia Laura Pighi (22 agosto 1930 - 13 aprile 2022)<p>La mattina del 13 aprile 2022, la Professoressa Laura Pighi Schram è morta a Negrar vicino a Verona (Italia), dove ha risieduto per quasi 35 anni. Nasce il 22 agosto 1930 a Milano da famiglia veneta. Per coincidenza, morì lo stesso giorno di San Zeno nell'anno 371 DC, l'amato Patrono di Verona, originario dell'Africa. Era la vedova di Kees Schram, morto il 27 gennaio 2017. Le sopravvivono i suoi figli Marco Schram e Albert Schram e le loro famiglie.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMmm65hU2oICXvDyGHgQae7bycsBhYkoevUua0rxA4Imp9grNUUCRNDIVsCyWRKvSqGQb0OqSsfhXm9e4yONVbaqcrU_BzGtsOsBJGpLPVUzk5-Apz8AFHGznohXSMgxT_D9l1nc-Z_RfLcq4JCszdby2Px5mCp0FBt_NL5gdVeExC653Qq-wxIjgg/s1280/LauraKees2-11-03.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="1280" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMmm65hU2oICXvDyGHgQae7bycsBhYkoevUua0rxA4Imp9grNUUCRNDIVsCyWRKvSqGQb0OqSsfhXm9e4yONVbaqcrU_BzGtsOsBJGpLPVUzk5-Apz8AFHGznohXSMgxT_D9l1nc-Z_RfLcq4JCszdby2Px5mCp0FBt_NL5gdVeExC653Qq-wxIjgg/s320/LauraKees2-11-03.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laura Pighi col marito Kees Schram</td></tr></tbody></table><p>In Olanda è nota come coautrice del dizionario Prisma italiano-olandese, che quasi tutti gli studenti di lingua italiana nel paese hanno utilizzato. Durante la sua vita ha pubblicato oltre 100 titoli in italiano, con le sue ultime pubblicazioni all'età di 90 anni. Gli ultimi una mezza dozzina di libri sono ancora in vendita in Italia da Liberia Feltrinelli vedi <a href="https://bit.ly/pighilaura">https://bit.ly/pighilaura</a> e su Amazon.it.</p><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a>Nel 2003, ad esempio, ha pubblicato uno studio accademico sull'utopia italiana e sulla letteratura di viaggio, e nel 2019 – a 89 anni – sull'umorismo nella letteratura italiana. Una delle sue opere più originali degli ultimi anni è il libro Dante e l'ambiente, di cui ha pubblicato un articolo nel 2021. Nel 2015 ha pubblicato “Ricordi” le sue memorie che sono piene di ricordi felici della sua vita nel Olanda. Nel 2020 ha anche pubblicato le memorie delle esperienze del padre durante la prima guerra mondiale.<p></p><p>Fino al suo matrimonio nel 1963 ha lavorato come docente presso l'Università di Bologna e ha conseguito il dottorato sull'influenza degli autori italiani in Francia nel 18° secolo. Dopo 20 anni di nazifascismo che avevano trasformato l'Italia in un campo di battaglia, c'era una forte sensazione che la cooperazione e l'apertura internazionale fossero l'unica via da percorrere per il Paese. In questo periodo è stata attiva nella Federazione Universitaria Cattolica Italiana (FUCI), istituendo la prima associazione studentesca internazionale italiana “Centro Internazionale di Accologienza Studenti Stranieri” (CIAO) - in particolare per le borse di studio somale ed etiopi, che facevano parte del risarcimenti di guerra - , fondò l'AIPI "Associazione Professori di Italiano" di cui in seguito guidò il capitolo olandese. Con l'Italia che esce da oltre 20 anni di isolamento, è stata anche attiva nel Movimento Federalista Europeo, e ha anche incontrato personalmente Altiero Spinelli nei primi anni '60, quando risiedeva a Bologna.</p><p>Dopo il matrimonio dal 1963 al 1988 ha lavorato come docente senior di letteratura italiana presso l'Istituto italiano dell'Università di Utrecht e ha conseguito il secondo dottorato nel 1985 presso l'Università di Amsterdam sull'influenza della filosofia francese sugli autori italiani all'inizio del 20° secolo. Era attiva nella vita sociale e culturale di questo istituto e godeva particolarmente delle feste annuali di San Nicola. Fuori dall'università, ha contribuito alla rivista "La Strada", che ha lavorato come punto focale per la grande comunità di migranti italiani dell'epoca nei Paesi Bassi.</p><p>Per diversi anni è stata presidente dell'Associazione Dante Alighieri di Utrecht. Ha fondato la rivista "Incontri", che ora si è evoluta in una rivista scientifica di studiosi olandesi che si occupano di studi italiani. Con la Dutch Open University of Television (TELEAC), ha anche fondato ALCI "Amici Lingua e Cultura Italiana", e organizzato numerosi corsi di lingua italiana e viaggi studio in Italia. Durante questi viaggi ha sviluppato una predilezione per la Puglia e la Sicilia, parte della meravigliosa diversità culturale dell'Italia.</p><p>Nell'ottobre 1973 le fu anche chiesta brevemente di insegnare alla regina Giuliana dei Paesi Bassi il modo corretto di pronunciare un discorso in italiano in occasione della visita del presidente italiano Giovanni Leone. Discendente di garibaldini, e non una sostenitrice della monarchia, scherzava sempre che la regina non aveva mai pagato le sue lezioni.</p><p>Negli ultimi anni del suo lavoro presso l'Università di Utrecht, insieme all'allora Prorettore a Bologna, riuscì a ripristinare la funzione di accoglienza degli studenti dell'Università di Utrecht presso il Collegio dei Fiamminghi dell'Università di Bologna. Per questo, ma anche ex alunna e figlia di un ex Prorettore di questo Ateneo, è stata invitata all'Università di Bologna in occasione del suo 900° anniversario, durante il quale è stata firmata la Magna Carta Universitatum che promuove la libertà accademica e autonomia universitaria nel mondo. Molti studiosi olandesi oggi, specializzati in materie italiane, si sono avvalsi di queste borse di studio per svolgere le loro ricerche presso l'Alma Mater Studiorum, l'Università di Bologna, la più antica università del mondo in funzionamento continuo. Dopo il ritorno in Italia nel 1988, ha riattivato a Verona il capitolo Dante Alighieri, dove ha avviato un capitolo giovanile che mirava a sensibilizzare i bambini migranti “i nuovi veronesi” alla lingua, alla letteratura e alla cultura italiana.</p><p>Fino alla fine è rimasta in contatto con molti ex studenti dell'Università di Utrecht, che ha chiamato gli altri suoi figli “figli di carta”. Il 27 dicembre 1988 ha ricevuto uno dei massimi ordini dello Stato italiano “Commendatore Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana” per il suo lavoro a favore dei migranti italiani e per la promozione della cultura italiana nei Paesi Bassi. Negli ultimi anni è stata Presidente di “Viva Valpolicella” e dell'associazione ambientalista “Nanuk”. Nel 2018 è stata tra i membri fondatori della sezione Negrar del Movimento Federalista Europeo.</p><p>Nel 1954 diventa proprietaria di una Fiat 600, e continua a guidare fino al 2012. Con il padre ha viaggiato in tutto il Nord Italia con la sua Lambretta 300GT, e ha continuato ad amare scooter, auto e qualsiasi altro tipo di trasporto motorizzato. Amava molto i fiori e soprattutto le orchidee di cui ne vide molte durante il suo viaggio in Costa Rica nel 1994. </p><p>Un fatto poco noto su di lei è che sapeva come mungere una mucca e in genere amava il giardinaggio e l'agricoltura. Dopo che una bomba di uno dei primi bombardamenti su Milano il 24 ottobre 1943 distrusse la casa di famiglia, trascorse gli anni della guerra come rifugiata rinchiusa in una fattoria della Brianza. Il padre continuò a lavorare per un po' all'Università Cattolica di Milano, ma gli fu assegnata una spia fascista personale che lo seguiva sempre in giro.</p><p>Sebbene sia nata e cresciuta durante il fascismo, la sua vita è stata dedicata a riparare il danno arrecato alla reputazione internazionale della cultura italiana dalla guerrafondaia, dal nazionalismo estremo, dal razzismo e dal genocidio di questo movimento, un'ombra che purtroppo continua a gravare sul paese fino a oggi. Non ha mai usato i suoi titoli accademici o di altro tipo, traendo invece soddisfazione dai suoi stessi scritti e dalla crescita e dallo sviluppo delle molte entità che ha creato, i suoi ex studenti, i suoi figli e nipoti. È andata serenamente e come sempre con un sorriso.</p><p><u>Riferimenti Bibliografici<br /></u>Quattro dei suoi libri, comprese le sue memorie "Ricordi", sono ancora in stampa on demand disponibile online su Amazon italiano e La Feltrinelli, con qualche sconto.</p><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/potenza-del-riso-breve-viaggio-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788894954340?inventoryId=4757721&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">La potenza del riso. Breve viaggio sulle tracce dell'umorismo nella narrativa italiana moderna</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788894954340" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/potenza-del-riso-breve-viaggio-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788894954340?inventoryId=4757721&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="La potenza del riso. Breve viaggio sulle tracce dell'umorismo nella narrativa italiana moderna" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788894954340_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2019</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/ricordi-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788899478100?inventoryId=3676870&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Ricordi</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788899478100" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/ricordi-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788899478100?inventoryId=3676870&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="Ricordi" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788899478100_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2015</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/dante-universo-del-riso-del-libro-laura-schram-pighi-giovannantonio-forabosco/e/9788899478094?inventoryId=3919198&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Dante e l'universo del riso e del sorriso</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788899478094" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/dante-universo-del-riso-del-libro-laura-schram-pighi-giovannantonio-forabosco/e/9788899478094?inventoryId=3919198&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="Dante e l'universo del riso e del sorriso" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788899478094_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a>, <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/giovannantonio-forabosco" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Giovannantonio Forabosco</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2015</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/narrativa-italiana-di-utopia-dal-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788880633730?inventoryId=4392244&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">La narrativa italiana di utopia dal 1750 al 1915</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788880633730" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/narrativa-italiana-di-utopia-dal-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788880633730?inventoryId=4392244&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="La narrativa italiana di utopia dal 1750 al 1915" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788880633730_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">Longi Editore, 2003.</div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div></div></div></div></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-2164578819145503952022-04-16T09:42:00.020+02:002022-09-18T10:15:59.734+02:00Obituary for my mother Laura Pighi (22 August 1930 - 13 April 2022): the life of an international scholar of Italian literature and cultureIn the morning of 13 April 2022, Profesoressa Laura Pighi Schram passed away in Negrar near Verona (Italy), where she resided for almost 35 years. She was born on 22 August 1930 in Milan to a Venetian family. Coincidentally, she died on the same day as <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2022/04/echoes-from-ancient-times-anniversary.html" target="_blank">San Zeno</a> in the year 371 AD, the beloved Patron Saint of Verona, originally from Africa. She was the widow of Kees Schram, who died on 27 January 2017. She is survived by her children Marco Schram and Albert Schram and their families.<div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWMXHsb1dIGVEC6wb8e_JITze8i3GK_HrLvmZ-yIf5foEfQ39ek3AMEYHAjUP1PVnJm1Td8BzbMsa2uIe6Ln4uIua0c8ygCdPJ00iHDKdlUK3CW8WoZ2iuu1QvHqMm6UWPzMfz20lShhBA1XO9AbP4Aqe_42r-qMaLZrdJEq8GE7aTRIOVB1QYDa3/s1504/Pighi%20Laura007.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1000" data-original-width="1504" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsWMXHsb1dIGVEC6wb8e_JITze8i3GK_HrLvmZ-yIf5foEfQ39ek3AMEYHAjUP1PVnJm1Td8BzbMsa2uIe6Ln4uIua0c8ygCdPJ00iHDKdlUK3CW8WoZ2iuu1QvHqMm6UWPzMfz20lShhBA1XO9AbP4Aqe_42r-qMaLZrdJEq8GE7aTRIOVB1QYDa3/s320/Pighi%20Laura007.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Laura Pighi in her study in Verona in 2008</td></tr></tbody></table><div><br />In the Netherlands, she is well known as the co-author of the Prisma Italian-Dutch dictionary, which almost all students of the Italian language in the country have used. During her lifetime, she published over 100 titles in Italian, with her last publications appearing when she was 90 years old. The most recent half a dozen books are still for sale in Italy at Liberia Feltrinelli see <a href="https://bit.ly/pighilaura" target="_blank">https://bit.ly/pighilaura</a> and on Amazon.it.</div><div><span><a name='more'></a></span> <br />In 2003, for example, she published an academic study on <a href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/narrativa-italiana-di-utopia-dal-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788880633730" target="_blank">Italian utopian and travel literature</a>, and in 2019 – when she was 89 years old - on humour in Italian literature. One of her most original works of the last years is the book on <a href="https://www.isprambiente.gov.it/files/dante.pdf" target="_blank">Dante and the Environment</a>, about which she published <a href="https://www.ilcondominionews.it/2021-anno-dantesco-il-sommo-poeta-durante-dante-alighieri-contributi-degli-editori-de-ilcondominionews-it-3/" target="_blank">an article</a> in 2021. In 2015, she published “Ricordi” her memoirs which are filled with the happy memories of her life in the Netherlands. In 2020, she also published the memoirs of her father's experiences during the <a href="https://pighiww1dairy.blogspot.com/2020/09/blog-post.html" target="_blank">first world war</a>.<br /><br />Until she married in 1963 she was working as a lecturer at the University of Bologna and did her doctorate on the influence of Italian authors in France in the 18th century. After 20 years of nazi-fascism which had transformed Italy into a battlefield, there was a strong sense that international cooperation and openness was the only way forward for the country. In this period, she was active in the Federazione Universitaria Cattolica Italiana (FUCI), set up the first Italian international student association “Centro Internazionale di Accologienza Studenti Stranieri“ (CIAO) - especially for the Somalian and Ethiopian bursaries, which were part of Italy's war reparation payments - , founded AIPI "Associazione Professori di Italiano" of which she later led the Dutch chapter. With Italy emerging from over 20 years of isolation under fascism, she was also active in the European Federalist Movement, and she met the founder of the movement Altiero Spinelli personally in the early 1960s, when he resided in Bologna.<br /><br />After her marriage from 1963 until 1988 she worked as a senior lecturer of Italian literature at the Italian institute at the University of Utrecht, and obtained her second doctorate in 1985 at the University of Amsterdam on the influence of French philosophy on Italian authors at the beginning of the 20th century. She was active in this institute's social and cultural life, and especially enjoyed the annual Saint Nicholas festivities. Outside the university, she contributed to the magazine "La Strada", which worked as a focal point for the large Italian migrant community at the time in the Netherlands.<br /><br />For several years, she was president of the Dante Alighieri Association of Utrecht. She founded the magazine "Incontri", which now evolved into a scientific journal of Dutch scholars dealing with Italian studies. With the Dutch Open University of Television (TELEAC), she also founded ALCI "Amici Lingua e Cultura Italiana", and organized numerous Italian language courses and study trips to Italy. During these trips she grew a fondness for the Puglia and Sicily regions, part of Italy's wonderful diversity in culture. </div><div><br /></div><div>In October 1973, she was also briefly asked to teach Queen Juliana of the Netherlands the correct way to pronounce a speech in Italian for the occasion of the visit of Italian President Giovanni Leone. A descendant of followers of Garibaldi, and not a supporter of the monarchy, she always quipped the queen had never paid for her lessons.<br /><br />In the last years of her work at the University of Utrecht, together with the Vice-Rector in Bologna at the time, she managed to restore the function of hosting students from the University of Utrecht at the Collegio dei Fiaminghi at the University of Bologna. As a result of this, but also being an alumna and daughter of a former Vice-Rector of this university, she was invited at the University of Bologna’s celebration of its 900th anniversary, during which the Magna Carta Universitatum was signed which promotes academic freedom and university autonomy world-wide. Many Dutch scholars today, who specialized on Italian subjects, made use of these scholarships to do their research at the Alma Mater Studiorum, the University of Bologna, the oldest university in the world in continuous operation. After returning to Italy in 1988, she re-activated the Dante Alighieri chapter in Verona, where she started a youth chapter that aimed to make migrant children “i nuovi Veronesi” more aware of Italian language, literature and culture. <br /><br />Until the end, she kept in touch with many former students from the University of Utrecht, whom she called her other children “figli di carta”. She received one of the highest orders of the Italian state “<a href="https://www.quirinale.it/onorificenze/insigniti/273722" target="_blank">Commendatore Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana</a>” on 27 December 1988 for her work on behalf of Italian migrants and promoting Italian culture in the Netherlands. In her later years, she was President of “Viva Valpolicella” and of the environmental association “Nanuk”. In 2018, she was one of the founding members of the Negrar chapter of the Movimento Federalista Europeo.<br /><br />In 1954 she became the owner of a Fiat 600, and she continued to drive until 2012. With her father, she traveled throughout Northern Italy with his Lambretta Scooter 300, and she continued to love scooters, cars and any other type of motorized transport. She loved flowers and especially orchids of which she saw many during her trip to Costa Rica in 1994. A little known fact about her is that she knew how to milk a cow, and generally was fond of gardening and farming. After a bomb of one of the first bombardments on Milan on 24 October 1943 destroyed the family home, she spent the war years as a refugee locked down on a farm in Brianza. Her father continued to work at the Catholic University in Milan for a while, but was assigned a personal fascist spy who always followed him around.</div><div><br />Although she was born and grew up during fascism, her life’s work was devoted to repairing the damage done to the international reputation of Italian culture by this movement’s warmongering, extreme nationalism, racism, and genocide, a shadow that sadly continues to hang of the country until today. She never used her academic or other titles, taking instead satisfaction from her own writings, and the growth and development of the many entities she created, her former students, and her children and grand-children. She went peacefully and as always with a smile. </div><div><br /></div><div><u>References.</u></div><div>Four of her books, including her memoires "Ricordi" are still in print on demand available online on Italian Amazon and La Feltrinelli, with some discount.</div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/potenza-del-riso-breve-viaggio-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788894954340?inventoryId=4757721&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">La potenza del riso. Breve viaggio sulle tracce dell'umorismo nella narrativa italiana moderna</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788894954340" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/potenza-del-riso-breve-viaggio-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788894954340?inventoryId=4757721&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="La potenza del riso. Breve viaggio sulle tracce dell'umorismo nella narrativa italiana moderna" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788894954340_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2019</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/ricordi-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788899478100?inventoryId=3676870&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Ricordi</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788899478100" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/ricordi-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788899478100?inventoryId=3676870&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="Ricordi" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788899478100_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2015</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/dante-universo-del-riso-del-libro-laura-schram-pighi-giovannantonio-forabosco/e/9788899478094?inventoryId=3919198&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Dante e l'universo del riso e del sorriso</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788899478094" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/dante-universo-del-riso-del-libro-laura-schram-pighi-giovannantonio-forabosco/e/9788899478094?inventoryId=3919198&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="Dante e l'universo del riso e del sorriso" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788899478094_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a>, <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/giovannantonio-forabosco" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Giovannantonio Forabosco</a></div><span class="cc-publisher" face="Poppins, sans-serif" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; display: block; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; margin-top: 8px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><a class="cc-publisher-name" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/editori/edizioni-zerotre" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: italic; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Edizioni Zerotre</a> , 2015</span></div></div></div></div><div><br /></div><div><a class="cc-title" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="link" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/narrativa-italiana-di-utopia-dal-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788880633730?inventoryId=4392244&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-box-orient: vertical; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-line-clamp: 2; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; cursor: pointer; display: -webkit-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: 22px; margin: 0px 0px 10px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">La narrativa italiana di utopia dal 1750 al 1915</a><div class="cc-item-row" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #263238; display: flex; flex-flow: row wrap; font-family: Raleway, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; font-stretch: inherit; font-variant-east-asian: inherit; font-variant-numeric: inherit; line-height: inherit; outline: none;"><div class="cc-col-img" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex: 0 0 140px; font: inherit; max-width: 140px; outline: none; width: 140px;"><div class="cc-content-img" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; font: inherit; margin: 0px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; padding: 0px 0px 160px; position: relative; width: 140px;"><a class="cc-img-link" data-ean="9788880633730" data-inventoryid="0" data-physical="true" data-tracking-intent="navigate" data-tracking-item-click="cover" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/narrativa-italiana-di-utopia-dal-libro-laura-schram-pighi/e/9788880633730?inventoryId=4392244&queryId=308ceede9e9fcb5acffc62789f257ce9" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;"><img alt="La narrativa italiana di utopia dal 1750 al 1915" class="cc-img" src="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/images/9788880633730_0_150_0_75.jpg" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: block; font: inherit; height: auto; left: 70px; margin: 0px; max-height: 100%; max-width: 100%; outline: none; padding: 0px; position: absolute; top: 80px; transform: translate(-50%, -50%); vertical-align: middle; width: auto;" /></a></div></div><div class="cc-col-info" style="-webkit-box-direction: normal; -webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-box-orient: horizontal; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; display: flex; flex-flow: row nowrap; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 140px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 140px); outline: none; padding-left: 12px; width: calc(100% - 140px);"><div class="cc-content-text" style="-webkit-box-flex: 0; -webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: inherit; flex-grow: 0; flex-shrink: 0; flex: 0 0 calc(100% - 180px); font: inherit; max-width: calc(100% - 180px); outline: none; padding-right: 24px; width: calc(100% - 180px);"><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">di <a class="cc-author-name" data-tracking-ignore="true" href="https://www.lafeltrinelli.it/libri/autori/laura-schram-pighi" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; cursor: pointer; font-family: inherit; font-size: inherit; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; font-weight: 600; line-height: inherit; outline: none; text-decoration-line: none; transition: all 0.2s ease-out 0s;">Laura Schram Pighi</a></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;">Longi Editore, 2003.</div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div><div class="cc-author" style="-webkit-font-smoothing: antialiased; -webkit-tap-highlight-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; font-family: Poppins, sans-serif; font-size: 12px; font-stretch: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-variant: inherit; line-height: 18px; outline: none; overflow: hidden; text-overflow: ellipsis; white-space: nowrap;"><br /></div></div></div></div></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-69819622547977350252022-04-11T10:04:00.007+02:002022-09-18T10:16:23.101+02:00Echoes from Ancient Times: Anniversary of the death of San Zenone of Verona (12 April 371)<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH2KevoF0xJuIFjT8q1wvyEMufHEAmsXJJnJyHUER9JRymmi4qzAFnW1d8xdxKlDU5fScH_-SaDH8XzJIVc2X21bh3caRpWJsEKBAmUu8PRAR18qePMSulT3mQQQ7AdFsMRq3az4LoivRr1ar6E9jw_tUs8qYWLTkBdlz9G7q9Xaa6kkWN1IV-XxrB/s1071/san-zeno-statua-750.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1071" data-original-width="750" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjH2KevoF0xJuIFjT8q1wvyEMufHEAmsXJJnJyHUER9JRymmi4qzAFnW1d8xdxKlDU5fScH_-SaDH8XzJIVc2X21bh3caRpWJsEKBAmUu8PRAR18qePMSulT3mQQQ7AdFsMRq3az4LoivRr1ar6E9jw_tUs8qYWLTkBdlz9G7q9Xaa6kkWN1IV-XxrB/s320/san-zeno-statua-750.jpg" width="224" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Statue of San Zeno in Verona</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p>Today, in Verona and elsewhere we celebrate the death of its patron Saint Zenone (in Veronese "San Zen") the 8th Bishop of Verona from 361 to 371. Though this is the very early history of Christianity, barely 50 years after the alleged conversation of Roman Emperor Constantin in 312 AD, we know quite a lot about San Zeno because he was a prolific writer. Recently, his sermones in Latin have even been made available on <a href="https://play.google.com/store/books/details/Sermones?id=_X1MAAAAcAAJ&gl=US" target="_blank">Googe Play Books</a>. In these sermons he would point out, for example, Christians should keep down the wailing during funerals, since after all for Christians the dead would be in a better place.</p><span><a name='more'></a></span>The Roman Empire covered much of the Mediterranean, North Africa and Northern Europe and was therefore multi-ethnic, though Latin and Roman law were adopted across the whole empire. We know for instance that Zeno was probably from Mauretania (today's Marocco), like his contemporaries Saint Augustine from Pavia who was from today's Algeria. Their use of language and frequent use of humour betray their origins. Zeno's statue in Verona seems to show his smile and dark skin. By contrast, another contemporary of theirs, Saint Ambrose of Milan was of Romano-Germanic origin from today's city of Trier.<br /><br />My favourite story is how San Zenos exorcised the daughter of the Roman Emperor Gallienus and thus was allowed to convert the many pagans in the City of Verona. An image in bronze of this exorcism is on the door of San Zeno basilic in Verona. You can see the devil leave her mouth. My grandfather, Giovanni Battista Pighi wrote extensively about the early history of the Veroneses Church, and produced a scientific edition of the sermones and legends around San Zeno.<br /><br /><u>References</u><br />https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zeno_of_Verona<div><br /></div><div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSvKXOo0fGYxUxdOiR02-VaHjth_TVVd8Fr9lIZykPdHhwogfBito5r-E6w2b1sosS8u_uJiAgmXp0D-lkYcT7nrIl_iUKMHaj5Vo_dJjC3WCElPADD4WE6CdmWvOOAdp3-7nWKXYjnzm0RktcP2-ZiOmlq5stL4SjMYXAWT5FP7MIWicU_olojukf/s450/momenti55a.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="440" data-original-width="450" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSvKXOo0fGYxUxdOiR02-VaHjth_TVVd8Fr9lIZykPdHhwogfBito5r-E6w2b1sosS8u_uJiAgmXp0D-lkYcT7nrIl_iUKMHaj5Vo_dJjC3WCElPADD4WE6CdmWvOOAdp3-7nWKXYjnzm0RktcP2-ZiOmlq5stL4SjMYXAWT5FP7MIWicU_olojukf/s320/momenti55a.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Exorcism of Emperor Gallienus' daughter</td></tr></tbody></table></div><div><br /></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-59581031774743236842022-02-20T11:30:00.015+01:002022-04-11T10:07:08.125+02:00Obituary Joe Kaowai (8 May 1982 - 14 February 2022)<div dir="ltr"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhp5Cc3P41wY_5JPWFmH25V4Fvsu2_zMU08_mI9SoFFupXQztrlH3RlxDJ0QqmGK_n9geKXvC4S7gQTGuZE8Q-ZrrXsUK5O1J0wDxKLvVx3YaLG2jsQt1nhnyZbvaoDTIxhVAh8sTyVAtyy4l59ew1XchZR_0o8JxwN11E81rrPAlr5bkVMIp7Z3Dej=s643" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="643" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhp5Cc3P41wY_5JPWFmH25V4Fvsu2_zMU08_mI9SoFFupXQztrlH3RlxDJ0QqmGK_n9geKXvC4S7gQTGuZE8Q-ZrrXsUK5O1J0wDxKLvVx3YaLG2jsQt1nhnyZbvaoDTIxhVAh8sTyVAtyy4l59ew1XchZR_0o8JxwN11E81rrPAlr5bkVMIp7Z3Dej=s320" width="299" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe Kaowai in Venice<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br />In the night of Monday 14 February 2022, our wonderful friend, servant-leader, educator, and colleague Joe Kaowai passed away in Angau hospital only 39 years and 9 months old. He is survived by his wife Joy, son Alberto and daughter Paulina. As a sign of our special bond and true friendship, he kindly named his son and his daughter after myself and my wife.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><span><br /></span><span><a name='more'></a></span><br />I met Joe for the first time on the 7th of February 2012 when I gave my first speech as Vice-Chancellor. The former Chancellor has just spoken gloomily in a mixture of pidgin - which I did not understand at the time -, and English about how we had to try to keep the UNITECH ship afloat. I though this was not a proper way to address incoming, enthusiastic and hopeful students. Instead, I told the students they had to take their studies seriously, because their hard-working, studious peers in India, Europe and elsewhere would compete with them in the job market. <br /><br />Next, I explained my vision for the future of the university in which graduate employment, support from industry, and bringing UNITECH into the 21st century by providing access to fast, campus-wide internet would be the focus of my Vice-Chancellorship. The students understood that I had come to serve them and not myself or the forever university staff and selfish former University Council and management team members. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">At the end of my speech, I said "Together we can make UNITECH fly!". Joe, who was SRC President at the time, liked this so much that he repeated it several times, and got great applause from the student body. I became known, of course, as the flying Dutchman.<br /><br />Physically, Joe was not imposing, but his exceptional spirit gave him a great presence and natural leadership. He had a tremendous smile, which looked as if a volcano erupted inside, and he laughed loud and often. He was a true servant leader, and his CV states "solving problems for others" as his main goal.<br /></div><span><!--more--></span><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Remembering his life, there are three episodes that stand out which shows his leadership, his tireless efforts to pursue a modern formal education, and his successful attempts to bring people together and peace-making.<br /><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">Non-Violent Student Protests</h2>The student protests in April 2012 in Lae aimed to bring about a transparent and accountable governance at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNGUoT or UNITECH). In Port Moresby, at the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) students were protesting against the anti-democratic "judicial conduct act", which was one of the first of many attempts by the Peter O'Neill government to destroy democracy in the country. The protests there were led by UPNG SRC President Emmanuel Isaac and were successful. With support from AusAid, I had encouraged both groups of students to coordinate their actions, strategize and assure a non-violent behaviours. In my view, a strong SRC leadership would help end the wild boycott culture, and prevent things from spiraling out of control.<br /><br />As SRC President in 2012, Joe always showed exceptional leadership and strong commitment to non-violence. After several weeks of dithering and evasion by the Peter O'Neill government, for example, some hot heads among the student in Lae had hatched a plan to set fire to the port. I had been warned by Joe through a series of text messaged, and was asked to talk with them. Unfortunately, I was new to the university and unwisely took the advise from unintelligent colleagues not to engage physically with them. <br /><br />The hothead students of course proceeded with their plans, and loaded up three vehicles with barrels of diesel fuel. Only by physically preventing them from exiting the university gate, was Joe able to prevent them from achieving their goals. Imagine what would have happened, the material damage and the violence unleashed by the police on the students. Joe on his own did what I should have done.<br /><br />Similarly, he also had a major role in preventing worse when Peter O'Neill order the shooting of peacefully demonstrating students on the UPNG campus in Port Moresby on 8 June 2016. The PNGUoT students had been protesting on the same national issue, and unsuccessfully trying to convince Peter O'Neill to submit himself to an inquiry into serious accusations of corruption. He never gave in, but as a result he took political control of the universities by abusing the Higher Education Act of 2014, and silenced the voice of the students by suspending the SRCs indefinitely in breach of the University Acts.<br /><br />After the shooting in Port Moresby, the news spread that a student had been killed, and PNG was again briefly world news, for all the wrong reasons. I had seen on twitter that a body had not been found in the Port Moresby General Hospital, and decided to accept the offer of the Lae Metropolitan Police Superintendent Anthony Wagambie Jr. offer to come and talk to the PNGUoT students on campus.<br /><br />Fearing for the MetSup's safety, I went out to get him, telling the students that this was a good policeman, not the same police as had been shooting at their fellow students in Port Moresby. Only the Vice-Chancellor office assistant and driver accompanied me, none of my colleagues.<br /><br />We tried to hold a forum outside, but there was too much unrest. Then, out of nowhere, Joe appeared and decided the meeting would be moved to the Council room. This allowed us to hold a productive meeting and the students were somewhat reassured and asked not to pursue their demonstrations outside campus. Again in times of crisis, Joe played a major role.<br /></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br />The obtuse and illegitimate government of Peter O'Neill (2012-2019) never understood that people like
Joe and myself were key in order to modernize universities, and end the
boycott culture of students born out of frustation with lack of
progress.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><h2 style="text-align: left;">Joe's Studies</h2></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">When Joe and his siblings were children, the area of Enga province was suffering from constant tribal warfare. In order to lower the intensity, most bridges across the many rivers had been destroyed. In Joe's village children simply miss out on school. Only Joe's father decided his children should attend school, although he himself had not been able to go to school at all. In those days, however, Engan men would receive a great informal education in the hausman in which values of honesty, respect for others, and wisdom were firmly instilled.<br /><br />The persistence of Joe's father in getting his children a modern education, meant a long 2 hour walk to school, where he had to carry his children on his shoulders across the rivers. Several years later, we met Joe's late father, who only spoke Engan. This was another highlight. Despite the language barriers we had an evening of simple fun at a Chinese restaurant in Lae, where we got to know him and his family better. <br /><br />Although sadly long walks to school are far from uncommon in PNG, we greatly admire the exceptional persistence and courage of Joe's father. As a result, Joe managed to finish grade 10 in Enga, but then had to do grade 11 and grade 12 through distance learning. Eventually, he came to the PNGUoT already 30 years old.<br /><br />Nevertheless, at the PNGUoT Joe graduated in time and proved to be a good student. After graduation, we became good friends. I thought him eminently suitable for studies abroad in Europe, which had become possible after I signed an Erasmus Mundus program agreements with the European Commission. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgoEP4751_hObEhDKolvJjxIJzmOFOj4qAvaix-bKpKF7S2BnfLwBQRcJKAl0lKHEbPmRUgywh2ZcWZg5FchQCCfQdIVV-4Q1_ntYz_hwdiXCjH3oBi902YwYHy2vZGzgTKTrdR1RAoZMeSpgkbD5YvaqwQ98vuS6gAWEJDQAhmcuBzSODMoQrqysp0=s600" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgoEP4751_hObEhDKolvJjxIJzmOFOj4qAvaix-bKpKF7S2BnfLwBQRcJKAl0lKHEbPmRUgywh2ZcWZg5FchQCCfQdIVV-4Q1_ntYz_hwdiXCjH3oBi902YwYHy2vZGzgTKTrdR1RAoZMeSpgkbD5YvaqwQ98vuS6gAWEJDQAhmcuBzSODMoQrqysp0=s320" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe in Venice, during his studies in Europe<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">Moreover, studies abroad had become necessary for Joe because some spiteful former Council members had made it impossible for him to find a job in Lae. This was the Council that had been sacked in its entirety by the Minister of Higher Education due to extensive fraud and mismanagement of funds. <br /><br />Joe was accepted for an MBA program in Madrid, Spain, and passed almost all his exams. As often happens with PNGeans studying abroad, he became part of a group of Christian African students, and they learned much from each other. Sadly, because of backward Spanish laws, one subject was only offered in Spanish, and though Joe learned to speak some Spanish, he was unable to pass this exam. <br /><br />When studying in Spain, September 2014 he decided to come visit us in nearby Italy, where we were enjoying our annual leave, while at the same time negotiating beneficial agreement for the PNGUoT with European universities. My wife and I will always remember these days spent with Joe at our home, and showing him the historical sites in the region, talking about the future of PNG, and enjoying the local food. In September, it is the time of the grape harvest and Joe had developed a great liking for this fruit.<br /><br />On 14th of September 2014, we visited Venice together. It was just a fun day, but we also discussed wisdom and governance Roman empire, and the Venetian Republic, being able to see and touch for ourselves what remained of these great civilisations, that produced what would become the modern university.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhAtcdwjLXXSFsmXJ9cbpjKBxGIndUvkOIIJ8sofToQqUAI3UOQaVCPW7oFgHRHUSD6hk2AG3xyixB9D0ibe6DTQopdSzIDH5LBdcuk9pZymIGxgSi-0zQ1sV2_3uqf2BCA7u7kRvOU283a1qHgJdpS-33mboVRsgK1qyjLzj71lqPICDGX48TPNjzh=s800" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhAtcdwjLXXSFsmXJ9cbpjKBxGIndUvkOIIJ8sofToQqUAI3UOQaVCPW7oFgHRHUSD6hk2AG3xyixB9D0ibe6DTQopdSzIDH5LBdcuk9pZymIGxgSi-0zQ1sV2_3uqf2BCA7u7kRvOU283a1qHgJdpS-33mboVRsgK1qyjLzj71lqPICDGX48TPNjzh=s320" width="240" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe having fun posing with the lion of St. Mark, symbol of Venice<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">We posed with our UNITECH I will make UNITECH Fly!" shirt in front of the Doge palace, where the elected leaders of the Venetian republic ruled. We spoke much about how to bring about a better future for PNG, after such an obvious and general leadership failure after independence.</div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"> </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhtDxlLMYKwLhaecMXZuojqd3qg6lq_7D81iVXLrOxdJvElobrxM5-ZrN6WJTZY5J5Bm5cnhvaG4fFIY0fk4gziTF32hMVE0j-2raHqu2sfaKs-MpR7b-LoXEmdgFix2R-Kuse4ArBlwGACbkX9UgqrXz3FfvDR4ibVMIKl3KzLahr7TS_KwUPS2VXX=s819" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="819" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhtDxlLMYKwLhaecMXZuojqd3qg6lq_7D81iVXLrOxdJvElobrxM5-ZrN6WJTZY5J5Bm5cnhvaG4fFIY0fk4gziTF32hMVE0j-2raHqu2sfaKs-MpR7b-LoXEmdgFix2R-Kuse4ArBlwGACbkX9UgqrXz3FfvDR4ibVMIKl3KzLahr7TS_KwUPS2VXX=s320" width="234" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Making UNITECH Fly in front of the Doge's Palace in Venice<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">In Closing</h2></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;">During the last years he enjoyed a stable and loving family life, enjoy his job as a trainer at DATEC, and this year even started his MBA at UNITECH, so at to complete his graduate studies. He was frustrated by the fact that the O'Neill government had rolled back all the positive changes at PNG universities, and installed again politically connected do-nothings in the councils and management of the PNGUoT.<br /><br />The torch that Joe lit, however, has been passed on to younger generations, who understand that a fake, corrupt university education is not worth anything, and does not contribute to nation building at all. The final victory will not be for those who try to pervert the democratic constitution of Papua New Guinea, and violate the constitutional rights of its citizens.<br /><br />The country can not afford to lose clear-headed, servant leaders like Joe Kaowai so young. He will always live on in our memory, and we will celebrate his life dedicated to family, education, and peace making. As a Christian, he had no fear of death, and his last words were for his family. </div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiX9-Xgj0lvGeIqNVht4LkUCG7VhmTUP9hhYjJSIgiymANZEyPJlNt6gUsQEHPINmTWL0zno1mM9S6MHUu4nxsBQfOEU4kC8DBqsjD-sPyYKG62w-zmzTn5evbeTkgEOZGDgshsWtbKbpWOnWoDEx9kzSWYPsl7_ODwc48LMGMOzKM15FYHTvg1BjN8=s698" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="698" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEiX9-Xgj0lvGeIqNVht4LkUCG7VhmTUP9hhYjJSIgiymANZEyPJlNt6gUsQEHPINmTWL0zno1mM9S6MHUu4nxsBQfOEU4kC8DBqsjD-sPyYKG62w-zmzTn5evbeTkgEOZGDgshsWtbKbpWOnWoDEx9kzSWYPsl7_ODwc48LMGMOzKM15FYHTvg1BjN8=s320" width="275" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Joe welcomed as a lost son by Omas after his studies in Europe in 2015<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: verdana, sans-serif;"><br /></div><br /></div> Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-27520986555940211512021-12-08T14:19:00.014+01:002021-12-08T14:46:46.804+01:00Five Checks Before Doing Cross-Country Comparisons<p style="text-align: right;">6 December 2021</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2><p>I have always been fascinated by national indicator frameworks and making cross-country comparisons. When doing my doctoral research in the early 1990s, for example, the United Nations <a href="https://bit.ly/hdiindex" target="_blank">HDI</a> Human Development Index was under development. At the time, there was a vibrant academic debate about whether amalgamated indices like these, were more than the sum of their parts. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bmlcUr5Gucw/YbCyUURPXiI/AAAAAAAAgro/1xv8pCJ5Iy4ONx3R6Ql-AJ6PWOwuNlZMgCNcBGAsYHQ/s960/HDI_2019_map.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="436" data-original-width="960" height="181" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bmlcUr5Gucw/YbCyUURPXiI/AAAAAAAAgro/1xv8pCJ5Iy4ONx3R6Ql-AJ6PWOwuNlZMgCNcBGAsYHQ/w400-h181/HDI_2019_map.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Source: https://bit.ly/hdi2019map<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>National indicator frameworks, like the <a href="https://bit.ly/innovationscoreboardindex" target="_blank">EIS</a> European Innovation Scorecard, or <a href="https://bit.ly/vdemdralbert" target="_blank">V-Dem</a> Liberal Democracies Index, for instance, are frequently used by policy-makers and decision-makers for benchmarking a situation in a country and determining priorities for action. If we want our governments to implement evidence-based policies, these types of indicator frameworks are therefore important. National policies still matter and greatly influence outcomes in terms of people's welfare and well-being.<span></span></p><a name='more'></a><p></p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Reliable Indices and Data Quality</h2><p>This summer, I gave a research methods course, and students asked for general guidelines when working with cross-country comparisons. Above all, we need to make sure that our indicators are based on valid, reliable, data free from systematic bias. In statistics, validity is the extent to which a concept, conclusion, or measurement is well-founded and likely corresponds accurately to the real world. In practice, validity means that indicators measure what they say they are measuring. </p><p>A cursory inspection is therefore often not enough to determine whether the indicators are valid. This depends on a number of factors such as the overall research design, the way questions are framed and formulated, and how the answers were elicited. If research has been published in peer-reviewed journals and is widely quoted, we can assume there are no or few validity issues.</p><p>Secondly, reliability is the overall consistency of a measure. An indicator is said to have high reliability if it produces similar results under the same conditions. It is about whether if you would go back and measure again, you would get the same results again and the errors would be random.</p><p>Thirdly, systematic bias is when indicator values differ substantially from the real values of the quantitative parameter being estimated. There are many possible sources of bias. Most common sources in the context of cross-country comparisons are selection bias, recall bias, observer bias, and funding or political bias. </p><p>Selection bias occurs when samples are not properly selected from the population in general. This can be verified by inspection of the sample selection procedures. Recall bias is when survey questions refer to the past and respondents can not accurately remember. Observer bias is, for example, when the surveyor uses his own personal prejudices to select respondents or interprets their response. This is more likely to occur when the respondents are from a different ethnic or language group. </p><p>Funding or political bias is a research ethics issue when results are reported to please a funder or political friend. This type of bias is unfortunately quite common when doing cross-counry comparisons, with some countries keen on hiding the facts. There are therefore many sources of bias, some are unconscious, and not all can be controlled by detailed examination of survey questions and procedures. </p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Five Checks</h2><p>Before using survey results you should ask yourself the following questions:</p><p><b>1- Source check</b>. When we deal with “official” or national statistics, we need to ask ourselves where the producer of the data has an incentive to lie or to omit data? Even a cursory inspection of international databases such as the UNESCO’s, World Bank’s, or the UNDP shows a lot of omissions. Often it is not that governments do not have the data, but they do not wish them to be publicly knowns. When examining data from a specific research project, we need to inspect the research design and assess whether the data are valid, unbiased, and reliable. </p><p>Lately, several indices of indices have been produced which include other indices to produce a new index. This makes checking sources somewhat more complicated. This issue was hotly debated in the 1990s when the UN launched the Human Development Index, which combines income, education, and health indicators. The question was whether this added value as opposed to using indices for these three dimensions separately. Although this question can never be answered conclusively, it is a fact that policymakers like to use rankings and league tables, rather than more detailed data. In the end, the debate was decided by practitioners who have continued to use these indices.</p><p><b>2- Dimensions check</b>. It is good practice to check whether the dimensions on both sides of an equation are the same, otherwise, we risk comparing apples and oranges. A variable expressed in meters can only be compared to another one expressed as a percentage through a correction coefficient. This is particularly important when developing models or when examining causal relationships.</p><p><b>3- Measurement scale check</b>. When numerical indicators are compared from year to year, we need to check whether the underlying variable uses the same scale. The United Nations Human Development Index (HDI), for example, the scales for many variables were normalized using the minimum and maximum for each specific years. Similarly, Human Rights Measurement Initiative (HRMI) indicators are expressed as a percentage of the maximum achievable in a given year. As a result, for these type of indiced year-to-year comparisons are strictly speaking not possible. You need to read the methodology section, and just like when you take a medicine mind the warnings on the labels.</p><p><b>4- Scope check</b>. This is related to check five as to the reason and purpose the data were collected in the first place. In many cases, we need to make sure that we are comparing units that are somewhat similar. Depending on the research question, when we compare countries it may not make much sense, for example, to compare the Kingdom of Monaco with its 31,000 inhabitants with the United States with a population of over 330 million. </p><p>Similarly, when the countries in the research states include a large number of small island states with outlying values, this may skew the final results. Finally, when we consider certain questions such as agricultural and environmental policy, or trade issues, it makes more sense to amalgamate all 27 European member states rather than considering them separately, because policy and decision-making about these issues is largely a European Union, not a national affair.</p><p><b>5- Why?</b> Last, but most importantly, you need to be clear about why you want to compare different entities or countries, or different entities across different years. You must try to become aware of your own potential biases. You may want to consider reversing the research question or including variables you left out initially.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Final Remarks</h2><div>It is amazing how in the last 30 years national indicator framework have extended their coverage to more countries and have become more sophisticated. Sometimes however the sheer complexity of how indices are constructed can obscure important methodological issues or biases. By performing these five checks can protect researchers from committing major mistakes.</div><div><br /></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-15825517568249659692021-12-06T20:27:00.002+01:002023-10-07T21:04:49.283+02:00Times Higher Education: "Exiled v-c fights to return to Papua New Guinea"<p>(Upon request, here is the article from 2014 which gave international attention to the situation of PNG universities. I did in fact return on 3 April 2014. Little did we know then that malevolent elements would again exile me in 2018, using the same silly and baseless allegations. This time Chancellor Bogan showed his true face and took the side of the accusers. Only in PNG....)</p><p>From Times Higher Education, 27 March 2014.</p><p>Author: david.matthews@tsleducation.com<br />Picture source: Ronnie Noan</p><p>Albert Schram is a university leader in exile. He is the vice-chancellor of Papua New Guinea University of Technology (Unitech), but in February 2013 he was deported and has been forced to live in Australia ever since.</p><p>Schram has even been declared a “threat to national security” by the country’s former higher education minister.</p><p>His bizarre tale sheds an extraordinary light on the parlous state of higher education in Papua New Guinea, where, according to Schram, tribal fights erupt on campus, support staff live in slums and scholars are cut off from the wider scholarly community and current research.</p><p>But Schram is hopeful that he will return and believes that a series of simple reforms could help to improve the nation’s universities, many of which could be carried out without requiring additional funding from the impoverished Pacific country.</p><p>Before taking up the vice-chancellor’s post in February 2012, Dutch-born Schram worked in Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean in sustainable development policy and environmental economics.</p><p>When he arrived at Unitech, which is located near Lae in Morobe province and is one of the country’s two major state universities, he was faced with an almost insurmountable set of challenges.</p><p>The year before Schram arrived, he says, there had been a “huge fight” between two groups of students, who were divided along tribal lines, in which one student died.</p><p>In 2012, with tensions once again mounting between the rival tribes, he was told by one of the group’s student leaders: “I can’t hold my boys anymore.” According to Schram, campus security officers had to fire their guns into the air to stop another all-out battle.</p><p>Fortunately, the leaders of the two tribal groups were able to resolve their differences through dialogue, and the gangs formalised this with a “beautiful” traditional reconciliation dance, he recounts.</p><p>Malaria is endemic on campus, Schram explains, although students “seldom” die. When he became vice-chancellor, he instituted monthly sprayings of the site with insecticide to combat the disease. Tuberculosis is also a serious “threat” at the university, he adds.</p><p>The university typically experiences 10 to 15 power cuts a day, which plays “havoc” with servers required for internet access, and thus “we don’t have reliable broadband on campus”, he says. Instead, the university has to resort to a satellite connection to access the web.</p><p>“It’s really terrible,” Schram says, adding with irony that Papua New Guinea is “one of the countries where you’re sufficiently ‘protected’ from the internet”.</p><p>Partly for this reason, Unitech academics – 5 to 10 per cent of whom are from outside Papua New Guinea – have little access to work already done in their fields, and therefore must conduct “original” research. However, in such a situation, “you risk inventing the wheel many times over”, Schram observes.</p><p>But even these pursuits can be luxuries for scholars. In Papua New Guinea, Schram says, “universities are understaffed, the teaching loads are high, so there’s no time for research”.</p><p>Salaries for academics are far from competitive, he notes, limiting Unitech’s ability to attract even local scholars.</p><p>The university’s academics are at least lucky enough to have proper housing provided for them by the university. Support staff, however, are paid about $500 (£300) a month, Schram says, and have to live in what he calls “dangerous and unlicensed” slums.</p><p>Officially, the government should grant the university about $15,000 a year to educate each student, according to Schram. (About 1,000 science and engineering students graduate from Unitech annually.)</p><p>But in reality only about half of this per-student funding is actually received. “The only solution is that universities run up their debt and that’s what’s been happening,” he adds.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">‘Right noises’, but no funding</h2><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qohCGO7M9I8/Ya5j08-2uaI/AAAAAAAAgrI/f6Ugf0ihIpAk1msdTkRchT6wYtSdQov2ACNcBGAsYHQ/s450/UNITECH_cultural_show_2014.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="299" data-original-width="450" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qohCGO7M9I8/Ya5j08-2uaI/AAAAAAAAgrI/f6Ugf0ihIpAk1msdTkRchT6wYtSdQov2ACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/UNITECH_cultural_show_2014.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">Cultural Show 2012: Students in tribal costumes</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p>Last July, the media reported that David Arore, then minister for higher education, research, science and technology, had pledged an extra $222 million in funding for the country’s university sector.</p><p>“The policies are good on paper and the ministers make the right noises in Parliament,” Schram says. But since the announcement, nothing has materialised, he claims.</p><p>“My criticism [of the government] is that they are breaking the promises they made to invest in infrastructure. All the vice-chancellors complain about that. Our core grant is way too low,” Schram adds.</p><p>Times Higher Education tried to contact the Office of Higher Education in Papua New Guinea for comment, but did not receive a response.</p><p>To be fair to the country’s government, Unitech is operating in a desperately poor country where four out of 10 children do not even attend primary school, according to the United Nations’ Human Development Index.</p><p>A mere 6.8 per cent of women above the age of 25 have at least a secondary level of education. For men, the proportion – 14.1 per cent – is higher, but hardly encouraging.</p><p>But as if all these challenges were not enough, in February last year, Schram says, events took a baffling twist for him.</p><p>Returning from Singapore on business, Schram was stopped at the airport in Papua New Guinea and told he would not be allowed into the country. A call to the prime minister’s office by an immigration official confirmed he was barred from entry, Schram says.</p><p>He was promptly deported to Brisbane. In March, he attempted to return again, and was again deported. In April, although he did manage to return briefly for a graduation ceremony, his visa was cancelled, and an application for a new one has so far been unsuccessful.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">‘Fraud exposure’ said to be a factor</h2><p>Schram says he has been given no official reason for his expulsion. However, he suspects that an investigation he carried out into Unitech’s infrastructure spending, which according to him “exposed fraud”, is connected to his deportation.</p><p>It has not been possible to verify Schram’s account, as the ministry did not answer THE’s questions.</p><p>Since then, there has been a struggle within Papua New Guinea over whether Schram should be allowed to return.</p><p>After his initial deportation, an investigation was launched by the university into accusations that Schram had falsified details on his CV. The vice-chancellor claims that the investigation found no evidence for the “silly and baseless” accusations.</p><p>Arore, who was charged with bribery and graft in March 2013, according to reports in The Australian, seems to have been a particular nemesis for Schram.</p><p>In a television interview broadcast last December, Arore directed the university to remove Schram from its payroll. (Schram confirms that he has continued to receive his salary throughout his exile, and he is still listed on the university’s website as vice-chancellor.)</p><p>Arore also said that Schram “has become a threat to the national security of this country…because of his presence in this country students are revolting”.</p><p>However, Schram has not been present in the country since April 2013, and a number of protests by Unitech students have been in favour of his reinstatement, not against it.</p><p>According to the university’s current chancellor, Sir Nagora Bogan, there was a “stand-off” between Schram and the former Unitech council.</p><p>This hostile council has now been replaced by the government to “help bring stability and restore governance and prudential controls”, says Bogan. The new council wants to ensure that Schram returns to the university, he tells THE.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Chances of return increased</h2><p>With Arore no longer in charge of higher education, and the appointment this month of Delilah Gore as his replacement, Schram initially believed that his chances of return had increased.</p><p>However, on 13 March, after a number of pro-Schram protests by Unitech students over the previous month, Gore released a statement calling for students to return to their classes. If they did not, she said, a state of emergency would be declared on campus and the 2014 academic year would be cancelled.</p><p>After the resolution of legal proceedings around the Schram controversy, she said, the position of vice-chancellor at Unitech would be readvertised and open to all applicants, “including Albert Schram”.</p><p>But given that the university council still holds Schram to be the vice-chancellor, this announcement “flies in the face” of respect for “due process and the law”, Schram says.</p><p>If he does return, Schram believes that there are a number of reforms the government needs to make urgently, such as stopping “political interference and cronyism” in universities and “barring fly-by-night private universities” from entering the system.</p><p>“This is not hard to do: it requires adequate university management, and the political will of the government to carry out its agreed and published higher education policies,” he told Unitech students in an address at the beginning of the academic year in January.</p><p>But, in a telling illustration of the dysfunction of the country’s higher education system as clear as any of his arguments, Unitech’s vice-chancellor was obliged to address his students via YouTube from Australia, his exile still not at an end.</p><p><br /></p>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-36307414059651568482020-12-30T13:00:00.015+01:002021-02-19T09:17:52.645+01:00Green University Rankings: Research Note 30 December 2020<h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2>During the last decades, attempts to measure the performance of universities have multiplied. These performance scores, rankings, or league tables as they are called in the UK, are used by universities for their brand and reputation management, by students to determine their university choice, by academics to decide their career moves, and by several other stakeholders for different purposes.<br /><br />Lately, there has been criticism of university rankings, mainly for not being well governed or transparent, and lacking rigor, as well as external validity (Gadd, 2021). We fully endorse their warning against the uncritical use of university rankings and research metrics in the higher education sector. The authors, however, based their arguments on deficiencies in the handling of data on research output, not in the lack of measurement of universities teaching performance or other activities. In order to address this, we argue that considerable additional efforts must be made to harmonize teaching effectiveness and outcome measures. <span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br />Lately, universities have been trying to justify their contribution to the public good and global challenges. In this note, we wish to focus on a few specialized rankings focussing on environmental and social performance of universities. <div><br />In 2010, the Integrated Laboratory and Research Center (ILRC) at the <i>University of Indonesia</i> created the Greenmetric ranking. Here we briefly evaluated the Greenmetric ranking and examined whether it is correlated with any other “green” or social impact rankings on the basis of the information publicly available on the website.</div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u3g9OJ-y7Cw/X-ykdnhR1CI/AAAAAAAAdL0/nrKTq_buObsrOhGQBDPLPv1ONr2KlnqkgCNcBGAsYHQ/s834/Logo-uigm_small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="593" data-original-width="834" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-u3g9OJ-y7Cw/X-ykdnhR1CI/AAAAAAAAdL0/nrKTq_buObsrOhGQBDPLPv1ONr2KlnqkgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Logo-uigm_small.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">GreenMetric Logo</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div><br /></div><div><div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Universities’ Social & Environmental Impact</h2>Since 2019 Times Higher Education (THE) published a university impact ranking (THE-IR) using universities’ self-declared activities around the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a ranking criterion. As part of the THE-IR, a separate “climate action” score and ranking are reported. It is, therefore, possible to compare the Greenmetric ranking with THE impact or climate action ranking, expecting a degree over overlap or correlation between them.<br /><br />As we can see in the table below a total of 57 universities in the top-200 Greenmetric ranking are included in any of THE rankings. Moreover, there is very little overlap between THE main ranking and THE-IR: only 7 universities are included in THE main ranking. Similarly, only 10 universities are included in THE social impact ranking, and only 8 in the climate action dimension. In all cases, there is insufficient overlap to calculate the significance of the correlations due to the small sample size.</div><div><br /></div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7tdG5GbaaNc/X-xrMY2pvvI/AAAAAAAAdLk/miuhn9WnScEEKbe4zqPb5m5yV0fidQw7ACNcBGAsYHQ/image.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" data-original-height="441" data-original-width="737" height="263" src="https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-7tdG5GbaaNc/X-xrMY2pvvI/AAAAAAAAdLk/miuhn9WnScEEKbe4zqPb5m5yV0fidQw7ACNcBGAsYHQ/w440-h263/image.png" width="440" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Overlap between Green Rankings<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />We evaluated the Greenmetric ranking using the four dimensions proposed by the INORMS working group: good governance, transparency, rigor, and measure-what-matters, or validity. As to good governance, of all the reputable rankings only Times Higher Education performs an independent audit of all their methods and data. Greenmetrics does not disclose any conflict of interest when doing consulting for its client universities.<br /><br />As to continuous improvement, the 2020 web page refers to the first version of 2010: “While we have put every effort into the design and implementation of the questionnaire, we realize that this first version is bound to have shortcomings. Therefore, we will be reviewing the criteria and the weightings continuously to reflect input from participants and state of the art developments in the field. We welcome your comments and suggestions.” Have no changes or improvements been made since 2010?<br /><br />Greenmetric explains its methodology used to produce its scores and rankings, although not always to the extent that it can be replicated. GreenMetric “ranks universities worldwide on sustainability issues, based on their self assessed input for the criteria set and extensive independent research and survey responses conducted for the UI GreenMetric World University Ranking.” (FAQ Greenmetric, 2020). It is unclear, however, whether a hard or a soft concept of sustainability is being applied. In the first case, no natural capital should be depleted, while in the second case loss of one type could be compensated by another. Possibly, more information is available in the book on the Greenmetric ranking development from 2010 to 2017, but what is published on the web page is hardly satisfactory (Sari, et al. 2019).<br /><br />Greenmetric’s major flaws however regard its rigor and validity. It is unclear whether any methods are used to test the statements made by the universities. On assurance or validation processes its statement is evasive and based on a promise for the future: “We have held of on this for the first version at least. We felt that we had to balance scientific respectability with the pragmatic realities of the extra effort involved. However, we are looking at ways of working towards some sort of validation process for future versions.” (FAQ Greenmetric, 2020). Instead of vague promises, Greenmetric could hire a reputable accounting firm to go over all its methods and data handling like Times Higher Education has done since 2016.<br /><br />Moreover, the inclusion of specific questions is not theoretically justified publicly, nor are statistical tests performed to see whether particular indicators are redundant. It is unclear how the error of spurious precision has been avoided. The process to establish specific weights is not explained: “Each of the criteria will be categorized in a general class of information and when we process the results, the raw scores will be weighted to give a final calculation.” (FAQ Greenmetric, 2020). In order for the Greenmetric to be credible at least summary explanations on how errors of composition, weighing, and spurious precision are avoided (Soh, 2017).</div><div><br /><h1 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion</h1>In conclusion, much care needs to be taken to take Greenmetric results at face value. Many universities, should be a bit more careful in celebrating their high positions in Greenmetric ranking, and rather make a greater effort to participate in more robust ranking exercises. Meanwhile, Greenmetric would do well to address the issues regarding rigor and transparency mentioned here, which are not difficult to fix. It would be sad if it would lose interest from a group of over 1,000 universities that have participated in its surveys during the last 10 years.<br /><br /><h1 style="text-align: left;">References</h1><ul style="text-align: left;"><li>Gadd, Elizabeth. 2020. “University Rankings Need a Rethink.” Nature 587 (7835): 523–523. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-020-03312-2.</li><li>GreenMetric FaQ About (2020, December 30). Retrieved from <a href="http://greenmetric.ui.ac.id/faq-about-uigm/#1548060518096-b3b17e9f-9345">http://greenmetric.ui.ac.id/faq-about-uigm/#1548060518096-b3b17e9f-9345</a></li><li>GreenMetric Methodology . (2020, December 30). Retrieved from <a href="http://greenmetric.ui.ac.id/methodology-new/#1560219964571-b5cb954e-ccd4">http://greenmetric.ui.ac.id/methodology-new/#1560219964571-b5cb954e-ccd4</a></li><li>Soh, Kaycheng. 2017. “The Seven Deadly Sins of World University Ranking: A Summary from Several Papers.” Journal of Higher Education Policy and Management 39 (1): 104–15. <a href="https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2016.1254431">https://doi.org/10.1080/1360080X.2016.1254431</a>.</li><li>Sari, Riri Fitri, Nyoman Suwartha, and Jun Junaidi. 2019. Making of University of Indonesia Greenmetric World University Rankings, 2010-2017. S.l.: Lap Lambert Academic Publishing.</li></ul><br /><br /></div></div><span><!--more--></span></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-31100035794883162022020-12-18T11:24:00.008+01:002021-01-11T21:22:34.814+01:00Three Myths about Papua New Guinea’s Development<h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2>UNESCO’s latest report <i>Global Education Monitoring Report: Inclusion and education – All means all </i>(2020) sheds more light on the global learning crisis. In the Global South an insufficient number of children finish primary and secondary school, and many when they are able to go to school, learn almost nothing. The Brookings Institution, for example, famously pointed out that developing countries are 100 years behind in terms of providing access to schooling as compared to industrialized countries (Winthrop & McGivney, 2016). Similarly, the OECD’s PISA for development show dismal learning outcomes for 15-year-old in reading, maths, and science in the participating developing countries (OECD, 2020).<br /><br />This year’s UNESCO report includes an analysis of school completion rates in Papua New Guinea (see below), made possible by the recently published 2016-18 Papua New Guinea Demographic and Health Survey (PNG DHS 2016-18). For the first time in November 2019, Papua New Guinea (PNG) made all the data available for researchers. The survey was implemented by the National Statistical Office from October 2016 to December 2018 and included 16,021 households (15,198 females and 7,333 males from 15 to 49 years old) across the country. Since the male sample may suffer from selection bias (e.g. overrepresentation of unemployed males), the data for females are deemed more reliable.<span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br />The PNG surveys were held between October 2016 and December 2018, and all data are now publicly available (<a href="http://www.statcompiler.com">http://www.statcompiler.com</a>). It is unclear why the Pacific Datahub, allegedly a repository for all statistics for the Pacific region, does not include them in their databases (<a href="https://pacificdata.org/">https://pacificdata.org/</a>).<br /><br />Given the dearth of reliable data on PNG society, we wish to do a quick first examination to put the PNG development achievements in context. SDG4 is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. In order for a country to achieve Target 4.3: “By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university.” Men and women, however, must first gain access to tertiary education by completing secondary education.<br /><br />In order to allow for a meaningful interpretation of PNG data, we compare its national average to that in other Pacific Islands countries where possible, as well as East African Countries at a similar level of development. <br /><br />We will debunk 3 myths about PNG development, using official data provided by national government to the United Nations, and published in <a href="http://data.worldbank.org">http://data.worldbank.org</a>, except when the indicator is labeled DHS for health and education data it comes from the USAid’s Domestic and Health Surveys.<br /><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">The richest country in the Pacific?</h2>Humankind has always needed myths as a short explanation for phenomena they did not necessarily understand well. Let’s look at three of them:<br /><br /> • Is PNG the richest country in the Pacific?<br /><br /> • Is PNG doing better than East African countries in health outcomes?<br /><br /> • Is PNG assuring access to education, through the free education policies since 2014?<br /><br />The first is the easiest myth to debunk, if we accept Gross Domestic Product per capita as a measure of wealth. Since there are no alternative measures, an alternative quantitative framework is not available. As we can see in the table below PNG is not the richest country in the Pacific as measured in 2017 international dollars. Its GDP per capita is highest compared to East African countries, but not exceeding its average by much.<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="901" height="330" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ska8PXTFYWM/X9x90qW-3mI/AAAAAAAAcsk/bTqwoX8Y-qQkTRX5EaMyTud47VuAqgdlACNcBGAsYHQ/w537-h330/PNG_EAFR_GDPpc%252Cpng.png" style="color: #0000ee; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" width="537" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>GDP pc for selected Pacific Islands and East African Countries (2017 international $) (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">PNG doing better than Africa in health outcomes?</h2></div><div>While GDPpc of the Pacific Islands countries is higher, how do they perform In terms of life expectancy, and child mortality under 5. Regrettably there are no data at the province level for maternal or pregnancy-related mortality. Average life expectancy at birth in PNG falls below 65 years, and thus the country ranks 19th among the 30 countries for which data are available for our sample. Life expectancy is higher in 12 Pacific Islands states and 6 East African countries.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fX6dlC8RRqs/X9x_CvMPjjI/AAAAAAAAcsw/ffO_7dOnsqIxp0s3tPmdnwa4pepYjqOKgCNcBGAsYHQ/s896/PNG_EAFR_graph2_life_expectancy.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="558" data-original-width="896" height="339" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fX6dlC8RRqs/X9x_CvMPjjI/AAAAAAAAcsw/ffO_7dOnsqIxp0s3tPmdnwa4pepYjqOKgCNcBGAsYHQ/w545-h339/PNG_EAFR_graph2_life_expectancy.png" width="545" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Life Expectancy at Birth for selected Pacific and East-African Countries (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br />Regarding child mortality under 5 per 1,000 live births, PNG is in 16th place with 11 Pacific Islands states and 6 East African countries having lower rates and performing better.<br /><br />With regard to maternal mortality rate, only for 3 countries are there national estimates available in the DHS data: PNG with 171 Zambia 252, and Burundi with 334 maternal mortality per 100,000 live births. Although this may be an unfair comparison, average rates of maternal mortality in Australia and in the European Union are stable at 6, a much lower number.<br /><br />In sum, regarding wealth level and health outcome PNG is not leading in for the countries in this set, but about half-way. Since the East African countries are at a lower income level, PNG seems thus to be relatively under-performing both in prosperity as well as health outcome measures. A handful of African countries that are similar or lower level of GDPpc do much better, while as expected several do worse. <br /><br />It would be helpful to look at what can be learned from countries that perform better in the health dimension while having lower levels of wealth. Experience in Africa shows that a series of low-cost interventions can substantially reduce infant mortality under 5 years old, and maternal mortality.<br /><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">PNG is assuring access to education?</h2>The added value of examining the DHS data is mostly regarding the education data, because the World Bank data set does not include data after 2010. They allow both international comparisons as well as detailed comparisons among PNG provinces.<br /><br />First we look at the international comparison for adult literacy and illiteracy, but also at the percentage of the population that finished at least higher education (grade 12). We will focus on the female population because the literature shows development interventions targeted at females produce better results, and also because a larger number of females was included in this survey and the strong probability of selection bias among male respondents. <br /><br />As to illiteracy and literacy, they are available for 10 countries in the DHS survey. The 2 dimensions complement each other. For both indicators, PNG is outperformed by 7 East African states, which however are at a lower wealth level as measure by GDPpc.<br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><br /></div><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-85t-8ZeRQmk/X9yACourY3I/AAAAAAAAcs8/v4pmfBb412Mk02RQ_FoFloyOgTwDoBDGwCNcBGAsYHQ/s876/PNG_EAFR_graph4_womenLitt.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="518" data-original-width="876" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-85t-8ZeRQmk/X9yACourY3I/AAAAAAAAcs8/v4pmfBb412Mk02RQ_FoFloyOgTwDoBDGwCNcBGAsYHQ/w543-h320/PNG_EAFR_graph4_womenLitt.png" width="543" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Female literacy and illiteracy for PNG and East African countries (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><br /></div>Regarding the numbers of females completing secondary education, PNG is outperformed by a lower number of countries: Kenya, Uganda and Zambia. It can be seen that Kenya’s completion rates for higher education are exceptionally high. </div><div><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fI1B9e42uNA/X9yA4uzNHDI/AAAAAAAActQ/NAtupZGsTC0rBlOrkBCLbsE0zzT4MHt1wCNcBGAsYHQ/s865/PNG_EAFR_graph5_womenHE.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="865" height="319" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fI1B9e42uNA/X9yA4uzNHDI/AAAAAAAActQ/NAtupZGsTC0rBlOrkBCLbsE0zzT4MHt1wCNcBGAsYHQ/w543-h319/PNG_EAFR_graph5_womenHE.png" width="543" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Percentage of female population who finished highschool (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><div><br /></div><div>Here is the same graph without Kenya:<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="507" data-original-width="865" height="319" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ak2TblocNSI/X9yBIqpkdeI/AAAAAAAActY/_483eCPC-G0SPi8gFS2sSxNqOC6AkdgQgCNcBGAsYHQ/w543-h319/PNG_EAFR_graph5_womenHE_noKenya.png" style="color: #0000ee; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;" width="543" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Percentage of female population who finished highschool (without Kenya) (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br />The DHS data allow for more detailed analysis by age cohort and wealth quintile. In the 2020 UNESCO report it says: “Papua New Guinea, for instance, effectively eliminated tuition fees up to grade 10 in 2012 (Howes et al., 2014; UNICEF, 2017), but completion rates remain low.” In other words, the free education policies have not yet produced results since 2012. It seems something is amiss.<br /><br />The UNESCO report concludes: “Results show that Papua New Guinea faces considerable challenges to achieve target 4.1, compared with other resource-rich countries. Average completion rates at all education levels are almost identical to those of Angola but well below those of neighbouring Timor-Leste.” (p. 203). These data are for age cohorts and are different from the women or men with upper secondary completed which are for the whole population.</div><div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yRDfyCjmIAc/X9yBlAI0CYI/AAAAAAAActg/XeDb2LCVYHEaFpmwhG8kO-1pvedMM0YRgCNcBGAsYHQ/s700/UNESCO_2020_PNG_table91.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="673" data-original-width="700" height="511" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yRDfyCjmIAc/X9yBlAI0CYI/AAAAAAAActg/XeDb2LCVYHEaFpmwhG8kO-1pvedMM0YRgCNcBGAsYHQ/w531-h511/UNESCO_2020_PNG_table91.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;" width="531" /></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i>Completions rates education PNG, Angola and Timor Leste by Wealth Quintile (2018)</i></td></tr></tbody></table><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yRDfyCjmIAc/X9yBlAI0CYI/AAAAAAAActg/XeDb2LCVYHEaFpmwhG8kO-1pvedMM0YRgCNcBGAsYHQ/s700/UNESCO_2020_PNG_table91.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div>The UNESCO report, therefore, makes the point that other countries like Angola and Timor L’Este have been more successful in converting mining and oil & gas revenues into higher completion school rates. In PNG the inequality between completion rates of the richest and the poorest quintile of the population is highest.</div><div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">Final Remarks</h2>With regard to GPD per capita, PNG average wealth is lower than 4 other Pacific Island Countries in terms of GDP per capita (constant 2017 $) <br /><br />Concerning health, life expectancy in PNG is lower than in 12 Pacific Islands Countries and 5 East African countries. Regarding child mortality under 5 per 1,000 live births, PNG is in 16th place with 11 Pacific Islands Countries and 6 East African countries having lower rates and performing better. For maternal mortality per 100,000 live births there are insufficient data to make meaningful comparisons.</div><div><br />As to education, illiteracy and literacy data are available for 10 East African countries for this sample in the DHS survey, but no other PIC. For both indicators, PNG is outperformed by 7 East African states, which however are at lower wealth level as measure by GDPpc.<br /><br />Regarding the numbers of females who complete secondary education, PNG is outperformed by 3 East African countries: Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia. In another article, we will analyze the relations between some wealth indicators and the completion rates for secondary education for females.<br /><br />This brief analysis based on recent Domestic and Health Survey data seems to confirm the general picture arising from the recently published Human Development Report 2020. In this report, wealth, health and education data are combined in one single index number, the Human Development Index. Here we were able to include education data for 2018 rather than for 2010. </div><div><br /></div><div>The fact that PNG's HDI ranks only 155th among 187 countries, that is the bottom 20% of countries in terms of human development, the lowest rank for any country in the Pacific, despite having received massive amounts of aid over the last decades, provides ample food for thought.</div><span><!--more--></span></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-40533008197833889602020-12-16T15:04:00.019+01:002020-12-30T17:10:49.128+01:00Papua New Guinea: Failure to Develop or Developing to Fail – a rejoinder<h2 style="text-align: left;">Background</h2>Last Tuesday 15 December 2020 the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) published the 30th edition of the Human Development Report (HDR) containing its development statistics for 2019. Here we wish to assess long-term economic and education development in Papua New Guinea (PNG) in comparison with neighbouring Pacific Island Countries (PICs) and with its large Asian neighbours which have been successful in dealing with their development challenges: Indonesia, India and China. <div><br /></div><div>PNG's ranking last year was 156th, and this year’s is 155th, placing it at the bottom of the "medium human development" category, with 34 of the total of 189 countries doing worse. Changes in composite indices, however, are tricky to interpret, and looking at constituting factors may be more useful for distilling policy recommendations.<br /><span><a name="more"></a></span><span><a name='more'></a></span><div><br /></div><div>The HDR contains the Human Development Index (HDI) which is a composite index including indicators for main dimensions of development: economic wealth, health and education. While doing my PhD in economic history in the 1990s, I applied some of the HDR methods to historical questions about long-term sustainable development for states as well as sub-national units.<div><br /></div><div>Since its first edition, this report has come a long way, and each indicator is now linked to one of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) or associated indicator and presented in various dashboards. SDG-4 for 2030 is “to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all.” </div><div><br /></div><div>In order for a country to achieve SDG Target 4.3 “By 2030, ensure equal access for all women and men to affordable and quality technical, vocational and tertiary education, including university.” Men and women must first gain access to tertiary education by completing secondary education.</div><div><br />Therefore, here we will focus on the performance of the primary and secondary education systems, in particular regarding the female population, since completion of primary and secondary schooling is a condition for participating in tertiary education. Data for tertiary education, however, are too unreliable, and incomplete.</div><div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">1. Long-Term Economic Development Performance</h2>A conventional measure of the size of the economy based on the UN system of national accounts is Gross Domestic Product per capita. The GDP per capita in constant 2010 $ is compatible with the HDR uses GNI per capita in 2017 PPP $, but this measure is not available for some PICs nor for the 1980s and 1990s periods. These are far from perfect measures of wealth, but it is the best we have and it allows international comparison. They are linked to SDG8.5.<br /><br />Elsewhere, I argued that if PNG can achieve a 5% growth rate and somewhat control its population growth, it can indeed achieve lower-middle-income country status in line with its Vision 2050 (see <a href="http://bit.ly/2RjAo1l" target="_blank">blog post from 2015</a>).<br /><br />So how is PNG performing in terms of HDI in comparison to its Pacific neighbours? <br />It is clear that PICs from 1980 have not shown a convincing growth performance, which would allow them to invest more in health and education systems. They will need at least to double to achieve GDPpc growth comparable to India or Indonesia, if we consider matching China’s growth not achievable.</div><div><br /></div><div>Although Timor Leste (ranked 141st)– which had a long civil war – and the Solomon Islands (ranked 151st) have a lower GDP than PNG, they score higher in the overall HDI than PNG (ranked 155th). <br /></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sVRyKVpmv9g/X9oPER7mVOI/AAAAAAAAcoQ/j1I9fa_XUC0R418EeWAJVHjVA1IHGXlxQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1223/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-34-54.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="298" data-original-width="1223" height="128" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sVRyKVpmv9g/X9oPER7mVOI/AAAAAAAAcoQ/j1I9fa_XUC0R418EeWAJVHjVA1IHGXlxQCNcBGAsYHQ/w524-h128/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-34-54.png" width="524" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h2><h2 style="text-align: left;">2. Long-Term Education Performance</h2></div><div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Mean Years of Schooling</h3><div>For mean years of schooling, the HDR provides data for 2019. This indicator is linked to SDG 4.4. PNG is still among the countries where incomplete primary education (less than 6 years of schooling) is the norm. By contrast, we can aee tuat Tonga, Fiji and Samoa perform much better, while China, Indonesia and India on average achieve incomplete secondary education. It seems however that PNG starting from a very low baseline in 1990 is catching up a relatively high speed only a bit below Indonesia, Timor Leste and India.</div></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PlwnN-nVopw/X9oPtIo5g3I/AAAAAAAAcoc/FdbfoRIaNUMBmZftrmXoreuMTyQ5YR1-wCNcBGAsYHQ/s1224/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-37-07.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="266" data-original-width="1224" height="115" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PlwnN-nVopw/X9oPtIo5g3I/AAAAAAAAcoc/FdbfoRIaNUMBmZftrmXoreuMTyQ5YR1-wCNcBGAsYHQ/w523-h115/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-37-07.png" width="523" /></a></div><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Primary Education</h3><div>For data on education, the HDR 2020 uses the Barro-Lee estimates from 2013, which are still the best available. Regrettably, after 2010 few countries have provided reliable education indicators of any kind. Considering that educational attainment is a strong predictor of future economic development, this is truly a serious omission.</div><div><br /></div><div><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f41oQ5-D_IM/X9oQv7lRN_I/AAAAAAAAco0/ZB6VBx5eInYR8OgwGEiXFlz4bi2tUpuzQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1229/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-01.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="187" data-original-width="1229" height="79" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-f41oQ5-D_IM/X9oQv7lRN_I/AAAAAAAAco0/ZB6VBx5eInYR8OgwGEiXFlz4bi2tUpuzQCNcBGAsYHQ/w518-h79/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-01.png" width="518" /></a><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>Starting with the bad news, PNG has a large reservoir of people who have not received any education at all. Education is still not compulsory in PNG, so this should be a policy change to consider. The female population with no education is a few percentage points higher, but not dramatically so.</div><br />On the plus side, PNG has made significant progress in raising the completion rate for primary schools, which was one of the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) no. 2 for 2015.</div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CAvvm6IQ8TU/X9oTxtV_EUI/AAAAAAAAcqI/gqPekGRD7DEAyDFPFpN3RhZEhFnmw4NcQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1217/Screenshot_2020-12-16_15-01-52.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="161" data-original-width="1217" height="70" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CAvvm6IQ8TU/X9oTxtV_EUI/AAAAAAAAcqI/gqPekGRD7DEAyDFPFpN3RhZEhFnmw4NcQCNcBGAsYHQ/w525-h70/Screenshot_2020-12-16_15-01-52.png" width="525" /></a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /><br /><h3 style="text-align: left;"><br /></h3><h3 style="text-align: left;">Secondary Education</h3>One area where PNG is lagging is the completion rate for secondary education. Fiji and Tonga perform much better, even better than the larger Asian countries.<br /><br /></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YzClZCpu0h8/X9osAqrdKJI/AAAAAAAAcqs/1JEoN6SogwwEEHaBYXR0CXu57WapBFKVQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1226/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-22.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="1226" height="71" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-YzClZCpu0h8/X9osAqrdKJI/AAAAAAAAcqs/1JEoN6SogwwEEHaBYXR0CXu57WapBFKVQCNcBGAsYHQ/w527-h71/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-22.png" width="527" /></a></div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div>While for Fiji and Tonga the completion rates are higher for females, for females in PNG the completion rate is worse than the one for both sexes. We observe that PNG has a very low completion rate for females compared to Fiji and Tonga, but also relative to China, Indonesia and India.</div><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8W6ubuVITqs/X9osZj2Cq4I/AAAAAAAAcq4/vVL6gFyNzAwGE0BnOB9CIqLMc5oFuJKtQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1223/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-36.png" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="165" data-original-width="1223" height="72" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8W6ubuVITqs/X9osZj2Cq4I/AAAAAAAAcq4/vVL6gFyNzAwGE0BnOB9CIqLMc5oFuJKtQCNcBGAsYHQ/w530-h72/Screenshot_2020-12-16_14-48-36.png" width="530" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div><div><span style="text-align: center;">Since completing secondary education is the only pathway to tertiary education, which is SDG-4 for 2030, it seems clear sufficient funding and effective policies need to be put in place. At first glance for all Pacific countries, education funding barely keeps pace with population growth and inflation.</span></div><div><span style="text-align: center;"><br /></span></div><div><h3 style="text-align: left;">Final Remarks</h3>We wish to invite everybody to seriously reflect on these statistics. It is human not to acknowledge inconvenient facts, or argue with numbers or those who produce them. These UN statistics, however, are official numbers provided by the member states, presented in a framework that makes comparison possible.<br /><br />This short analysis of the data from the 30th edition of the Human Development Report, clearly shows that PICs need to improve their economic development performance, or in other words their economic growth needs to be two or three times higher than it actually is. </div><div><br /></div><div>Secondly, it also shows more data need to be published on completion rates for primary and secondary education since the most recent data are 10 years old. In another article, we will delve into PNG education data from the recently published household surveys.</div><div><br />Thirdly, after a focus on MDG2 for 2015 has produced good progress towards universal primary education, in the light of the SDGs for 2030, it is necessary to focus on completion rates of secondary education. It is here where PNG has to work hard to catch up with its Pacific neighbours, or with the larger Asian countries.<br /><br />Finally, it is about time to make education to upper-secondary level (grade 10) in the PICs compulsory, train the required number of teachers, and provide necessary resources to achieve this aim.</div></div><div><br /></div><h2 style="text-align: left;">References</h2><div>Barro-Lee Educational Attainment Data. (2020, December 16). Retrieved from <a href="http://barrolee.com">http://barrolee.com</a></div><div><br /></div><div>DataBank - Educational Statistics | The World Bank. (2020, December 16). Retrieved from <a href="https://databank.worldbank.org/home.aspx">https://databank.worldbank.org/home.aspx</a></div><div><br /></div><div><div>DataBank - World Development Indicators | The World Bank. (2020, December 16). Retrieved from <a href="https://databank.worldbank.org/home.aspx">https://databank.worldbank.org/home.aspx</a></div><div><br /></div><div><div>Human Development Reports | United Nations Development Programme. (2020, December 16). Retrieved from <a href="http://hdr.undp.org">http://hdr.undp.org</a></div><div><br /></div></div><div><br /></div></div></div>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-64260305688102645262020-11-29T14:05:00.004+01:002020-12-16T14:26:10.803+01:00E learning @ Unitech<h2 style="text-align: left;">A journey into the digital abyss</h2><p>Pundits have fretted for a long time about the widening digital divide between the high and low-income, or developing countries. Some have compared the introduction of internet to the revolution brought about by the invention of writing and the printing press, and are worried that a large part of the low-income countries are missing out. Internet literacy became just as important as conventional literacy. </p><p>Although the mobile technology digital divide has been closed (The Economist 2005), there is a need to close the broadband digital divide. Universal, unlimited broadband internet brings numerous direct and indirect benefits, which selectively available, pay per megabyte, slow and unreliable internet can never produce. Broadband internet has the potential to create whole new sectors in the economy (VOX 2011). In high-income countries, broadband access is available anywhere for less than $30 per month, in low-income countries similar access costs hundreds if not thousands of dollars a month.</p><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a>Unfortunately, Papua New Guinea fell into the digital abyss several years ago, thought it seems not many have noticed or have fully realized the consequences. The failure to provide broadband internet, generates a series of problems for universities in PNG. At universities all over the world, we are teaching the so-called Millenials, a generation that grew up and comes to expect the free and universal access to information provided by broadband internet (Heskett 2010). They communicate and share their thoughts through Facebook or other social media, learn by watching Youtube videos, and expect access anywhere from their notebook, tablet or smart phone.<p></p><p>In PNG this generation is frustrated by the low bandwidth and unreliable connection to internet. Here students share the use of notebooks and use modems (or dongles) for connecting to the mobile network. Neither the devices they use - cellphones or notebooks - or the mobile phone network is affected by the frequent power cuts, which ensure a reliability PC's and university networks can not provide. </p><p>Their teachers, however, were never trained in using internet or computers, and were not given the opportunity to learn about tools they can use professionally for their core activities of teaching and research. As a consequence, students and Faculty hardly use the internet professionally, but mainly for entertainment purposes, and social networking.</p><p>In this day and age, and especially when educating engineers and scientist, broadband internet is essential for teaching, and research. Learning management systems (LMS) such as Blackboard or open-source Moodle, for example, have not been implemented at any university in Papua New Guinea, because with the current unreliable networks it would take too long for faculty members to upload or download the information. Hardly anybody has created a course web page for teaching. At most universities, processes such as students administration, admission, registration, evaluation, and grading are still paper-based. In the classroom, hardly anybody refers to web pages, or interacts with students electronically, not even through email. For research, you can not create new knowledge if you do not have an idea what existing knowledge is. The only way to find out is by accessing literature and research databases through the internet, which is currently severely constrained. </p><p>While in Papua New Guinea low-bandwidth connection is available almost everywhere through the Digicel mobile telephone network, and at many businesses and all universities through satellite connections, at the main state universities broadband internet is not available. All traffic has to go through Telikom - the state telecoms monopoly -, which charges a rate per Mb to all other providers and users. In February, taking a cue from our students we lobbied Digicel successfully, and in March they provided a deep cut for off-peak hours. This has helped the education sector enormously. From midnight to 7 am a large number of students and faculty members in the country now browse the internet and download files. It is no replacement, however, for true unlimited broadband internet.</p><p>In my opinion, this failure to provide broadband in the country, and the practice of charging users per Mb, has put the country backwards at least 20 years in adoption of internet based services. For more than a decade, nobody has made use of the fibre optic national network and the oceanic connections in Madang and Port Moresby with the internet backbone. Bandwidth at the best universities in the USA and Europe is now continuously 1Tb/s, while in PNG at best 2-5Mb/s is offered, which is 200.000 to 500.000 slower. </p><p>Since internet nowadays is essential for government, business, and education, the failure to provide broadband internet demands urgent attention from the country's political and business sectors. There is huge political capital to be won by giving the education and business sectors access to broadband internet, and since PNG is a democracy at some point somebody will realize this.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">The double challenge</h2><p>Given this reality, university administrators face a double challenge: improve the basic conditions for teaching and learning, while at the same time bring internet based tools and mobile technology into the classroom. </p><p>The first challenge is to make sure the basic conditions for teaching are there. Unreliable infrastructure in the country and challenging living conditions on campus cause a series of challenges which are seldom present in high income countries. The socio-economic background of the students, and structural underfunding of the universities and other infrastructure since independence, generate another series of issues. Power cuts several times a day make it difficult to run servers or to assure internet connection. Generator sets are available, but do not solve the problem for computer networks. Battery based power back-up systems are simply too expensive to run. A majority of the students do not own recent textbooks for their courses, or (notebook) computers. Students sometimes can not study at night, because there is no light due to power interruptions. No change in the class room can happen, if these basic conditions for operating a university are not met. </p><p>Regarding the second challenge, of how to bring internet based access to information and interaction to the classroom, here we propose a strategy that takes into account the basic constraints, but can be scaled up once broad band becomes available. Any solution must start with a realistic assessment of which hardware and support personnel, software, and the capacity to train teachers.</p><p>The massive and freely available course content from top universities in the USA such as MIT and others is possibly a game changer. Flexible, blended, and distance learning have a unique potential to expand access to higher education. The local lecturer becomes much more a guide through the existing offerings than the creator of new content. At all universities we need to take these development into account, otherwise we condemn ourselves to irrelevance.</p><p>At the Papua New Guinea University of Technology, UNITECH we developed a plan to introduce internet based tools into the classroom using simple tools for low-bandwidth environment. We set up an elearning team lead by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor Academic, which is meeting regularly to facilitate this transition. The department of distance learning, IT services, the teaching methods an learning, and the audio visual units are all participating with the purpose of providing active support to the teaching departments. In 2012, at UNITECH we will experiment with two courses, and in 2013 the plan will be rolled out for selected programs. We are very excited by the prospect, and our work has encountered wide-spread support.</p><p>In short, the solution envisages the use of course specific websites and email for the static, non-interactive part of course delivery. The course syllabus is posted on a website with links to powerpoints, class notes etc. Emails lists are used for broadcasting to the students. For the dynamic, interactive part of the course, blogs, video recording of lectures and twitter will be used. Twitter can be used to update students on their mobile phones without cost to the university. Course content can be distributed on flash drives. Virus and security threat are minimized by using open-source software running on linux based operating systems.</p><h2 style="text-align: left;">Conclusion</h2><p>In order to improve learning among our millenial generation students, teaching has to use internet and mobile technology for offering relevant content and providing feedback. Failure to do so, would acerbate a situation which is already critical, and further erode the perceived relevance and value of current university teaching practice.</p><p>We are excited to find out that using internet in the university classroom and mobile technology is possible even in a low-income country with low internet bandwidth, like Papua New Guinea. The tools that can be used are not as advanced as those implemented elsewhere, but only slightly less functional. Learning to use these takes somewhat longer, but at UNITECH the Faculty has shown willingness to put in the necessary effort. </p><p></p><p><br /><u>References</u><br />- Heskett, Jim. 2010. "How Will Millennials Manage? — HBS Working Knowledge." <a href="http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5736.html">http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5736.html</a>.<br />- The Economist. 2005. "The Real Digital Divide." The Economist.<br />- VOX. 2011. "Service with a Smile: A New Growth Engine for Poor Countries | Vox - Research-based Policy Analysis and Commentary from Leading Economists." <a href="http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/6459">http://www.voxeu.org/index.php?q=node/6459</a>.<br /><br /></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p>Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-87691902909344922982020-05-14T16:28:00.004+02:002020-05-23T16:04:25.765+02:00The Australian 30 May 2018: Albert Schram says PNG universities face crisis<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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(This is now 2 years ago. Case was <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/01/my-wrongful-dismissal-malicious.html">thrown out</a> in January 2019 for lack of any evidence. Here is the record of my <a href="https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972">PhD</a>. It was all madness.<br />
<br />
University governance is still thoroughly politicized and ignores students needs. All academics in #PNG with experience working in world-class universities have left, academic quality improvements have stopped, internet at UNITECH has collapsed, and crisis is tangibly upon these universities.<br />
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University management and Council were all appointed by Peter O'Neill.)</div>
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<figure><figcaption class="story-caption">Albert Schram, former vice-chancellor of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology.</figcaption></figure></div>
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<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author">Tim Dodd</a></h2>
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Higher Education Editor</div>
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<div class="author-module__twitter">
<a href="http://twitter.com/TimDoddEDU" rel="me" target="_blank">@TimDoddEDU</a></div>
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<li class="story-info__timestamp"><time class="date-and-time" datetime="2018-05-29T14:00:00.000Z">12:00AM May 30, 2018</time></li>
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Albert
Schram, the former vice-chancellor of Papua New Guinea’s second largest
university, has warned that the country’s higher education system will
face crisis unless corruption is rooted out and threats against foreign
academics cease.</div>
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Dr Schram was
speaking from Singapore, where he landed on Sunday. The PNG authorities
allowed him leave the country after arresting him and confiscating his
passport earlier this month.</div>
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Dr Schram,
whose leadership of the PNG University of Technology is praised by
Australian academics who follow the country, was controversially ousted
as vice-chancellor in February after being accused of not verifying his
PhD credentials, even though his 1994 doctorate from the European
University Institute in Italy has been thoroughly verified.</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
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He
said his experience underlined dangers facing PNG higher education. He
said the government had recently consolidated political control over
universities, and ministers were able to appoint favourites to
chancellor and vice-chancellor positions.</div>
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“The attack on me was clearly led by the chancellor (a government appointee),” he said.</div>
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Dr
Schram said PNG universities were reliant on foreign academics, who
made up about a quarter of faculty members across the institutions.</div>
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He
said foreigners were hired because there were not enough credentialed
locals, a situation made worse because talented Papua New Guineans who
went abroad to study often did not want to return to the uncertainty of
working in a PNG university. “Unfortunately, that is what happens,” he
said.</div>
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Dr Schram said that without foreign academics the academic leadership of universities would disappear. </div>
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“If these people leave you can close the university because it will become a high school,” he said.</div>
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“I
do not understand why the minister of higher education can’t see this
and cannot stop academics being accused falsely and being wrongfully
dismissed.”</div>
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He said that with PNG
hosting meetings of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation forum this
year and trying to stimulate its tourism industry, it could not afford a
situation in which “police abuse is rampant”.</div>
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The
court order that allowed Dr Schram to leave the country ordered him to
return by June 12 to face court again on charges of “false pretence”
over his PhD credentials.</div>
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Dr Schram
said on his blog that his case should be thrown out because of a lack of
primary evidence and it then might not be necessary for him to return
to the country.</div>
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He said that because he
“gave his word to the court”, he would go through the costly process of
having his original doctorate notarised and send to the court in PNG.</div>
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<b>Dr
Schram said he had worked for a local salary at Unitech and now faced
financial ruin because of the costs of defending the case.</b></div>
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<b>“Nobody
can accuse me of personal gain. I’ve lost everything,” he said. “I’ve
been financing from my personal reserve the fight against corruption.</b></div>
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<b>“I cannot be silent, I am so indignant about this whole affair.”</b></div>
<div class="author-module__header">
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<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author">Tim Dodd</a></h2>
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<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author"><img class="loaded" data-name="Tim Dodd" data-src="https://media.theaustralian.com.au/authors/images/bio/tim_dodd.png" data-was-processed="true" src="https://media.theaustralian.com.au/authors/images/bio/tim_dodd.png" /></a></div>
<div class="author-module__title">
Higher Education Editor</div>
<div class="author-module__bio">
Tim
Dodd is The Australian's higher education editor. He has over 25 years
experience as a journalist covering a wide variety of areas in public
policy, economics, politics and foreign policy, including reporti... <a class="author-module__read-more" href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author">Read more</a></div>
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Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-11122263932773543742020-05-14T16:24:00.001+02:002021-08-14T16:48:18.271+02:00The Australian 18 May 2018: PNG Vice-Chancellor Albert Schram charged with ‘false pretence’<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(Here is what Australians read about the PNG universities. This is now 2 years go.<br />
<br />
There has never been any evidence for the charge of 'false pretence', and the other allegations were slanderous and trumped up. If not, I would have been charged. </div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Anybody can see my PhD is <a href="https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972" target="_blank">genuine</a>, and in fact, I continue to work in higher education at the <a href="https://bit.ly/UMGCfaclist" target="_blank">University of Maryland Global Campus</a>, a US-based university with a campus in Italy.<br />
<br />
The case was thrown out of court for lack of evidence in <a href="http://www.looppng.com/png-news/schram-case-dismissed-82167">January 2019</a>, but not without further threats from the police judge.<br />
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Meanwhile, nobody has gotten in touch with me, or apologized. AS)<br />
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<figure><figcaption class="story-caption">Albert Schram, former vice-chancellor of the PNG University of Technology.</figcaption></figure></div>
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Higher Education Editor</div>
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<a href="http://twitter.com/TimDoddEDU" rel="me" target="_blank">@TimDoddEDU</a></div>
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<li class="story-info__timestamp"><time class="date-and-time" datetime="2018-05-15T14:00:00.000Z">12:00AM May 16, 2018</time></li>
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Albert
Schram, the respected former vice-chancellor of Papua New Guinea’s
second largest university, was arrested last week when he re-entered the
country and now cannot leave because his passport has been confiscated
by PNG authorities.</div>
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Dr Schram was
controversially dismissed from his job in February this year by the
council of Papua New Guinea University of Technology, which accused him
of having unverified academic credentials, spending too much time
travelling and failing to win the promised benefits for the university.</div>
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After
visiting friends in Cairns, Dr Schram returned to PNG on May 1 on a
tourist visa, intending to leave from there to his home in Europe.</div>
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But
he was arrested on arrival at Port Moresby airport, and on May 7 he was
charged with “false pretence” over the veracity of his PhD credentials.
He was released on bail but is not permitted to leave the country.</div>
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The
arrest occurred and charges were laid even though the secretary of the
PNG Department of Higher Education, Research, Science and Technology,
Jan Czuba, issued a statement on May 1 verifying Dr Schram’s doctorate.</div>
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The case is being watched closely by Australian academics who follow PNG.</div>
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Australian
National University researcher Grant Walton said Dr Schram was a
popular figure in PNG who had implemented measures to improve the
budget, increase transparency and engage students as head of Unitech.</div>
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“It’s
very concerning that he has been detained,” he said. “It sends a
negative message about the rule of law in the country and ties to
concerns about how academics are treated.”</div>
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<b>Dr Walton, a fellow at ANU’s Development Policy Centre, said the charge against Dr Schram was “demonstrably false”.</b></div>
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<b>“His PhD is available online,” he said. </b>(Here is the <a href="https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972">official record</a>. It was later published as a book with <a href="https://www.cambridge.org/it/academic/subjects/history/european-history-after-1450/railways-and-formation-italian-state-nineteenth-century?format=HB&isbn=9780521571593">Cambridge University Press</a>.)<b><br /></b></div>
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Dr Schram has had a turbulent time since his appointment in 2012 to head Unitech, which is based in PNG’s second city of Lae.</div>
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In
a statement published in February 2013, Dr Schram said he raised the
issue of an adverse auditor-general’s report about the university at his
first Unitech council meeting in April 2012 “and announced corrective
measures including a number related to financial management,
accreditation and personnel management”.</div>
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“The
chancellor, who was not empowered to do so, tried to sack me there and
then,” Dr Schram said in the statement. “After violent protests by
students, during which the car of the president was set on fire, he
changed his mind.”</div>
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In March 2013 Dr
Schram was deported from PNG after allegations from a former Unitech
pro-chancellor, Ralph Saulep, that he had not been truthful about his
academic qualifications.</div>
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Dr Schram was
in exile for more than year, working at James Cook University in Cairns,
but in April 2014 he was readmitted to the country and returned to
Unitech, hoisted on the shoulders of cheering students.</div>
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Since
then he has pressed on with reform measures, trying to make budget
changes and build links with overseas universities, until dismissed by
the council in February.</div>
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The Unitech council said it had nothing to do with Dr Schram’s May 1 arrest.</div>
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“Unitech
understands that police have been investigating a complaint lodged by
the former council in 2012,” it said in a statement issued on May 9.</div>
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<i>The Australian</i> contacted Professor Schram in Port Moresby but he declined to comment.</div>
<div class="author-module__header">
<h2 class="author-module__heading">
<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author">Tim Dodd</a></h2>
</div>
<div class="author-module__dinkus">
<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/author/Tim+Dodd" rel="author"><img class="loaded" data-name="Tim Dodd" data-src="https://media.theaustralian.com.au/authors/images/bio/tim_dodd.png" data-was-processed="true" src="https://media.theaustralian.com.au/authors/images/bio/tim_dodd.png" /></a></div>
<div class="author-module__title">
Higher Education Editor</div>
Tim
Dodd is The Australian's higher education editor. He has over 25 years
experience as a journalist covering a wide variety of areas in public
policy, economics, politics and foreign policy, including reporti...</div>
Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-71403517092600814162019-11-02T15:18:00.002+01:002024-02-14T09:00:28.436+01:00Student Representation and Peaceful Activism<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
<h2 style="text-align: center;">
Student Representation and Peaceful Activism at Universities:</h2>
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Case Study of Papua New Guinea 2012-2018</h3>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<i>Lecture delivered at Faculty of Law, University of Verona, Wednesday 27 November 2019, 10 am (5,000 words)</i><br />
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<i><a href="https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1xj16KvaEFJtDgnkmteYC2h4G0BaFsI9KWHoGcRzH6K4/edit?usp=sharing">Link</a> to presentation in Italian </i></div>
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<div style="text-align: right;">
Albert Schram, PhD©</div>
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<i>For giving me this opportunity today to meet the University of Verona law students, I would like to thank Dott.sa Isolde Quaranti of the Faculty of Law of the University of Verona, and representative for the University of Verona for Scholars at Risk. I also wish to thank all members of the recently created, and very successful <a href="https://www.scholarsatrisk.org/sections/sar-italy/">SAR Italy</a> section for their continuing moral support.</i><br />
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Introduction</h2>
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Good morning. Let me first congratulate the neighbouring Italian universities of Padova and Bologna for having achieved a place in the top 20 in the Times Higher Education <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/rankings/impact/2019/overall#!/page/0/length/25/sort_by/rank/sort_order/asc/cols/undefined">social impact ranking</a>. We hope the newly elected Rettore Magnifico of the university of Verona has taken note, and follows their example. It would be great to have three Italian universities in the top 20 of this new, but prestigious ranking.<br />
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The universities of Padova and Bologna have formulated their strategies in terms of the United Nations <a href="https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/">17 Sustainable Development Goals</a> for the year 2030, and can demonstrate how their teaching, research and outreach contribute to achieving a set of these goals. Unlike the earlier 8 UN <a href="https://www.un.org/millenniumgoals/">Millenium Development Goals</a> (MDGs), which were set for the year 2015, fortunately, the 4th SDG about access to quality education now includes higher education, a theme which was left out by the earlier MDGs.<br />
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It is difficult to make predictions, particularly about the future, as a Danish proverb says. Social scientists are no exception to this rule, with one exception: demographers. Today, for example, we already know that about half of the population growth until 2050 will occur in Africa. As a consequence, the population between 15 and 30-years-olds in Africa will increase from about 300 million in 2015 to 400 million in 2030 only 10 years from now, or more than the combined population of this age group in Europe and the USA, as brilliantly explained by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LyzBoHo5EI">Hans Rosling</a> in 2015. Evidently, this will put tremendous strains on energy demand, infrastructure, health and education systems, etc.<br />
<br />
What are the implications of this for higher education systems, in particular the role university students can play in university governance? In the developing world, policymakers will struggle to respond to the challenge of massification, while improving academic quality. Providing sufficient, merit-based access - quantity challenges - will have to be addressed while at the same time improving quality challenges so the universities can continue to produce work-ready, employable graduates. Since in a globalized world, the only relevant quality standards are international standards, deep internationalization of higher education systems will have to occur at the same time.<br />
<br />
Since a large part of the developing world still has unreformed university systems, inherited from their colonial pasts, the stresses caused by massification and internationalization will require some type of governance reform. These policymakers in the developing world will need to look at examples of university governance, and it is likely they will look to Europe, which is where universities were born, and where we have a high diversity of university systems.<br />
<br />
Let's focus now on the role of students in university governance, related one of the 4 objectives of a university to produce graduates who are active citizens for democratic societies. In this lecture, I wish to address two interrelated questions:<br />
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>How do university governance systems incorporate students into structured decision-making? Does it matter? We will look at European cases.</li>
<li>What can we learn about the importance of student representation and civil activism from a case study concerning an attempt at university governance reform in a developing country, like Papua New Guinea? (<a href="https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience">Schram, 2016</a>) </li>
</ol>
(In the presentation in Italian, and given recent developments with students becoming involved in the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong, we will also look at the governance at the 6 world-class Universities there, in particular the Hong
Kong Polytechnic Universities, PolyU in short. )<br />
<br />
How the voice of the student body is integrated into
decision-making within universities, as well as the shape and form of
active citizenship of the students, will vary according to national context. An assessment of the role of student representation in university governance and student's peaceful activism, therefore, must be placed against the background of the overall goals and purpose of Universities, within the context of the societies in which they operate.</div>
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uWfoI7eCWA0/UyFv8g8GtsI/AAAAAAAAI1I/P06tbwxCDDYsMeklH1itvgBYblXXIz6oQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Impossible_Odds.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="558" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-uWfoI7eCWA0/UyFv8g8GtsI/AAAAAAAAI1I/P06tbwxCDDYsMeklH1itvgBYblXXIz6oQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Impossible_Odds.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Protesting Student in PNG: activism is not futile</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br />
<br />
In this lecture, I wish to explore the issues of student representation and students' active citizenship in developing countries, shifting my focus away from the traditional perspective which gives almost exclusive attention to internationally established scholars-at-risk, towards attention to university students and administrators, who either speak up on the scholars' behalf, or who protest much wider issues concerning corruption, either in society or the political system at large, or regarding the governance of universities. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Like scholars in developing countries, students too are frequently victims of persecution, and the case of Papua New Guinea will expose the nefarious mechanisms of exclusion of which student leaders are victims. This in turn creates a hesitancy to participate in any form of protest, in particular when the repression of earlier student movements has been violent.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
In this lecture, first I will sketch the historical background and legal foundations of student representation in general, secondly, I will give an overview of the situation in Europe, based on surveys held by the European University Association. Thirdly, I will describe the broader importance for countries to have
universities with meaningful student representation in their governance
structure, and the importance of allowing peaceful student activism for
upholding core higher education values: institutional autonomy, academic
freedom, social responsibility, equitable access, and accountability.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g0mr9FXOErg/Xb0vgkQ5ODI/AAAAAAAAap0/E4W4KWafFigvIiVqprupgttAZxkE8UO-ACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/SAR_core_HE_values.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="578" data-original-width="670" height="276" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-g0mr9FXOErg/Xb0vgkQ5ODI/AAAAAAAAap0/E4W4KWafFigvIiVqprupgttAZxkE8UO-ACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/SAR_core_HE_values.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Scholars at Risk: <a href="https://www.scholarsatrisk.org/resources/promoting-core-higher-education-values-perspectives-from-the-field/">core higher education values</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
1- Historical Background and Legal Foundations</h2>
Universities are among the oldest institutions in the world. The European university model, however, borrowed from earlier traditions in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. Not far from Verona, we find the University of Bologna founded around 1088, and the oldest university in Europe. It
was organized around autonomous guilds of students and lecturers and formed an independent body. Since the students paid their lecturers directly, the Rector Magnificus at the University of Bologna in the first centuries, for example, was a student, not a lecturer.<br />
<br />
These early ideas of autonomy and self-governance by a community of scholars and students are still highly relevant today and constitute a core value of higher education. Often they find expression in traditional dual governance structures - with both a governing board or council and an academic senate -, and in the devolved, shared governance practices through committees that report to these boards. In traditional governance structures, students are represented in many of these committees.<br />
<br />
In the Renaissance period, new methods of scientific inquiry emerged, and empirical scientific inquiry in the modern sense came into existence. Obstacles to free inquiry,
however, remained. in the early 16th
century, Martin Luther, for example, a minister and professor
in Wittenberg, Germany, regularly clashed with church authority. In the early 17th century Galileo’s scientific ‘truth’ that the earth revolved around the sun even brought him before the Inquisition.<br />
<br />
The first Industrial Revolution in the 18th and early 19th centuries helped to further modernize higher education. Universities had to keep up with new technological and scientific developments and society’s needs to understand and use them. The so-called Humboldt type of research university in early 19th century Germany was mostly successful at meeting these challenges. Their ideas of “lehrfreiheit” (freedom to teach) and “lernfreiheit” (freedom to learn), removed restrictions on academics in the classroom and laboratory, which was the basis for their success in meeting the challenges of the time.<br />
<br />
After WW2 when strong repression of academic freedom in Germany and Italy during the nazi and fascist regimes was overcome, universities in these countries and elsewhere in Europe were re-opened based on a democratic model, honouring fundamental higher education values.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
In recent years, Europe has had to struggle again with issues around the institutional autonomy of universities and academic freedom. After the
attempted coup in 2016, the government of <a href="https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/05/14/turkey-government-targeting-academics">Turkey</a>,
for example, attacked, dismissed, and imprisoned a large number of
academics. Many are no refugee scholars in Europe or the USA. The <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/higher-education-network/2018/sep/06/state-control-over-academic-freedom-in-hungary-threatens-all-universities">Hungarian government</a> has attacked <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/europe-should-codify-university-autonomy-ward-threats">university autonomy</a> and abolished certain fields of study, such as gender studies. This has forced the Central European University to <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2018/12/04/central-european-university-forced-out-hungary-moving-vienna">leave Budapest</a> and relocate to Prague</div>
<br />
As part of processes of democratic backsliding and populism, there are also worrying developments in <a href="http://balticworlds.com/academic-freedom-in-russia/">Russia</a>, the <a href="http://balticworlds.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/02/BW-4-2018-HELA_uppslag.pdf">Baltic countries</a> and <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/05/30/scholars-fear-future-academic-freedom-italy">even Italy</a> In April 2019 the regional branch of the
Lega party asked the University of Bologna to remove Gianluca Passarella's book "La Lega di Salvini"
from the reading list of a course taught by a political science
professor. This episode has led to some
consternation among academics, maybe more <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/05/30/scholars-fear-future-academic-freedom-italy">abroad</a> than in the country itself.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
According to the Council of Europe (2007): "<i>Coherent
higher education and research policies should therefore address the
multiple concomitant purposes of higher education, which include: </i></div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
</ul>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li><i>preparation for sustainable employment; </i></li>
<li><i>preparation for life as <u>active citizens in democratic societies; </u></i></li>
<li><i>personal development; </i></li>
<li><i>the development and maintenance, through teaching, learning and research, of a broad, advanced knowledge base. </i></li>
</ol>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<i>The
four purposes identified in the Recommendation are equally important,
and the order in which they are listed does not reflect their relative
importance. Rather, the order reflects current debate, which tends to
emphasise the importance of higher education in relation to the labour
market."</i></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Active citizenship includes the right to protest. In most democracies, however, there is no such thing as a right to
hold a peaceful protest, but it is seen as a manifestation of the constitutional rights to
petition the government, the right to freedom of assembly, the right to
freedom of association, and the right to freedom of speech.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
Freedom of speech, or rather more accurately and broadly freedom of expression, is recognized as a human right under Article 19 of the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Declaration_of_Human_Rights" title="Universal Declaration of Human Rights">Universal Declaration of Human Rights</a> (UDHR) and recognized in <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_human_rights_law" title="International human rights law">international human rights law</a> in the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Covenant_on_Civil_and_Political_Rights" title="International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights">International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights</a>
(ICCPR). Freedom of expression is not absolute and can be subject to
certain restrictions, such as for example banning hate speech.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Safeguarding academic freedom is
fundamental for creating vibrant democracies including resilient
university systems, and successful universities. In 1997, the United
Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization - <a href="http://www.unesco.org/education/docs/recom_e.html">UNESCO</a>
agreed unanimously that "academic freedom" it is the right “to freedom
of teaching and discussion, freedom in carrying out research and
disseminating and publishing results”. As such it is a specific case of
the broader human right to "freedom of expression". The boundaries of
academic freedom can be difficult to determine, but it generally
includes at least the freedom to:</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>to teach and discuss;</li>
<li>to carry out research and publish the results and make them known;</li>
<li>to freely express opinions about the academic institution or system in which one works</li>
<li>to participate in professional or representative academic bodies</li>
<li>not to be censored</li>
</ul>
In these past years, it seems academic freedom is under threat everywhere. Not only do some countries perpetrate <a href="https://www.scholarsatrisk.org/resources/free-to-think-2018/">direct attacks on students and scholars</a>, as documented by the Annual reports of Scholars at Risk. But the <a href="https://wcfia.harvard.edu/publications/centerpiece/spring2018/transcript_jodidi2018">internationalization of higher education</a>
has also created threats for both scholars and students when working,
doing research or studying outside their own countries. The case of the
murder and cover-up in Egypt of the Italian PhD student at the University of Cambridge, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2018/jan/25/italian-student-killed-for-researching-egypt-unions-giulio-regeni">Giulio Reggeni</a>, comes to mind, but there are many other cases mostly in the Middle East.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
</h2>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
2- State of Student Representation and Peaceful Activism</h2>
<br />
The Magna Charta Universitatum (1989), a statement on the fundamental principles of universities created by the University of Bologna, has now has over 900 signatory universities in 88 countries. Concerning students, it states:<br />
<br />
<i>"Each University must (...) ensure that its students' freedoms are safeguarded and that they enjoy concessions (conditions) in which they can acquire the culture and training, which it is their purpose to possess." </i><br />
<br />
(The Italian original is clearer: "Ogni Università nel rispetto delle specificità delle situazioni, deve garantire ai propri studenti la salvaguardia delle libertà e delle condizioni necessarie per conseguire i loro obiettivi culturali e di formazione")<br />
<br />
It is clear that students' freedoms include at least basic human rights and constitutional freedoms. In addition, these student freedoms are widely interpreted to include academic freedom and freedom of inquiry.<br />
<br />
Let's see how student representation and rights have been integrated into European university governance frameworks. The current trend to strive for continual improvement of teaching, and
international accreditation of teaching programs by an independent professional
body, makes the involvement of students, but also of industry - the employers of
graduates - in the design of programs necessary, or even mandatory.<br />
<br />
A recent analysis of the European University Association (2018) by Enora Benettot Pruvot and Thomas Estermann makes clear there are at least five possible university governance models<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VAQvkvki1K4/Xb1x0DvRJ0I/AAAAAAAAatU/Q3RHABk0v2kNcVkSzE9Aiihb8zVyOYm7QCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel3.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="155" data-original-width="458" height="108" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VAQvkvki1K4/Xb1x0DvRJ0I/AAAAAAAAatU/Q3RHABk0v2kNcVkSzE9Aiihb8zVyOYm7QCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel3.png" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
We can see that the traditional dual governance model - with both a board and a senate - is no longer dominant, with only 7 countries (among which Italy) of 22 countries having such a structure. It is interesting to note that in all unitary systems (9) student representatives are included. We must realize, however, that this analysis does not include student representation at the Faculty level, which can be very important to improve teaching quality, and the learning environment, as well as increase placement opportunities for graduates.<br />
<br />
Here is a more detailed overview of the governance structures of the 22 countries participating in the survey:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hbBT_l6UZFA/Xb1y5r9gm_I/AAAAAAAAatg/4tHXQtPKKTshbdrQ9Q6GclHqUbdglptBgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel1.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="527" data-original-width="780" height="432" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hbBT_l6UZFA/Xb1y5r9gm_I/AAAAAAAAatg/4tHXQtPKKTshbdrQ9Q6GclHqUbdglptBgCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel1.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
Despite the differences in their governance systems, in 14 out of 20 European countries (70%) students are included in the board. Only in 9 systems out of 20 (45%), however, are non-academic staff included. We observe that Italy includes students in the university board, but not non-academic staff. Possibly, in the presence of active trade unions in Italy this was not deemed necessary. Moreover, in Italy, external members are included in the university board, but they tend to be government-appointed, and do not represent industry or the private sector.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PZ8mcUe9oYQ/Xb1zQ0aTX1I/AAAAAAAAato/C5-JP490L78tDPrcCclPNu_b0uGDxxiiwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel2.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="455" data-original-width="777" height="374" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-PZ8mcUe9oYQ/Xb1zQ0aTX1I/AAAAAAAAato/C5-JP490L78tDPrcCclPNu_b0uGDxxiiwCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_excel2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
As to the academic senates in all countries, students are included. However only in 10 of the 16 countries where these bodies exist, are non-academic staff included. The presence of external members, however, is only in 3 of the 16 countries (19%), with Italy being one of them.<br />
<br />
The EUA findings can be summarized in this diagram:<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vcdpXDnU1iI/Xb10SW11XjI/AAAAAAAAat0/xOewZHVREoIYJlyC2hO_pbM_dLo0z1ORwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_inclusiveness.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="617" data-original-width="908" height="434" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-vcdpXDnU1iI/Xb10SW11XjI/AAAAAAAAat0/xOewZHVREoIYJlyC2hO_pbM_dLo0z1ORwCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/2018_Book_EuropeanHigherEducationAreaThe_tab2b_inclusiveness.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
We must warn against a simplistic interpretation of this graph, however, since there may be inclusion and representation mechanisms at the decentral Faculty level, which assure the voice of students and non-academic staff is heard and acted upon.<br />
<br />
In the past, in Europe student activism was important in driving changes through the higher education system, but also for society at large. In Paris in 1968, but in many other European cities, student protests were massive, and frequently led the way for the massification of universities by offering broader access, and greater inclusion of student representatives into university governance. In Italy, for example, in 1977 there was a large student movement with similar aims. More recently in 1989, the students at Charles University in Prague occupied the university, and played an important role in the "velvet revolution". Often these students' movements are openly or silently supported by university lecturers.<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Today, however, in mature democracies in Europe student activism is
mostly channeled through conventional political parties, or sometimes
through their youth sections. In addition, through social media and the
internet unmediated forms of activism have emerged. As a result, in
Europe, student political activism is no longer a hot topic, but this may change again in the future.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
In many developing countries, student activism continues to play an important role. University lecturers will not speak up or
be active citizens since they know this would mean they lose their
jobs. It is exclusively the students who will speak up, and continue to do so in the face of attempts to pass anti-democratic legislation or massive abuse of authority by members of the government. University governance framework, like other institutions, are not respected, and therefore somewhat irrelevant.</div>
<br />
In conclusion, the European study shows that there are at least five main different university governance systems, and each can be implemented in different manners. In all 20 European countries in this study, students
have a formal representation in a senate-like body, and in the vast
majority (70%), they also have a formal representation in a board-like body.<br />
<br />
The way in which the student's voice is integrated into decision-making, however, varies considerably and must be studied in detail in order to be properly understood. If students are members of these boards, for example, but have no voting rights and are not given relevant information in a timely fashion, their participation in governance bodies or committees is of limited value. Conversely, in the Netherlands, one of the least democratic university
governance systems in this sample - where the Rector is appointed by the
government, and the students are not represented in either a board or
senate - some alternative mechanisms have been found (e.g. faculty level
representation)
which ensure students are heard.<br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
3- The Case of Papua New Guinea</h2>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
In
all developing countries where I lived (5), no citizen believes the
main purpose of the government of the day is serving the country's citizens. In many developing
countries, university lecturers will not speak up or
be active democratic citizens, however, since they know this would mean they lose
their
jobs. It is therefore the students who will speak up.<br />
<br /></div>
When,
like me, you spent the major part of your career as an academic or university executive in
developing countries, at some point you are bound to end up in the
middle of student protests. Sometimes these protests are led by high-school students, sometimes by university students. Social
activism by students in these countries, in particular in the capitals,
is still tremendously significant because other civil society organizations
are often weak or successfully suppressed by the government. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Student protests sometimes turn violent,
but there are also joyous moments. In the past weeks, we have seen students
involved in civil unrest in Nicaragua, Chile, Colombia, Kenya, Uganda,
and of
course Hong Kong. These protests reflect the lack of good, democratic
governance nationally, and the weak state of state institutions. Many
institutions are structurally weakened by systematic corruption, which
implies that no services are delivered to citizens. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
The public universities in Papua New Guinea (PNG) were founded in colonial times in 1965 the University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) and in 1967 the PNG University of Technology (PNGUoT) respectively, based on the Australian model of far-reaching university autonomy, and principles of dual and shared governance. Students were included both in the university board or council, as well as the senate or academic board. These principles were embodied in the university Acts, which make the universities statutory bodies.<br />
<br />
In this system, the Vice Chancellor has far-reaching powers and is accountable to the University Council only. They were given as a gift by Australia to the young state of PNG. The gift, however, proved to be a Trojan horse with students after independence organizing class boycotts, and protest movements against the government almost every year. In one case, student protests even led to the fall of a government.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Papua New Guinea became independent from Australia in 1975 after which Australian students and faculty quickly left, never to come back. In 2012, when I joined the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNTOoT) as the first European Vice-Chancellor (Rector Magnificus) in 2012, the Somare government had just undertaken an "Independent Review of the University System" (IRUS) in 2009, authored by the Economic John Garnaut and former PNG PM Robbie Namaliu. Around the same time, ExxonMobil made its largest foreign investment in an LNG plant in the country, and the government was widely expected to invest some of the revenues in its decrepit and faltering health and education systems, including the universities.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VU7Pvev8rHQ/XWfwkg2eIHI/AAAAAAAAaXI/HzcCCMVUj0AViLPT6r7LTIbE0YXUfRJBwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Rotten_structure_falling.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="338" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-VU7Pvev8rHQ/XWfwkg2eIHI/AAAAAAAAaXI/HzcCCMVUj0AViLPT6r7LTIbE0YXUfRJBwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Rotten_structure_falling.jpg" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PNG Humour: sign at PNGUoT administration building</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: left;">
The IRUS report made an extensive analysis of the weaknesses and challenges for the universities. After incorporating feedback from the national rectors' conference, it was adopted as government policy. It contained two key recommendations:</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
</div>
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>Reduce the size of Council from over 30 members to less than 16, and streamline governance; and</li>
<li>Deal with academic quality issues first, before increasing the number of students.</li>
</ul>
<div style="text-align: left;">
These recommendations seemed sensible and served as guidance for my actions. As Vice Chancellor, I was not obliged to carry them out, but in general, I was expected to carry out government policy.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Regrettably, in 2012 Peter O'Neill attempted to form a government, while the Somare government was still in place. For a while, there were 2 prime ministers. In the end, Peter O'Neill forced his way into the Supreme Court and made himself prime minister. His government was therefore never legitimate, and never felt bound by the law.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--gyAV97jrFU/XaVxItzybFI/AAAAAAAAafo/jsGYa5AQUpEtBZLGo2iYyTkZv-qTcQ41QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/ONeill_coming_to_power.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="212" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--gyAV97jrFU/XaVxItzybFI/AAAAAAAAafo/jsGYa5AQUpEtBZLGo2iYyTkZv-qTcQ41QCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/ONeill_coming_to_power.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peter O'Neill and his friends storming the Supreme Court</td></tr>
</tbody></table><br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
The problems for the higher education sector started soon afterward, and it was clear that PM Peter O'Neill had no intention of carrying out the recommendations of the IRUS report. In fact, soon afterwards he had Dr. Garnaut deported from the country. Like all other state institutions, for universities too Peter O'Neill wanted to appoint their councils and management. He could not understand how universities could be independent, while the government paid most of their costs for teaching the students.</div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
At UPNG in 2012, for example, there was a major class boycott led by Student Representative Council (SRC) President Emmanuel Isaac against the attempt by Peter O'Neill to censure the judges, through the "Judicial Conduct Act". By contrast, at the PNGUoT from 2012 onwards the students were more concerned by internal university issues.<br />
<br />
The Minister of Higher Education at the time was thoroughly corrupt. He was in the habit of calling foreign lecturers, and asking them for money while threatening to cancel their visas if they did not oblige. He also called me asking me essentially to revert my full salary to him, which I refused. As a result of my un-accommodating attitude on 8 March 2013 I was refused entry into the country and deported. A bit earlier, the Minister had fired the whole PNGUoT council.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oU62Q7MMPDI/UUq8BE7dSrI/AAAAAAAAIHA/cRpuG0oDNOgpz5MeRDQr-RL9bXeZZinvQCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/boycott_unitech_fb39304a34130091260a0354b3ec1452.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="480" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oU62Q7MMPDI/UUq8BE7dSrI/AAAAAAAAIHA/cRpuG0oDNOgpz5MeRDQr-RL9bXeZZinvQCPcBGAYYCw/s320/boycott_unitech_fb39304a34130091260a0354b3ec1452.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PNGUoT protesting students with provincial flags</td></tr>
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To address the impasse, the government order a former supreme court judge, the late Mark Sevua to undertake an official investigation into the Council of the PNGUoT, as well as my appointment as Vice-Chancellor. This investigation was thorough, and took over 4 months to complete the "Sevua Report". It did not produce, however, the results the government expected. The former university council was exposed as utterly corrupt and ineffective, while my appointment was judged as legitimate, based on my academic credentials and career as a university executive in Europe. As a result, a new university council was formed, and I was ordered to return to fulfill my duties. </div>
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The pressure from the PNGUoT students through the Students' Representative Council (SRC) was continuous. The staged class boycotts in 2012 (6 weeks), 2013 (5 weeks) and 2014 (8 weeks). When I returned on 4 April 2014, they saw this as a great victory. In fact, it was the first time a civil society organization had been able to reverse a government decision.</div>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9pfmBdNzaM/Xb04zpUzzEI/AAAAAAAAasE/Y_yLWe5rFAgXv6g1g8Hu4t37arNtYFGZQCKgBGAsYHg/s1600/UNITECH_4April2014_VC_return.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="518" data-original-width="920" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-c9pfmBdNzaM/Xb04zpUzzEI/AAAAAAAAasE/Y_yLWe5rFAgXv6g1g8Hu4t37arNtYFGZQCKgBGAsYHg/s320/UNITECH_4April2014_VC_return.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My return as Vice-Chancellor on 4 April 2014</td></tr>
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While I was in exile in Australia from March 2013 to April 2014, Peter O'Neill managed to establish a true kleptocracy. He politicized all state agencies, and stealing from the state coffers reached a fantastic level. Meanwhile economic growth in the non-resource, real sector declined year after year, while a new higher education act was prepared, abolishing university autonomy.<br />
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This Higher Education Act 2014 (HE Act) completely ignored the recommendations of the IRUS report to streamline university governance and improve academic quality and was only concerned with establishing political control. The government also failed to amend the University Acts, creating thus a situation of legal dissonance.<br />
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In fact, the only consequential amendments to the University Acts (until today not implemented) referred to the appointment of the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor which would now be appointed by the government, rather than the university council. This was justified by saying a "boycott culture" had emerged in PNG universities and they needed "tough medicine" for at least 10 years.<br />
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Of course, I immediately <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-proposed-amendments-to-png.html">spoke out against the HE Act of 2014</a> before it was gazetted, but my PNG colleagues were less sure. In 2016, the students at UPNG and PNGUoT again started a protest movement asking Peter O'Neill to submit himself to the courts to be interrogated. Several serious and credible allegations had surfaced involving him in grand corruption and theft.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MMqoEtiU1RU/XaVuYhQjlXI/AAAAAAAAafc/kSjq0OZH_GsUwzAQhPybI2yF_LUR7y5NACPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="600" height="184" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MMqoEtiU1RU/XaVuYhQjlXI/AAAAAAAAafc/kSjq0OZH_GsUwzAQhPybI2yF_LUR7y5NACPcBGAYYCw/s320/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The economic record of the Peter O'Neill years</td></tr>
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On 8 June 2016, the tensions of the student protests boiled over, and led to a major incident, when police fired hundred of life rounds at peacefully protesting UPNG students. For a while, the news was circulated that a student had been killed, but
this fortunately was untrue. The PNG universities were world news for a
moment, and then everybody lost interest again.<br />
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On the PNGUoT campus we were able to contain the situation, but in the aftermath, there was fighting among student groups, and several university buildings and cars were destroyed. As a result of these riots, the University Councils decided to suspend the Student Representative Councils, in the case of the PNGUoT permanently. In this manner, I lost my strongest support base.<br />
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"Might make right" in the minds of my colleagues in the management and University Council, so in 2017 eagerly succumbing to pressure from members of the government they finally decided I had to be pushed out again. This happened after the government had massively rigged the elections and thought themselves safely in their seats for another 5 years. Eager to oblige with their crookery, the University Council clumsily revived the same false allegations in my regard, which had been set aside by the official Sevua investigation, and used it as an excuse to push me out. Evidently, during the 6 years (2 terms) I was vice chancellor, they could not find any basis for making additional allegations.<br />
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Their timing could not have been more awkward because in the last months, less than a year after my final deportation, Peter O'Neill lost the confidence of Parliament and a new government was formed led by James Marape. All the members of the PNGUoT management team and University Council, however, were appointed personally by Peter O'Neill. Now that his crimes become public and he has apparently fled the country to escape justice, it is likely the University Council and management will be replaced.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XkBZE9IUTbA/Wwo6tpJvcNI/AAAAAAAAZIw/-haboF7Ev_krUUTcD2gcjfS_Rw4pyRLGgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Arena1.jpeg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="554" data-original-width="1080" height="164" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-XkBZE9IUTbA/Wwo6tpJvcNI/AAAAAAAAZIw/-haboF7Ev_krUUTcD2gcjfS_Rw4pyRLGgCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Arena1.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">New in Verona's local paper</td></tr>
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The move in 2018 to push out two foreign Vice Chancellors was clearly orchestrated by Peter O'Neill and some of his Ministers, who had all been personally frustrated by their inability to buy admission for their family members and do corrupt real estate or construction deals with university land. In fact, the other European Vice Chancellor, John Warren was also threatened with arrest but managed to flee the country in time. I was less lucky and in June 2018 I was arrested by cops for rent. Although there was no primary evidence, I was indicted. Fortunately, I managed to get leave (permission) to return home. In January 2019, the case was finally thrown out because the accusers in 6 years had failed to provide any primary and credible evidence. Regrettably, this happened not after I had lost a job I am good at, and lost all my savings to lawyers in order to stay out of jail.<br />
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These high-profile Vice Chancellor persecution cases of Prof. Warren and myself, however, were a mere reflection of the battle for university autonomy and transparent and accountable university governance. In the end, all the students who had fought so hard lost out. Now the politically appointed, and thoroughly politicized university administrations could not care less about the students' plight.</div>
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At a personal level, the student leaders at UPNG and PNGUoT were all excluded from jobs through various mechanisms, including direct threats, but also the spreading of slanderous allegations. Most are self-employed, and only one of them has a job, but in a remote area where he is grossly underpaid.<br />
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The SRC at the PNGUoT is still indefinitely suspended, and with the current management unwilling or unable to maintain shared governance, the cycle of student boycotts and anger is bound to be repeated over and over again. This story has no Hollywood ending.</div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Final Remarks </h2>
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What can we learn about the importance of student representation and
civil activism from a case study concerning an attempt at university
governance reform in a developing country, like Papua New Guinea? (<a href="https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience">Schram, 2016</a>)<br />
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First of all, we see that in PNG the stated aims of governance reform (IRUS report), are diametrically opposed to what really happened (HE Act 2014) We can learn that student representation in university governance in developing countries can very swiftly be ended. As a result, initial successes of student activism can easily be reversed. Since the condition of students is temporary by its very nature, long-term strategies for a student movement are hard to formulate and implement. Admittedly, PNG is not a typical case, since it faces daunting development challenges and tensions: it was one of only two countries in the world not to have achieved a single MDG in 2015.<br />
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This case of botched university reform makes clear, however, that battles around university autonomy and academic freedom, do not always involve scholars who ask "dangerous questions". Often it is simply students and administrators standing up, or impeding official corruption. It also shows that the governance structure as stipulated in the University Acts, in the face of an illegitimate, corrupt, kleptocratic government abusing its powers, is not worth the paper it is written on.</div>
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I hope my lecture has helped you to gain a better understanding of what academic freedom is, and why it is important to defend it always, together with the other core higher education values. In a more globalized world and with universities becoming more student-centred, the importance of standing up for these core higher education values is greater than ever. As the famous American Abolitionist and liberal activist <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wendell_Phillips">Wendell Phillips</a> said on January 28, 1852:<br />
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<b><i>"Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty; </i></b></div>
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<b><i>power is ever stealing from the many to the few".</i></b></div>
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
References</h2>
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L'Arena (2018). Docente veronese «prigioniero» in Nuova Guinea. L'Arena.it. Retrieved from <a href="https://www.larena.it/territori/citt%C3%A0/docente-veronese-prigioniero-in-nuova-guinea-1.6517463">https://www.larena.it/territori/citt%C3%A0/docente-veronese-prigioniero-in-nuova-guinea-1.6517463</a><br />
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Council of Europe (2007), Explanatory Memorandum To Recommendation Rec (2007) 6 Of The Committee Of Ministers To Member States On The Public Responsibility For Higher Education And Research, <a href="http://bit.ly/2ZLVAnq">http://bit.ly/2ZLVAnq</a>, <br />
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Pruvot, Enora Bennetot and Thomas Esterman (2018) "Chapter 37: University Governance: Autonomy, Structures and Inclusiveness" in A. Curaj et al. (eds.), European Higher Education Area: The Impact of Past and Future Policies, <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77407-7_37">https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77407-7_37</a><br />
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UNESCO, 1997 UNESCO Recommendation Concerning the Status of Higher Education Teaching Personnel, para. 27] <a href="http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=12024&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html).">http://portal.unesco.org/en/ev.php-URL_ID=12024&URL_DO=DO_TOPIC&URL_SECTION=201.html).</a><br />
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Magna Charta Universitatum. (1988). <a href="http://www.magna-charta.org/magna-charta-universitatum">http://www.magna-charta.org/magna-charta-universitatum</a> <br />
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Magna Charta Observatory and the National Unions of Students in Europe,
‘Academic Malpractice: threats and Temptations,’ (Bologna, 2007) <a href="http://www.magna-charta.org/research/observatory-publications/academic-malpractice-threats-and-temptations">http://www.magna-charta.org/research/observatory-publications/academic-malpractice-threats-and-temptations</a><br />
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Schram, Albert (2016). University reform in Papua New Guinea: the Unitech experience. Lecture on 18 May 2016 Australian National University - Development Policy Centre. <a href="https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience">https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience</a> <br />
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Scholars fear for future of academic freedom in Italy. (2019, November 02). Retrieved from <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/05/30/scholars-fear-future-academic-freedom-italy">https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/05/30/scholars-fear-future-academic-freedom-italy</a><br />
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Times Higher Education article 1:<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/former-v-c-arrested-return-papua-new-guinea">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/former-v-c-arrested-return-papua-new-guinea</a><br />
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Times Higher Education article 2<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life</a><br />
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Times Higher Education article 3<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ousted-vice-chancellor-may-never-return-papua-new-guinea">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ousted-vice-chancellor-may-never-return-papua-new-guinea</a><br />
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Times Higher Education article 4:<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/exiled-v-c-fights-to-return-to-papua-new-guinea/2012196.article">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/exiled-v-c-fights-to-return-to-papua-new-guinea/2012196.article</a><br />
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<u>Videos 2016</u><br />
At UPNG police shot life rounds at peacefully protesting students, wounding several, and fortunately killing none. The University closed for the rest of 2016 <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdn4VlqbmC0" target="_blank">8 June 2016 UPNG students shooting</a><br />
<a href="http://bit.ly/3755pgX">http://bit.ly/3755pgX</a><br />
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At UNITECH, I was able to bring the Metropolitan Superintendent Anthony Wagambie Jr on campus to talk with the students, which prevented a riot on 8 June. Later, regrettably the students started to fight among themselves, and one student was seriously wounded, and one killed. Nevertheless, we were able to re-open the University on 31 August 2016.<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRXEBRdS1jU" target="_blank">EMTV UNITECH riot prevented</a><br />
<a href="http://bit.ly/352oiiY">http://bit.ly/352oiiY</a><br />
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Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-70232809656458989092019-10-20T15:56:00.002+02:002019-11-02T08:08:46.590+01:00The Opportunity Cost of Navel Gazing: a case study of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology - Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (5)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(Published as extract in PNG attitude "<a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/how-peter-oneill-screwed-pngs-universities.html">How Peter O'Neill screwed up PNG's universities</a>" on 23 October)<br />
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Previous blog posts in this series:<br />
Part 1 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html">A Childhood Dream. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (1)</a><br />
Part 2 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html">Employable Graduates. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (2)</a><br />
Part 3 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-student-movement-experience-of-vice.html">The Student Movement. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (3)</a><br />
Part 4 - <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-staff-organizations-experiences-of.html">The Staff Organizations. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (4)</a><br />
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<h2>
Background</h2>
Although we published earlier on the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2017/11/on-becoming-good-university-part-5.html">internationalization efforts</a> which I led as Vice Chancellor at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNGUoT), in this article we wish to give a more complete overview of how the transformative, outward-looking strategy was developed, executed, and finally discontinued and replaced by a inward looking, navel gazing approach by the current university council and management.<br />
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While as Vice Chancellor I signed over 25 agreements directly beneficial to the PNGUoT from 2014 to 2017 (3 years), in the 2 years from 2018 until today the current management has not undertaken any significant, new initiative, rather claiming my achievements as their own. Nor have they apologized for throwing me under the bus for no reason whatsoever as part of a political witchhunt against foreign Vice Chancellors, instigated by the government of Peter O'Neill<br />
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In my approach, internationalization was a cross-cutting theme across the three legs on which the University's strategy rested: first, digital technologies, and secondly successful industry parternships, and thirdly, international academic partnerships. When you can say in one sentence what your strategy is, you have something you can work with. Because my deputies refused to file extensive reports or keep an agenda, I can not always report with a high degree of certainty about the matters that were delegated to them.<br />
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By turning the clock backin 2017, the PNGUoT went back to being an organization ruled by whim and favouritism, and serving exclusively the interests of long-term staff, rather than that of the students or the country. In other words, back to how it was before I joined.<br />
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Here we will outline the opportunity cost of this navel gazing approach of not engaging widely and transparently with industry and academic partners, in terms of lack of training and education opportunities for students and staff, not carrying out joint research projects, and no longer receiving visiting lectures from leading universities in Australia, India or Europe. Opportunity costs simply mean the costs of not-doing something in terms of benefits sacrificed, because of the choice you made to do something else.<br />
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In 2012, I joined the PNGUoT after a career as professor in Latin America and Europe, and 5 years of experience as a higher education executive at some of the leading universities in Europe <a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/world-university-rankings/maastricht-university">Maastricht University</a> in the Netherlands, for example, where I served 4 years as a Director of Research Funding ranks in the top 10 in the Times Higher Education ranking of young Universities (top 200 overall), comparable to the very best Australian universities. I would bring concrete know-how on how to create a modern university, producing highly employable graduates. This must have been the University Council's intention when appointing for the first time a European Vice Chancellor, or so I thought.<br />
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In 2012, I was delighted and honoured to come to the PNGUoT to serve its wonderful students in the role of Vice Chancellor. This is never a life-time job, and I was aware I would need to work very hard to achieve notable results, which I could add to my CV. At the time, Governance reform seemed well underway, and large infrastructure investment were announced, from the ExxonMobil LNG project revenues. In 2015, my mandate was renewed, and after undergoing a first-ever performance review for a Vice Chancellor in the country at the end of 2016, the university council under chancellor Nagora Bogan expressed their full confidence in my approach and actions.<br />
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Little did I know at the time, I would be the last independently appointed Vice Chancellor in the proud history of the PNG university system, with the Peter O'Neill government taking over control of all university affairs through appointment of servile Chancellors and Vice Chancellors. With this institutional autonomy, students' voice in governance, free inquiry and academic freedom, which are all essential for maintain vibrant democracy, were abolished in favour of a Chinese state-controlled university model.<br />
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The current Chancellor Kekedo and Vice Chancellor Renagi were appointed by Peter O'Neill in 2017-8, a government that ignored the standing policy to reduce Council size and improve academic quality (see Independent Review of the PNG University System <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html">IRUS</a>), but rather passed the Higher Education Act 2014 so that it could interfere heavily in university affairs.<br />
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In the history of the country, PNG universities made immense contributions among other things to democratic development. In 2012 for example, when Peter O'Neill wanted to pass the "judicial conduct act" abolishing judges' autonomy, the UPNG student movement stopped it. At the PNGUoT, Chancellor Kekedo, DVC Renagi and Registrar Thomas and all those Council members who participated in the political witchhunt against me, are all complicit in abolishing the structure guaranteeing independent universities, freedom of inquiry and academic freedom in Papua New Guinea, only because it enhanced their own career prospects.<br />
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In order to drive his autocratic message home, and for good measure on 8 June 2016, Peter O'Neill also allowed hundreds of life rounds to be fired at peacefully demonstrating students on the UPNG campus, who were demanding he submit himself to the courts. (Today he is still refusing to do this). As a result of this incident the Student Representative Councils (SRCs) were suspended, and government intervened heavily in University Council and management appointments.<br />
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In the years after 2012, the increased investment in higher education from the LNG revenue was announced in the world press (see <a href="https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20130712171327182">University World News</a>), but never materialized with Peter O'Neill and his mates preferring to waste tax payers money in white elephant projects and vanity events in Port Moresby, such as the Pacific Games and APEC meeting.<br />
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Soon it became clear quite soon to anyone bothering to look at university finances, that the PNG Universities were not going to be fully funded by the government of Peter O'Neill: they would typically receive only half of what they should get based on the government's own estimate of costs per student. Of the half, often only 80% or less would be transferred. The transfers wouuld occur monthly with a great delay, not even quarterly. For this reason, my strategy for the PNGUoT was based on tapping into other sources of funding. Today, we can make an inventory of how all this that worked out.<br />
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The PNGUoT's game plan or strategy centred around three main themes: converting digital divide into digital advantage, building successful industry partnerships, and broadening and deepening international academic partnerships.<br />
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The intended outcome was to wean the university off the dependency on funding from the state by diversifying its sources of revenue, which incidentally in line with declared policy by all PNG governments. Like any other university, for executing this three-pronged strategy, we engaged with partners world wide, since PNG is after all a small and somewhat remote country. In order to do this, I had to engage in a massive public relations exercise, because the reputation of the PNGUoT had been destroyed by decades of mismanagement and unresponsiveness to most stakeholders.<br />
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Due to this strategy, the University would gain a degree of autonomy, and would also independently engage in signing agreements with foreign partners. Peter O'Neill strongly disliked both of these aspects. The success of this strategy is what internally caused the revolt of the envious, which eventually allowed Peter O'Neill to push me out together with the other foreign Vice Chancellor, who was pursuing similar strategic objectives.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Digital Economy and Industry 4.0</h2>
When I took over in February 2012, I found broadband internet was not available on campus. In my 3 months plan, I allotted 3 weeks to fix this problem. Little did I know it would take me 3 years, because PNG did not, and still does not have a reliable, high-speed fibre network. Evidently, this severely hampers not only the education sector, but all organizations and business for which reliable broadband internet access has today become a condition for successful operation.<br />
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In my mind, it was unacceptable that the only University of Technology in the South Pacific was trying to graduate engineers, without giving them experience in how to use the internet. In my mind, the country and the region could not afford to lose another generation of students who were unprepared for the digital economy, and play a leading role in the 4th industrial revolution or Industry 4.0 in their countries.<br />
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In 2012, all the University's traffic was routed through a tiny V-Sat dish, which barely served for email. I immediately signed a contract with Digicel so that management and all HoDs would have a smart phone, allowing them to check their emails. Secondly, we formed a special committee to assist the IT department in their strategic decision-making, since they were manifestly at a loss about what to do. Thirdly, I started to look around for alternative solutions.<br />
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In 2014, after my return from exile in Australia, it all came together. By using internal savings, we invested almost K2 million ($1 million) in building an earthstation with two moving satellited dishes which would link up with the O3B network. Through this network we were able to get much more bandwidth (up to 100 Mb/s) and much lower <a href="http://www.plugthingsin.com/internet/speed/latency/">latency</a> (higher speed). In this manner, the PNGUoT became the <a href="http://bit.ly/2JW5mLx">first University in the world</a> to have campus wide broadband internet through the O3B system.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_8ECrSSluaY/Xaxn9wrlypI/AAAAAAAAahI/xSLXahqBQrsLGM0n5nFLi3_hk4xf4AZyQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/O3B_satelites.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="320" data-original-width="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-_8ECrSSluaY/Xaxn9wrlypI/AAAAAAAAahI/xSLXahqBQrsLGM0n5nFLi3_hk4xf4AZyQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/O3B_satelites.JPG" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">O3B satellite dishes</td></tr>
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Although this was clearly a strategic decision, I chose to bring it directly to council rather than try to build consensus from bottom up. The benefits of having internet were so evident, that frankly I did not see the need to build broad consensus. In fact, the broad consensus emerged by itself later, when people started to use the internet from their offices, but also from their homes on campus for free.<br />
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Industry Partnerships</h2>
As to industry partnerships, I must admit the PNGUoT alumni played a leading role. In particular, Ernie Gangloff (at the time partner at Deloitte) and Peter Loco (GM at General Electric PNG) deeply engaged with me, and frequently came to campus to talk with staff and students.<br />
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Their main point was that PNGUoT graduates lacked essential competences to make them work ready: they only looked good on paper. The same had been found by a report done by Engineers Australia in 2010, which had conveniently been ignored by the Council at the time.<br />
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It was clear that we needed to invest in creating an adequate learning environment (internet, laboratories, library), and modernize the curriculum. We tried to build an internal consensus about starting an accreditation process for the engineering departments which would take the other departments in its wake. This was inline with the IRUS report and the institutional quality audit efforts by DHERST. At PNGUoT, I did not want one quality czar who would build up a little empire, rather the Academic Board approved in 2014 an Academic Quality Audit Team (AQAT).<br />
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The AQAT team's first task was to assure all subjects would have proper subject files so that they could be externally audited. In 2017, compliance was quite good with about 80% of subjects having such documentation. The next phase of producing a competence map for all programs, however, was not well understood and progressed much slower.<br />
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One of the most successful instrument, was the monthly industry breakfast where we would invite all potential industry partners and employers of our graduates, together with the industrial training coordinators. This informal mechanisms was very successful in the sense that the industrial training coordinators for the first time were able to learn from each others best practices, and industry representative were able to voice their concerns and found ways to be helpful.<br />
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The industry breakfast resulted in a number of great moments, unforgettable gems. One industry representative from Lae, for example, suggested that a training coordinator would come have a look at their plant. When the academic lamented that he did not have a vehicle, the industry representative immediately offered to pick him up on campus. Too easy.<br />
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Another gem, was a PNG entrepreneur, who had hired half a dozen of so graduates. After a brief introduction and expression of gratefulness, he remarked bluntly: "Vice Chancellor why is it that your graduates are unable to do anything?" Instead of excuses he got from me a big smile, and I answered: "That is exactly what I am on about".<br />
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I wonder whether anything of this exchange penetrated into the minds of the heads those complacent lecturers and heads of department, who are always talking about "nation building". If your engineers have insufficient practical competences, and you building graduates can't build, you are not contibuting to nation building.<br />
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We also formed the high-level industrial advisory board, to which the PVC Academic Dr. Moshi reported his progress on the engineering accreditation process he was supposedly leading. ExxonMobil chaired this meeting. Previously, through a former board member I had established a special relationship with this company, which signalled it could go very far in supporting the PNGUoT. In fact, I am happy to see they kept their word and the support continues.<br />
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The joint CEOs in the IAB made two things very clear. They expected:<br />
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<li>steady progress in academic quality improvement and external accreditation of engineering and other programs; and,</li>
<li>high degree of financial accountability and operational efficiency.</li>
</ol>
Regrettably, as to the first condition, PVC Academic Dr. Moshi failed to lead this process, and fell prey to the shenanigans of some senior staff and academics, who saw the accreditation process merely as an opportunity to earn a higher salary for themselves. Rather than appointing a Dean on merit, for example, they choose to appoint a high status individual who regrettably was unable to put in the work due to have suffered several strokes. A Dean who can only work 2 afternoons per week, can not lead accreditation.<br />
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From an audit we knew that NONE of the equipment in the teaching laboratories of the engineering departments was working, but Dr. Moshi was incapable of drawing up an investment plan, mobilizing support from industry, or generating funds to make the necessary investments. Without functioning laboratories it would have been impossible to obtain even provisional accreditation in 2019, as was planned.<br />
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I tried to support accreditaiton by inviting Prof. Paul Dirks, a former dean of engineering at James Cook University (JCU) and an academic who I have known for a long time, who had just led the re-accreditaiotn process. In my view, he made it very clear what needed to be done, and that a significant effort had to be devoted to the task. He even spelled out that weekly structured departmental meetings were required for more than 1 year in order to create a modern, competence based curriculum. Dr. Moshi, however, never started this work, preferring to talk rather than to act.<br />
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After receiving many complaints about Dr. Moshi's apparent cluelessness and lack of leadership, in December 2017 I intervened, and with the Industrial Advisory Board clearly established a time table for the head of the engineering department to deliver results. By that time, however, the government through the Chancellor and her accomplices had decided to start to attack me, so I was unable to carry through.<br />
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As to the second element, this was my responsibility towards the University Council but also towards the External Audit Board, chaired by the Dept. of Treasury.<br />
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ExxonMobil understood this would take some time, and from 2014 to 2016 supported the University heavily by donations in kind: a large server, a large genset, lab equipment, laptop computers etc. This played a key role in getting support for the accreditation process.<br />
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<a href="https://pnglng.com/newsroom/media-release/exxonmobil-donates-genset-to-unitech">ExxonMobil Donates GenSet</a></div>
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The donation of the server as well as the GenSet revealed tremendous weakness in the PNGUoT's internet network as well as the electricity network. As to the internet, the newly formed IT advisory committee benefitted greatly from the input from HoD Dr. Peter Kiss from the Electrical and Communication department. The ICTS department however was slow in taking up the advice, and the appointment of an HoD who turned out to be incompetent and corrupt, did not help. As always, there was no support in the HR department, however, to dismiss him.<br />
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Concerning electricity provision, this was key to everything else. I was able to make some headway, but in 2017 a hostile council and an interfering government thwarted our plans. The GenSet solution would not do, and was very costly both in terms of investments to be made for adequate control technology as well as in diesel fuel. What happened quite regularly was that on Monday the university would run out of diesel for the GenSets. By the time the cheque would finally be issued (if there was money in the kitty), and the fuel would be delivered it would be Friday. With some bad luck there would be a long power cut during the weekend, with the GenSet running continuously to power empty administrative and academic buildings. On Monday morning, the fuel would again be finished, and the same cycle would start over again.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pSZVfUz3L0I/XaxobMgiaGI/AAAAAAAAahc/bnirH2i8uZEo2qU82loQyYwE0ACd7tFGwCEwYBhgL/s1600/PNG_Power_Cut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="312" data-original-width="314" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pSZVfUz3L0I/XaxobMgiaGI/AAAAAAAAahc/bnirH2i8uZEo2qU82loQyYwE0ACd7tFGwCEwYBhgL/s1600/PNG_Power_Cut.jpg" /></a></div>
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In 2016 and 2017, I visited the University of Cambridge (UK) which has an active group of researchers focusing on Papua New Guinea in various science, social sciences and humanities departments. Many of these researchers would visit PNG regularly, and I invited them for a guest lecture to the PNGUoT.<br />
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At the economics department, I worked with a researcher to make sense of the PNGUoT staff survey, and the propensity of staff to use the wantok system as informal insurance and support (taxation) mechanism. This is a key variable when restructuring staff, and though not unique is quite typical for PNG society.<br />
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Meanwhile, I was trying to establish a degree of cooperation with the Judge Business School, and identified opportunities in executive education. Most importantly, however, was my signing of a letter of intent with a Judge Business School spin-off solar energy company. They had developed a unique technology, and the GM had direct experience of working in PNG. The idea was to make an investment of about K200,000 with a return time on investment of less than 2 years. Essentially it meant you would pay your energy bill 2 years in advance, and then the remaining life time of the project (about 20 years) would receive considerable revenue. The externalities of this project were as important as the financial benefits. By setting up a small solar array on campus, and purchasing some storage activity, the whole network with its inevitable gensets would be stabilized. The power surges and harmonic effects which were destroying all equipment would finally be a thing of the past.<br />
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To my amazement, the DVC Renagi at the time, supposedly as a physicist a proponent of renewable energy, opposed the proposal in Council. I did not know that in my absence he had signed an agreement with Mayur Resources, the infamous coal operation.<br />
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We had a chance here to end the University's power problems once and for
all by becoming a renewable energy producer, and lead the country and
region in the implementation of solar energy. We had assured the support of leading academics at UC Berkeley and Stanford to develop policy and research around our solar projects. The future
for the Pacific is solar, but a better future will now be further away.<br />
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As to the second condition set by the Industry Advisory Board CEO's, the University finances, I achieved enormous progress. In 2012, I was called by the deputy auditor general who pointed out that the PNGUoT was the only state agency with an adverse opinion, which means nobody could make any sense of the accounts.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PNGUoT received adverse opinion in 2012</td></tr>
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While we did not have a competent bursar (CFO) in 2014 and most of 2015, we worked with an external consultant who quickly sorted out a large number of issues. Among other things, he simplified the reporting system, so that finally we could produce the mandatory financial report on time.<br />
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Another key step was for me to lower the mandate of the Head of Departments (HoDs) from K5,000 to K2,000. The collusion between some HoDs and small shops in town became apparent. These shops knew that by sending invoice below K5,000 these would be approved quickly and they would fly under the radar. This game was up. When the new Bursar arrived in 2015, we were able to institute a series of other financial control mechanism. As a result in 2017, we saved over K2 million almost 20% of total operational expenses.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CI0LDYAWlyA/XaxtMR_hQcI/AAAAAAAAaiQ/vaT7YbyVWwo7jLusFOAd9AUG6GQH_t7PgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/UNITECH_2017_2016_expenses.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="615" height="238" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CI0LDYAWlyA/XaxtMR_hQcI/AAAAAAAAaiQ/vaT7YbyVWwo7jLusFOAd9AUG6GQH_t7PgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/UNITECH_2017_2016_expenses.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Annual savings after financial controls</td></tr>
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Our efforts did not go unnoticed an in 2017 for the first time in over 20 years (or maybe ever) the PNGUoT received an unqualified, clean audit report from the Auditor Generals Office. In order to correctly understand the magnitude of this achievement, at the time over the 100+ state agencies only half a dozen or so received a clean audit.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tdlJVEct2CA/Xaxtp_XuO7I/AAAAAAAAaic/ZeITRg3KOIsiSklajuG4wdtozXOVvNrTQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/0.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="646" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-tdlJVEct2CA/Xaxtp_XuO7I/AAAAAAAAaic/ZeITRg3KOIsiSklajuG4wdtozXOVvNrTQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/0.jpeg" width="215" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Clean Audit in 2017!</td></tr>
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I calculated that if the government had transferred all the funds in 2017 (which they did not), for the first time the PNGUoT would have had a balanced budget with revenue covering all expenses.<br />
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As a result of these efforts and my leadership, at the Industrial Advisory Board meeting ExxonMobil finally committed to support PNGUoT financially to the tune of K200,000+ which they <a href="http://www.looppng.com/community/k230000-unitech%E2%80%99s-engineering-dept-83179">presented</a> to the new Vice Chancellor in 2019. He did nothing for this, never attended any of the IAB meetings and has no idea what an accreditation process actually involves.<br />
<br />
In my view, this was only the first step, since the <a href="http://www.unitechpng.com/">Master Plan</a> for campus development would have generated other, new revenue streams and allow the University to generate a superavit to be invested in its aging, and obsolete infrastructure. This master plan was approved by Council, but then boycotted by Chancellor Kekedo and Council Sam Koim, who dismissed the company that had developed it, and wanted their own political appointees to be involved. As Chair of the University Development Cooperation, Koim was also instrumental in covering up the fraud of the previous University Council which cost the University over K3 million. Another tremendous opportunity cost.<br />
<br />
Other Council members too tried to subvert the Master Plan. Council Anne Wissink, for example, asked me seriously if the University could build a tailings pond for Morobe Joint Venture (where he husband work). I answered her that it would probably not be a good idea to build a similar storage of toxic waste a few hundred meters from the student dormitories. For me that was the end of it, but I suspect she did not like my answer, and soon decided to join the the political witchhunt of those who wished to push me out, damn the consequences, and no matter the damage to the reputation of the PNGUoT.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Academic Partnerships</h2>
Although academic partnerships would do little to address the PNGUoT fragile financial position, by noticeably improving academic quality at least the students would obtain direct benefits to their education. The internationalization of higher education can be defined as “<i>the development and implementation process of policy and programs to include the international, intercultural and global dimensions for the purposes and functions of higher education</i>” (Knight 2003, p. 2).<br />
<br />
Although internationalization of higher education includes a large number of activities, commonly they are divided into cross-border activities versus internationalization at home. As to the cross border activities these are implemented through three primary modes of internationalization: development assistance projects (vertical cooperation); exchanges, linkages, and mutually beneficial initiatives (horizontal cooperation); and commercial and market-driven ventures. Internationalization at home, focuses primarily on creating a modern, state of the art curriculum according to international best-practices and standards. It also includes, joint or double degrees, foreign language education, virtual cross-border cooperation through the internet.<br />
<br />
The PNGUoT had a number of successful academic partnerships before I came, mainly with Australian universities (CSU, JCU and QUT). With CSU, I renewed the standing MoU and we decided to submit joint research project with ACIAR and invite students through the new Colombo Plan. Since the Agriculture Department is driving this relationship without the university management being involved, these activities fortunately continue. We also started a new academic partnership with Curtin University. All these arrangements were negotiated in detail, and put on paper in signed Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs)<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dJZkz-SPvb0/Xa1fzIJgEUI/AAAAAAAAajc/TYS_DxdTJWcYJIMz9-Oh9bSawZ8DB5UVACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Colombo_plan_Dylan.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="587" data-original-width="680" height="276" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-dJZkz-SPvb0/Xa1fzIJgEUI/AAAAAAAAajc/TYS_DxdTJWcYJIMz9-Oh9bSawZ8DB5UVACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Colombo_plan_Dylan.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Colombo Plan visiting student from CSU</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
As to new partnership, with the generous support of Trukai we were able to sign 12 agreements with Indian universities and funding organizations. From 2014 to 2016, for instance, through the Indian Council of
Cultural Relations (ICCR), for example, we received a management professor for 2
semesters, who was extremely effective and helpful in modernizing the
curriculum. The same department, also received an accounting professor,
from the University of Sydney no less, although there was not embedded
in a wider framework of cooperation.<br />
<br />
During my annual
leave in Europe, I tried to establish academic partnership there as well. This was done
obviously to avoid having to travel twice to Europe, and is allowed by the standing rules and procedures. It proved to be
difficult, however, since in Europe many universities already have established international
networks, and are not interested in the Pacific region. Nevertheless,
we were able to sign a partnership agreement with the Budapest
University of Technology and Economics (BUTE), the oldest University of
Technology in the world.<br />
<br />
As a result of my efforts, we hosted an
external assessor for the applied physics department. His findings
regarding the content of the curriculum and its delivery were quite
critical. However regarding the exam papers of the students, he told me
some of the best paper were exemplary, and he copied a number of answer
from the students to show as examples at his home university. This is
how good PNG students can be, but regrettably so much talent is wasted
by the refusal to modernize the curriculum and update teaching
practices.<br />
<br />
With the support of the Indian High
Commissioner Chandra, and the hard work of Prof. Gopalakrishnan (who had been delegated with implementing PNGUoT's India policy), we found the Indian Council for Cultural Relations
willing and able to provide more than two scholarships for PNGUoT young
graduates to pursue their Masters and Doctorate in India. The advantage
is that unlike for Australia and New Zealand, in India the visa for the Masters
program can simply be extended, without a need to return home.<br />
<br />
With
the Indian Council for Agricultural Resource we were able to sign an
agreement that would have allowed a dozen or so visiting scientist to
visit the PNGUoT from 2018 onwards. After 7 years of negotiation we
signed an agreement to make the PNGUoT re-seller of the famous Indira
Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) programs. These negotiations started
before I became Vice Chancellor in 2011, and will be signed by IGNOU after I had
left on 18 April 2018. In Fiji, with the University of the South Pacific
we were able to sign an agreement which would allow the delivery of a
world-class, AMBA (Association of MBA's) accredited program. The current
Executive MBA programs offered by the PNGUoT and UPNG are sub-standard
and financially not sustainable.<br />
<br />
Regrettably, the
current PNGUoT management continues to navel gaze and is not giving follow
through to any of these agreements with clear financial benefits for the
PNGUoT, or can even be bothered to respond to the correspondence. They
are only interested in traveling to Australia, where they talk a lot,
but nothing is agreed or signed.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
</h2>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Facts on Effort and Results</h2>
In PNG in he topsy-turvy PNG world of systemic corruption, those who work hard and achieve results are sidelined, because they cause envy among their colleagues, and make them look bad.<br />
<br />
Here is an overview of my efforts and results as Vice Chancellor, based on my carefully kept agenda. This was all published earlier on my official Facebook page in 2018 for full disclosure as a response to all the slanderous lies spread about me by Chancellor Kekedo, Registrar Veronica Thomas, Dep. Registrar Nancy Laena, Council Sam Koim and DVC Ora Renagi for reasons only known to themselves. They never withdrew these lies from the internet, or apologized to me and my family for the damage they did.<br />
<br />
Most importantly, we managed to establish the tradition of shared and
dual governance, and involve students and faculty in the governance of
the University, in accordance with the University Act. It is evident that I scheduled my work well, so that on average I could chair 60+ meetings.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg8JaRiaQT8/Xaxo69r5XLI/AAAAAAAAaho/fVM6x7_1R-cY1OfIOWonDhB-ZoaehCSkQCEwYBhgL/s1600/VC_workload.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="646" height="214" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Wg8JaRiaQT8/Xaxo69r5XLI/AAAAAAAAaho/fVM6x7_1R-cY1OfIOWonDhB-ZoaehCSkQCEwYBhgL/s320/VC_workload.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Hard work</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
On average I travelled about 27% or a quarter of my work days, which is unavoidable for a Vice Chancellor. After all, you can not sign agreements remotely. Universities, are after all internationally organizations and its standards and best-practices are determined internationally. My annual travel and representation expenses were minimal compared to the benefits, and compared to the money my policies actually saved the university.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmFmvr0kEys/Xax4XDl6mcI/AAAAAAAAajA/Jd6Ih2peAHc2f3Y_BAge_MRGN1kQi3_KQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Screenshot_2019-10-20_17-07-37.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="397" data-original-width="980" height="129" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BmFmvr0kEys/Xax4XDl6mcI/AAAAAAAAajA/Jd6Ih2peAHc2f3Y_BAge_MRGN1kQi3_KQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Screenshot_2019-10-20_17-07-37.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Time in PNG: 60%, travel 30% leave 10%</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
With my international travel I managed to sign about 29% new agreements all beneficial to the University. As a result, from 2014 to 2017 we managed to send about 77 lecturers abroad for further study or higher degrees, about 50% of the eligible members of staff. As you can see, my activities in 2017 where similar to those in 2015 and 2016. Since I got my performance review at the end of 2016, and I did not receive any feedback on my internationalisation strategy, it is clear that the objections raised in 2017 where purely politically motivated.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-99o200U4-wo/Xaxst4orA8I/AAAAAAAAaiI/YHgKy4dbl1AKKuILR3rEKkL-aWktESspwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Results_internationalisation.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="307" data-original-width="972" height="201" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-99o200U4-wo/Xaxst4orA8I/AAAAAAAAaiI/YHgKy4dbl1AKKuILR3rEKkL-aWktESspwCNcBGAsYHQ/s640/Results_internationalisation.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staff and Student Mobility from Internationalization Efforts</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
It is also clear that in terms of opportunities for lecturers to update their skills, or obtain a higher degree necessary for their promotion, a lot changed during my tenure. Regrettably, because my second term was cut short, I did not have enough time to massively open opportunities for young graduates to do their Masters degree abroad. Since the current management tends to see a scholarship as something for a high status, senior individual, it is doubtful young PNGUoT graduates will ever be offered similar opportunities.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Final Remarks</h2>
Some may be surprised about the width and depth of international partnerships and cooperation, I was able to develop in only a few years. This came about only throught hard work, while on campus and while on business travel. I guess it is the kind of work I do well, because of my international background and diplomatic skills.Council members should learn nothing new since all these activities were extensively reported to them each council meeting, if they bother to read my reports.<br />
<br />
Council approved the strategy structure in 2016, including the internationalization efforts. All members of SEMT and senior staff knew about all my activities, which were also communicated to them while I chaired over 60 meetings per year.<br />
<br />
Contrary to Chancellor Kekedo's beliefs, a Vice Chancellor from Papua New Guinea as legal representative needs to negotiate agreements in person and needs to be present to sign. There are very few foreign partners who want to travel to Lae, because of security concerns.<br />
<br />
As to travel, it took a great deal of energy and came at the expense of my social life and health. I had imposed the discipline upon myself before every mission away from Lae to state my objectives, upon which the Registrar and Bursar would approve an advance in my travel expenses. After returning I would file an extensive mission report as a condition to receive the balance of the expenses. <br />
<br />
Now that provisional accreditation of the engineering programs has NOT been achieved this year nor the next, most stakeholders are realizing how incompetent and lazy the current management of the PNGUoT is. It is such a shame that the results of all my hard work, leveraging my professional network, will no longer benefit the students and staff of the long-suffering PNGUoT.<br />
<br />
Comfortable navel gazing has replaced successful engagement with external stakeholders in industry and academia. Although the current management manifestly does not have the ability to negotiate or sign strategic, new agreements with industry and academic partners, the least they could do is to follow through on the existing ones. Even this they can't be bother to do.<br />
<br />
After all, for them the status and perks that come with the job is all that matters, not what they actually do, or achieve. Consumed by their preocupation with status, and trying to hold on to their position eternally or pass it on to their children, they forget about the most important thing for a university: to provide a positive learning experience for its students and produce employable, work-ready graduates. <br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
References</h2>
Knight, J. 2003. “Updated Internationalization Definition.” International Higher<br />
Education (Boston College)<br />
<br />
<br />
<h2>
Annex 1: List of 30 Agreements Signed or Renewed 2012-17</h2>
<ol>
<li><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xuyUBX_rZCQ/XaxngKVNJTI/AAAAAAAAahA/7prBC-f5CPkst_3c0ZwPGyZReffR1smwACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/USardar_Patel_Ester.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="180" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-xuyUBX_rZCQ/XaxngKVNJTI/AAAAAAAAahA/7prBC-f5CPkst_3c0ZwPGyZReffR1smwACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/USardar_Patel_Ester.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PNG Masters student at Sardar Patel University</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<u><u>Australia</u></u></li>
</ol>
<ol style="text-align: left;">
<li>2014: Queensland University of Technology - tuition waiver for 2 PhD positions per year (negotiated and signed) </li>
<li>2014: James Cook University - general agreement (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2017:
Charles Sturt University - well established partnership driven by
PNGUoT Agriculture Dept. Renewal including joint research projects (renewed)</li>
<li>2017: Curtin University - tuition waiver for council medal winners (negotiated and signed)<br /><u><br />China</u></li>
<li>2015: Hebei University - recuirement for possible creation of Confucius Institute (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2015: Chonquin University - recuirement for possible creation of Confucius Institute (negotiated and signed)<br /><br /> <u>Europe</u></li>
<li>2012: European Commission's Erasmus Mundus CARPIMS - student and staff mobility for higher degree studies (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2012: European Commission's Erasmus Mundus BULA - student and staff mobility for higher degree studies (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2012: European Commission's Erasmus Mundus Dream_ACP - student and staff mobility for higher degree studies (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2014: European Commission's Erasmus Mundus Erasmus Plus Mobile+2 - student and staff mobility (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2014: European Commission's Erasmus Mundus KA107 projects - student and staff mobility (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2015: Association of Commonwealth Univeristies (Stellenbosch South Africa) - participation in Annual General Meeting, assured scholarship for ACU Masters student at PNGUoT (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2015: Magna Charta Universitatum - membership of prestigeous university association led by the University of Bologna, the oldest University in the world (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2016: Budapest University of Technology and Economics (BUTE) - Hungarian scholarships for PNG students, visiting Faculty (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2017: Cambridge Energy Partners - intent to build small solar power plant<u> </u><br />(negotiated and signed)<u><br /><br />Fiji </u></li>
<li>2012: Pacific Islands Universities Research Network (PIURN) - network membership access to scholarships and research grants (negotiated and signed)</li>
<li>2017: University of South Pacific - Graduate school of Business for delivery in PNG of AMBA accredited MBA program (negotiated and signed)<u><br /><br />Indian Funding organizations:</u></li>
<li>2016 Indian Council of Cultural Relations - 2 and possibly 4 full scholarship for PNG students (negotiated and signed 11 December 2015)</li>
<li>2018: Indian Council for Agricultural Relations - 12 visiting scientists (negotiated and signed 3 January 2018)<br /><br /><u>Indian Universities</u>:</li>
<li>2015: Tamil Nadu Agricultural University - joint rice research (negotiated and signed 19 February 2015)</li>
<li>2015: Sardar Patel University - access to scholarships (negotiated and signed 14 December 2015)</li>
<li>2017: Anna University - access to scholarships (negotiated and signed 23 December 2017) </li>
<li>2018: Gujarat Forensic Sciences University - training for security officers</li>
<li>2018: Indian Institute of Technology – Gandhinagar Masters and PhD scholarship for PNGUoT graduate (negotiated and signed 10 January 2018)</li>
<li>2018: Maharana Prata University of Agriculture and Technology - student and staff mobility (negotiated and signed 7 January 2018)</li>
<li>2018: Indian Institute of Technology - Gandhinagar - joint research, scholarships for PNGUoT students and staff (negotiated and signed 10 January 2018) </li>
<li>2018: Indira Gandhi National Open University - reselling all their programs in PNG (negotiated to be signed by IGNOU Vice Chancellor and Minister)<u><br /><br />Papua New Guinea</u></li>
<li>2012: National Agricultural Research Institute - renewable long-term partnership with the PNGUoT Agriculture department (renewed)</li>
<li>2015: Divine Word University - joint degree programs and student exchange<u> </u><br />(negotiated and signed 2 March 2015)<u><br /><br />Japan</u></li>
<li>2015: Akita Universty - student and staff mobility</li>
</ol>
<ol>
<li><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DmKwabRIy1w/XaxopOzvtkI/AAAAAAAAahc/0yeEekJo2JAUjoucSQlgSYnSVXngnq1fQCEwYBhgL/s1600/UNITECH_NARI.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="169" data-original-width="298" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-DmKwabRIy1w/XaxopOzvtkI/AAAAAAAAahc/0yeEekJo2JAUjoucSQlgSYnSVXngnq1fQCEwYBhgL/s1600/UNITECH_NARI.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><ol>
<li>Signing NARI agreement</li>
</ol>
</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody></tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-96kMRzDvf_s/XaxxMtFs8QI/AAAAAAAAaio/pbJN4eQWu9c6lXarKPoBR-t5lgIq7xtgQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/DWU1.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-96kMRzDvf_s/XaxxMtFs8QI/AAAAAAAAaio/pbJN4eQWu9c6lXarKPoBR-t5lgIq7xtgQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/DWU1.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signing DWU agreement</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</li>
</ol>
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br /></div>
Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-69190613406900003942019-10-15T09:22:00.003+02:002021-06-23T11:32:24.893+02:00The Disastrous Legacy of the Peter O'Neill's Years<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: left;">(A summary of this article was published on the PNG Attitude blog: <a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/how-peter-oneill-screwed-pngs-universities.html">https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/how-peter-oneill-screwed-pngs-universities.html</a>)</div><h2 style="text-align: left;">Introduction</h2>On Friday, 11 October 2020 apparently another arrest warrant for Peter O'Neill, the former Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea (PNG), was issued,
which caught him by surprise. Since then, he has locked himself up in the
Crown Plaza hotel in the capital, refusing to cooperate with the courts. The latest is that he got bail but also restraining order. Surprise, surprise. It is Ali Baba abandoned by his 40 robbers, who are all now conveniently trying to hide their complicity or participation in his crimes. Meanwhile, Peter O'Neill will again use his expensive Australian lawyers to confuse the police and stay out of jail.<br />
<br />
When I was Vice-Chancellor of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (short: UNITECH) from 2012 to 2018, I met Peter O'Neill only a few times and always in passing. During these meetings, I tried to convey that I came to Papua New Guinea only to contribute to University development and was not at all interested in politics, Pacific Games, APEC or any other of the white elephants he loved to herd.<br /><br /><h2>My Role as Vice-Chancellor </h2>According to the Council of Europe, which consists of 47 European countries, in a democracy a University has four essential roles, which define its purpose and relevance:<br /><ul><li>to create and maintain a body of knowledge useful for society, </li><li>to assure sustainable employment for its graduates, </li><li>to contribute to their personal development and leadership potential, and </li><li>to promote active citizenship</li></ul>In Papua New Guinea universities were conceived to fulfill all these roles. This was however not the view of Peter O'Neill's regime. In fact, they enacted the Higher Education Act of 2014, of which the only purpose is to gain political control over the universities by making the government the appointing authority of the Chancellor and Vice-Chancellor, contrary to the University Acts, current practice, <br /><br />As per the Papua New Guinea University of Technology Act 1986, the main responsibility of the Vice-Chancellor is to uphold the provisions of the Act, its status and by-laws (including the SRC constitution), which codify important principles such as shared governance - or rule by committees representing a community of scholars -, and dual governance between a corporate and an academic Council, as well as institutional autonomy. This governance structure exists to protect academic freedom and therefore support the quality of democratic debate in society.<br /><br />In 2012 and 2013 I had had my run-ins with Peter O'Neill's government, in particular with the scoundrel Minister of Higher Education. I never criticized any Minister, but this case was so extreme I could not keep silent. He set the bar so low that all his successors were much better. His name best be forgotten. In the end, however, the University Council with support from the staff organizations and the SRC decided I needed to return to exercise my profession, which occurred on 4 April 2014.<br /><br />Because of this episode, my political enemies have always tried to paint me as somebody using student power against the government. How an educator would ask students to forsake their only opportunity to get a higher education, for getting involved in issues that a responsible government or university council should have solved, is beyond me. I have my integrity as an academic, and if I had wanted to enter politics of any kind, I would have done so a long time ago.<br /><br />The truth is, I have never done told the students privately or publicly to boycott classes or undertake any such action. How could I? My adversaries were always looking for an opportunity to catch me, and I therefore rightly feared entrapment. I never took the bait, and never said publicly or privately that I supported a class boycott or any other political protest. I believe the adults in the government and university council should solve the issues, without the students wasting their precious time and forsaking their education.<br /><br /><h2 style="text-align: left;">Corruption and the Magically Shrinking Economy</h2>
Peter O'Neill loved to talk big, steal big and then lie about it to cover it up. The only purpose of the large events such as Pacific Games or APEC, was to assure sufficient kick-backs on the building contracts for the infrastructure, which inevitably had to be built for the occasion in Port Moresby. Afterwards the management of the events was so weak, that an all-you-can-steal buffet occurred for him and his associates. Evidently in the process he wrecked the economy, with economic growth for the non-mining sectors declining every single year from 2012 to 2018 when he was in power.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MMqoEtiU1RU/XaVuYhQjlXI/AAAAAAAAafY/ZLSf23lj1ZkoPlbrIkRIV_8PqgFchZw3ACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="600" height="184" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-MMqoEtiU1RU/XaVuYhQjlXI/AAAAAAAAafY/ZLSf23lj1ZkoPlbrIkRIV_8PqgFchZw3ACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">From: <a href="https://devpolicy.org/pngs-faltering-economic-recovery-20190808/">https://devpolicy.org/pngs-faltering-economic-recovery-20190808/</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
I am sure he was not happy when I pointed out in a <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2015/12/papua-new-guinea-failing-to-develop-or_5.html">lecture</a> at James Cook University the in order to achieve the goals of Vision 2050 economic growth must be kept above 5%, a goal he never achieved.<br />
<br />
Who can forget how Peter O'Neill literally barged into the supreme court and took power in 2012? How he rigged the 2017 elections? How he tried to curtail the judges by proposing a ludicrous "Judicial Conduct Act", and how this was only stopped by a protest of the UPNG students? His regime was never legitimate and a total disgrace.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--gyAV97jrFU/XaVxItzybFI/AAAAAAAAafk/8kazgr32iboAOheK0nSIzw1eGKpuevRyACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/ONeill_coming_to_power.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="212" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/--gyAV97jrFU/XaVxItzybFI/AAAAAAAAafk/8kazgr32iboAOheK0nSIzw1eGKpuevRyACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/ONeill_coming_to_power.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Peter O'Neill become PM by storming the supreme court</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
I am afraid I was unsuccessful in convincing Peter O'Neill of my intentions not to be involved in PNG politics. In his paranoia before APEC decided to get me, as well as the other foreign Vice Chancellor, <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/01/my-wrongful-dismissal-malicious.html">dismissed</a> and in my case arrested. Corruption has a way of turning things upside down: the guilty roam around freely, and the innocent go to jail. My accusers, in the courts and in the newspapers, all loyal to Peter O'Neill - Ralph Saulep, Dr. Ora Renagi, Veronica Thomas, Jean Kekedo and Sam Koim - continue to spread lies and found a willing ear in the O'Neill government. They never apologized or took down the published allegations. Needless to say, all allegations in my regard were thrown out by the courts for lack of any evidence.<br />
<br />
The last time I saw Peter O'Neill at the end of 2017, he insisted that I should "keep the students out of politics". Although I do not share this idea (see below), I assured him that we would revise the SRC constitution in order to introduce some checks and balances, which would make it harder for students to call an indefinite boycott every time they saw something they did not like in the university administration or the government.<br />
<br />
After all, nobody including the students wants to prolong the boycott culture. Of the 6 years I spent in PNG, there was only 1 year in 2015 that there was not a class boycott at the universities, often lasting 2 weeks or longer. As a result, many students dropped out and missed their only chance to get a higher education. Evidently, he did not share my approach, deciding instead to suspend the SRCs, in the case of UNITECH indefinitely. That is not a sensible approach.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rSDJLkffJkk/XaVyLug7dNI/AAAAAAAAafw/G6AJ0B65T-8e_9SPTUUAlhWgqcgnzjKAQCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/DSC05880.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-rSDJLkffJkk/XaVyLug7dNI/AAAAAAAAafw/G6AJ0B65T-8e_9SPTUUAlhWgqcgnzjKAQCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/DSC05880.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Countless boycotts of classes by university students</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
The 2015 Allegations regarding Peter O'Neill</h2>
To be frank, there were so many serious and substantiated allegations made in his regard, I forgot which is which. Nevertheless, O'Neill always managed NOT to submit himself to any interrogation by having a lawyer deft at finding any legal loophole and delay possible, and by appointing a loyal Chief Commissioner of Police, who would simply not carry out an arrest warrant. No need to remember their names either.<br />
<br />
The students at the main universities University of Papua New Guinea (UPNG) in the capital and UNITECH in Lae, were indignant about this state of affairs. From May 2016 started a class boycott demanding Peter O'Neill submit himself to justice. We forget that many students are sons and daughters of the ruling political class, and know very well what is going on.<br />
<br />
Of course, at the time most in the UNITECH Council and management sympathized with the students. We were however also aware that an arrest was not going to happen, and we cautioned the students in this sense. At UNITECH we took the line that this was a national issue and that as long as the students followed the constitution of the Student Representative Council they had a right to boycott.<br />
<br />
This approach allowed us at UNITECH to slowly coax the students back to the lecture rooms. It did not help that Peter O'Neill decided on 8 June 2016 to have the task force shoot hundreds of life rounds at peacefully protesting students. At first, it was rumoured one student was killed, which fortunately proved to be untrue. Several were wounded, and the student leaders were never rehabilitated.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qo0xVCXWtwM/XaV05S1E4DI/AAAAAAAAagA/TD2hHonLN9kp17aDj8YE7iFZfOILAyaMgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/StopShooting_PNG_students.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="226" data-original-width="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Qo0xVCXWtwM/XaV05S1E4DI/AAAAAAAAagA/TD2hHonLN9kp17aDj8YE7iFZfOILAyaMgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/StopShooting_PNG_students.jpg" /></a></div>
<br />
At UNITECH the students immediately responded, but thanks to the quick and peaceful intervention of the MetSup <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRXEBRdS1jU">Anthony Wagambie Jr.</a>, we convinced them to stay on campus and not to march town.<br />
<br />
Afterwards when outsiders instigated conflict among the students at UNITECH, the situation got out of hand. The afternoon of 13th of June 2016 one group seriously wounded one student after an SRC forum, and on the night of the 25th of June one group butchered a student from the other group in an act of apparent revenge. On this last night, previously expelled students and other outsiders joined a delirious mob in setting fire to University buildings, and only by the quick intervention of the Chief Security Officer Alex Warren was the administration building spared. Four buildings however were lost to arsonists. Mr.. Warren transformed the UNITECH security forces, but to no avail. He has since left the university tired of the harassment by the management and senior staff, and lack of support for creating an effective security force.<br />
<br />
After this tragic episode, it took all my negotiating skills to convince staff to return to work, and a lot of support in particular from the national catering company iPi to re-open the dining hall. Unlike UPNG, UNITECH was able to open its gates again on 31 August 2016 and finish the academic year. This achievement nor any of my other <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2017/11/hooray-two-important-milestones-for-png.html">achievements</a> as Vice-Chancellor, however, did not stop my detractors from trying to blame me for the whole episode, and much else. In true mafia-like fashion, hoping that if you repeat a lie long enough, it magically becomes the truth.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Peter O'Neill's Legacy</h2>
Peter O'Neill loves to steal and to lie big. There are credible reports he and his associates would transfer funds abroad directly from the coffers of the Central Bank. After an independent audit of the International Monetary Fund, an international organization part of the United Nations system of which PNG is a member, the current Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey has revealed the true size of the state's debts, and in order to avoid a default on loans, has instructed all government departments to stop all operational spending for the last 3 months of the year.<br />
<br />
Because of O'Neill's thievery and lying, that is the only policy this government can carry out at this time. It will take the country years, if not decades to recover from this. We will not forget him, unfortunately.<br />
<br />
For the Papua New Guinea universities it may be too late. Their autonomy has been curtailed politically by having Peter O'Neill appoint the Chancellors and the Vice-Chancellors. In their economic autonomy as well, UNITECH was stopped in diversifying its revenue base, as was the objective of the Masterplan (<a href="http://www.pngunitech.com/">http://www.pngunitech.com</a>), initially approved by Council but never acted upon. In terms of engaging with partners and other stakeholders, no foreign visitors lecturers will come any longer for extended periods of time, and all international agreements I worked so hard for are left without execution.<br />
<br />
If in 2016, UNITECH administration building was almost burned down, because students were fighting among themselves, it is not hard to predict what will happen when they will be justifiably angry with an immobile, ineffective and deaf University administration. Maybe it is best to shut it down in any case, since it continues to fail to produce sufficiently competent employable graduates, and the current management has given up any attempt to do so, or to be held accountable for its actions.<br />
<br />
All those who knew what was going on, concluded that Peter O'Neill could
end in only in one of two ways: in jail, or in exile. This is a logical
conclusion after so many credible reports of blatant stealing,
corruption and cover-ups, and serious allegations made in his regard
since 2015.<br />
<br />
This is however not how things may play out in PNG, which has a weak judicial system and weak enforcement. My bet is that in a few weeks or months, Peter O'Neill will get special leave to receive medical treatment somewhere abroad. The man who never missed a day when in power, will suddenly use his health to stay out of jail. He will then stay abroad, never to return. I hope I am wrong because the good people of PNG deserve clarity and closure on the O'Neill years.<br />
<br />
If in this process of finding closure, all students, professionals, journalists and academics, who spoke up or stood up against Peter O'Neill could be acknowledged and rehabilitated it would be extremely helpful. For those of us abroad, if we could be rehabilitated, and would be allowed to visit the country again, our families and ourselves would be deeply grateful. We would turn into positive ambassadors of the good people of Papua New Guinea, a role we can now not publicly play.<br />
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<br />
<br />
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<br /></div>
Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-4017091847124618462019-08-31T17:45:00.001+02:002019-11-14T12:24:57.418+01:00The Staff Organizations. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (4)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
"<i>We think of politics in terms of power and who has the power. Politics is the end to which that power is put.</i>" (<a href="https://ngugiwathiongo.com/about/" target="_blank">Ngugi wa Thiong'o</a>, famous Kenyan - Kikuyu writer)<br />
<br />
<br />
Previous blog posts in this series:<br />
Part 1 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html" target="_blank">A Childhood Dream. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (1)</a><br />
Part 2 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">Employable Graduates. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (2)</a><br />
Part 3 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-student-movement-experience-of-vice.html" target="_blank">The Student Movement. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (3)</a><br />
Part 4 - <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-staff-organizations-experiences-of.html">The Staff Organizations. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (4)</a><br />
Part 5- <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-opportunity-cost-of-navel-gazing.html">The Opportunity Costs of Navel Gazing. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (5)</a> <br />
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<br />
<u>PNG Attitude Postings </u><br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>5 October 2019: <a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/there-cannot-be-peace-without-justice.html">There cannot be peace without justice</a></li>
<li>4 October 2019: <a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/pngs-odd-racialised-post-colonial-morality.html">PNG’s odd racialised post-colonial morality</a></li>
<li>3 October 2019: <a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/10/delusional-peter-oneills-calamitous-legacy-.html">Delusional O’Neill's calamitous legacy</a> </li>
<li><a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/09/corruption-maladministration-students-who-can-be-the-cleansers.html">4 September 2019: Corruption, maladministration; & students who can be cleansers</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/08/no-heroes-in-these-wasted-years-memoirs-of-a-png-vice-chancellor.html">14 August 2019: No heroes these wasted years: memoirs of a vice chancellor</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2019/06/dear-hon-james-marape-i-make-a-plea-for-an-innocent-man.html">15 June 2019: Dear Hon James Marape, I make a plea for an innocent man</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2018/03/morobe-leaders-call-on-government-to-retain-schram-as-unitech-head.html">30 March 2018: Morobe leaders call on govt to retain Schram as Unitech head</a></li>
<li>25 March 2014: <a href="https://www.pngattitude.com/2014/03/leak-of-sevua-investigation-confirms-dr-schrams-innocence.html">Leak of Sevua investigation confirms Dr Schram’s innocence</a> </li>
</ul>
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<ul style="text-align: left;">
</ul>
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Background</h2>
I want to thank my 7,000+ followers on twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook for their encouraging comments on this series, and Keith Jackson for publishing the short versions. Many of my followers are students, sponsors or relatives of students, or among the 6,000+ graduates of which I signed their degrees. Thank you all.<br />
<br />
More and more, I am convinced eventually the PNG University of Technology will eventually be transformed from a joint criminal organization, and a cesspit of greed, spite and mediocrity (as described in earlier episodes), into a true university delivering highly competent and employable graduates. It is up to us to decide whether we want this sooner, or rather in say a decade, when all current protagonists probably have passed on given their age and bad health. <br />
<br />
Before describing my experience with the university staff organization, I will make a few remarks on the economic and moral environment in which PNG universities operate. The disastrous state of the economy since Peter O'Neil took over in 2012, stimulated dishonest and opportunistic behaviour. Dishonesty in turn was further justified by exceptionalist 'logic', and the fundamental difficulty many PNGeans have that everybody is equal before the law, and rules should be applied to everyone without exception. The tribal "wantok" system seems the only system that works, and it is what many people are still most comfortable with.<br />
<br />
Since 2012, continuing misgovernment, thievery and wasteful spending put a terrible stress on society due to Peter O'Neill's callous and delusional economic policies, which only produced exclusive benefits for his cronies in Port Moresby. In 2014, for example, in some areas in the highlands there was a fully fledged famine, and at some point the World Food Program was supporting over 250,000 people with food aid. The non-payment of LNG revenues to landowners by the government, has led to a continuing civil war in Hela and Southern Highland provinces, which ironically are the provinces where the current and previous Prime Minister hail from. For UNITECH where over 50% of students are from the highlands this created a difficult operating environment. Many parents and sponsors were unable to pay the "skul fee" on time.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
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For a fair assessment of the failed economic policies of the O'Neill years, the renowned development economist Prof. Stephen Howes from <i>Australian National University</i> wrote a non-technical summary <a href="http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/news-events/all-stories/peter-oneills-eight-years-pngs-prime-minister">article</a>. Below illustrated the <a href="https://devpolicy.org/pngs-faltering-economic-recovery-20190808/">disastrous effect</a> of Peter O'Neill's economic policy as reflected in the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth figure for non-resource sector, illustrated All families and all UNITECH students felt this pain, and always a bad time for graduates to hit the job market.<br />
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<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s6CmC8j0d-8/XZXDXS-sCaI/AAAAAAAAaco/_oTO27WD18cdSxCBxr7DaOGKWMMcnt17QCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="600" height="184" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-s6CmC8j0d-8/XZXDXS-sCaI/AAAAAAAAaco/_oTO27WD18cdSxCBxr7DaOGKWMMcnt17QCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Howes_PNG-faltering-recovery_Figure-1-600x346.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">PNG Non-Resource Economic Growth 2008 to 2023 (projections)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
The last weeks, Hon. Ian Ling-Stuckey MP, the excellent treasurer of the new Marape-Stevens government, made abundantly clear how disastrous the legacy of the O'Neill government has been for PNG state finances. It is generally unwise for a country to run a 5%+ budget deficit, the different between revenue and spending. The European norm, for example is 3-4%, and these are strong economies. He has stated it is a "<a href="https://importantnewsheadlinesfortoday.com/the-true-state-of-pngs-budget-k4636-million-deficit-left-by-oneill/" target="_blank">shameful legacy</a>", his words, not mine.<br />
<br />
<br />
However, worse news is yet to come. The excessive deficit can be addressed relatively quickly by controlling expenses and improving tax collection. It will be painful, but it can be corrected within a few years. The real issue is the ballooning debt, a result of Peter' Neill running high deficits year after year, and embarking on some disastrous projects such as Pacific Games, APEC and the Oil Search share.<br />
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For those with short memories, Pacific Games was not a huge success for PNG state finances: over K1,000 million were spent on inflated building contracts with kickbacks for Peter O'Neill's associations. The same thing happened again with APEC, a forum which has long lost its diplomatic importance. The APEC meeting was to flatter PNG's new paymasters from the middle kingdom, and even that failed since no final declaration was issued, and there tangible benefits of APEC never materialized, and in any case would be dwarfed by the enormous debt (and unused Masertati's) the meeting left. Pacific Games and APEC were all about the contracts, or rather the kickbacks, in case you were wondering what their point was.<br />
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Finally, the Oil Search debacle has not led to the state taking a share in the LNG projects, but rather again a loss of again over K1,000 million. It is pathetic that there are still people who believe the O'Neill propaganda around these 3 sad episodes, and want to be taken seriously. Might makes not right, and people can not distort reality to suit their own unfounded believes. Only by acknowledging the facts can the country avoid to fall prey to a predatory and autocratic regime as the one Peter O'Neill was almost able to maintain indefinetely.<br />
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The O'Neill Administration took out high interest loans from international loan sharks, rather than from the United Nations (IMF), burdening generations to come with debt enormous repayment. The reason is that the UN poses some conditions, such as presenting truthful account. The efforts of the current Treasurer Ian Ling-Stuckey to work with the IMF to establish the facts first and get a complete audit done are a step in the right direction.<br />
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In the coming weeks, the total extent of the debt and interest payments will become clear, and it is doubtful whether the country can avoid defaulting on its debt payment. A Latin American 1980s style debt default and crash is far from imaginary.<br />
<br />
We must remember however how many people rode on the Peter O'Neill's gravy train. In fact, the Chancellor and all members of the University Councils were appointed by him, serving as recipients of political patronage and being offered an opportunity for private rent seeking. Though most in this group, so far have refrained from diverting University funds directly into their own pocket, they have done themselves and their relatives other favours. The Chancellor Kekedo accepted medical treatment abroad, for example, and so has the current Vice Chancellor for his sick daughter, who has breast cancer. Ironically, his uncle who was Minister of Health did nothing to restore the radiology ward in PNG, and still nobody receives essential radiotherapy as part of cancer treatment in PNG. The list goes on.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
PNGs Odd Racialized Post Colonial Morality</h2>
People have asked me if standing up against corruption and speaking truth to power was difficult. For me it never was. We all know what is right and what is wrong.<br />
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After 150+ years of Christian preaching PNGeans have gotten the message too: people must realise that in order to live in peace certain moral absolutes must be obeyed. Murdering is wrong. Stealing is wrong. Lying is wrong. Essential part of what is commonly called the 10 commandments. Not so hard to remember. We have two eyes to see, two ears to hear, and we can easily distinguish right from wrong. No reasons to get confused between right and wrong. <br />
<br />
Nevertheless, obeying these basic rules is proves challenging for many in the UNITECH community. Transgressions somehow become acceptable if the victim is from another group. So lying to the white man, stealing from the white man, - because in post-colonial envy fuelled thinking all white people have enjoyed "white privilege" - is OK, and widely practised. Murdering the white man is a bit risky because there may be consequences imposed by foreign powers. So many people would tell me what they thought I wanted to hear, just to turn around and tell a completely different story.<br />
<br />
The willingness to overlook transgressions or even crimes by high-status individuals in PNG is mind boggling, and part of what is called the "big man" mentality. Earlier I wrote, how the internal <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/unitech-investigation-finds-criminal.html">Sengi investigation</a>, for example, revealed how the previous Vice Chancellor Misty Baloiloi wrote a personal cheque to Mr. Gehlot - an Indian-American conman - from the infrastructure funds for about K675,000. This same episode was again brought to light by the official <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-papua-new-guinea-blogs-pngblogs.html">Sevua Investigation</a>, which lasted over 6 months and brought to light numerous criminal acts by the former University Council. As I wrote earlier, the current University Council and management are actively engaged in covering up all those crimes, and make sure nobody gets indicted. Instead they persecuted innocent students or inconvenient foreign academics.<br />
<br />
According to police investigations, there was enough prima facie direct evidence to indict him. Subsequentely, however, the Registrar Mrs. Thomas, Naomi Wilkins and others refused to sign their sworn affidavits thus successfully thwarting the indictment, until after 6 years the crime hit its statute of limitation. The oddest thing is that after I took over as Vice Chancellor, Misty Baloiloi was hired as advisor by Minister Charles Abel, who seemed entirely unconcerned that his advisor may be arrested at any moment. Big man mentality.<br />
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As a result, of the twisted morality that goes with the tribal "wantok" system, in PNG I could never trust anyone not to lie or steal. I told people often not to lie to me, or steal from me or the University, because I would find out, but this did not seem to have much impact. In fact, in the end I was betrayed by all my senior staff and "dear colleagues", and was defrauded losing over half the salary to which I was legally entitled. When the consultant finally presented his findings to Council - after the current Vice Chancellor Ora Renagi delayed the process as much as he could - , he said I had been "grossly underpaid". The consultants words, not mine.<br />
<br />
Most of my personal savings I made since 2014 were stolen by a cabal of extortionate lawyers in Port Moresby, so that I could stay out of jail and eventually flee the country. During my exile in 2013-4, I lost most of my inheritance, and subsequently in the first months of 2018 I lost most of what I had earned and saved. My family was financially ruined, and it will take me years if ever to get out of this hole.<br />
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For a foreigner it is challenging to bring about change in PNG, to make a difference, or to transform PNG institutions so that it can fulfil their intended missions, instead of exclusively serving the interests of a small group. As a result, I am proud of my achievements during my two terms as Vice Chancellor, which however could only be done while the politicians stayed out of my hair, and senior staff was too scared to betray, rebel and conspire, as they did later.<br />
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To be fair, for a PNGean it is even harder to bring about positive change, however, since he or she will inevitably be accused of nepotism, favouritism or tribalism ('wantokism'). The ensuing infighting, not bound by any rule of decency, reputation or credibility, will paralyse the institutions, and all positive changes will be reversed. It is a real dilemma.<br />
<br />
If you have a foreigner who genuinely comes to help, works in a team shoulder to shoulder, is willing to share his know-how and international network, and treats everybody with respect, don't viciously attack him or her out of spite and envy. Personally, I did nothing to deserve such a treatment, nor did my family deserve so much suffering. Chancellor Kekedo, Registrar Thomas, DVC Renagi and Council Sam Koim in their self-righteous, post-colonial anger did not seem to think so, and unhesitatingly and unapologetically threw me under the bus. Now that their bluff has been called, we did not even received an apology.<br />
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<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Staff and Students as Driving Forces for Change, or Not?</h2>
Regrettably, universities in PNG are strongly politicised, and worse so since the government through the Higher Education Act of 2014 took the power to appoint Vice Chancellor and Chancellor. In fact, I was the last Vice Chancellor independently appointed by a University council.<br />
<br />
Politics not in the sense of any principle based disagreements, but exclusively about who support who. The petty politics of inflated male ego's trumps any disagreement of principles or purpose. At University level, competence is seen as a threat, servility and obedience to political masters is key.<br />
<br />
Here is a list of major unrest at UNITECH over the last 10+ years:<br />
<ul style="text-align: left;">
<li>2007 Strike by NASA and violent repression by the police task force, leading to
budget deficit due to excessive expenses for police allowances. Class boycott. Students kidnap
Chancellor Stagg. Rule by fear.</li>
<li>2011: Student shot dead by security guards, working for the repressive management of VIce Chancellor Misty Baloiloi. More rule by fear.</li>
<li>2012: Class boycott against arbitrary dismissal of Vice Chancellor Schram. Burning of vehicle of Chancellor Stagg.</li>
<li>2013:
Class boycott. 6 months Sevua Investigation officially establishes
allegations against Schram are without basis, and he had been lawfully
appointed.</li>
<li>2014: Successful class boycot for establishing
accountable and transparent governance. New Council installed and Vice
Chancellor Schram returns from exile.</li>
<li>2015: Boycott free year. VC Schram open O3B internet installation,
23 new staff houses, sealing of campus roads and other major
infrastructure projects. Donations and support from ExxonMobil, Trukai, Newcrest of research funds, GenSet, server, laptops, lab equipment etc. </li>
<li>2016:
Class boycott demanding Prime Minister O'Neill to submit to the courts
after very serious and credible allegations of fraud and
misappropiation. After "awareness raising" in home provinces, students
start to fight among each other: one seriously wounded, one murdered. 4
buildings lost to arson, among which the dining hall. Nevertheless, we manage to re-open the university on 31 August and finish the academic year.</li>
<li>2017: Dismissal of casuals and disobedience, dishonesty and
disloyalty of senior staff and management become apparent. No more
Indian, European an Australian guest lecturers or visitors. Reversal of academic
accreditation process, end of corporate support.</li>
<li>End of 2017: Clean, unqualified audit obtained and certified by auditor general, K2.2 million or 20% savings on operational expenses. Chancellor Jean Kekedo starts witchhunt against Vice Chancellor Schram with support of Council Sam Koim, Registrar Veronica Thomas and DVC Ora Renagi: false allegations about doctorate from 2012 bizarly
revived, VC Schram signs severance agreement after Chancellor Kekedo
realises a judicial review of his attempted dismissal is feasible. </li>
<li>2018: Schram is
unlawfully
arrested for "false pretense" concerning his doctorate, when transiting to the country as a tourist. Secretary of DHERST Jan Czuba certifies his doctorate is real. Staying out of jail leads to his financial ruin. Foreign and other head of departments leave UNITECH, and key faculty
members are pressured to either serve new masters or leave. UNITECH's reputation lays in tatters, and it is unable to attract fully qualified and experienced staff and lecturers.</li>
</ul>
I am convinced I was well on the way to break the cycle of boycotts and strikes by providing true leadership, sound professional management and mechanisms for consensus seeking, so as to avoid small problems from ballooning out of proportion. The government of Peter O'Neill could not, however, set aside its distrust, and allow me to finish the job.<br />
<br />
Make no mistake, although some sections of staff and student population were actively working against me, it was not the internal forces that lead to my premature separation from UNITECH. Powerful external forces were at play. Some staff members gained traction among members of cabinet, in particular the PM Peter O'Neill, Chief Secretary Isaac Lupari, and the Ministers Foreign Affairs Rimbink Pato, National Planning Richard Maru, and Higher Education Pila Niningi. When a friend intervened on my behalf with them, and called one of these Ministers, there was only hysterical screaming on the other side "Schram has to go". This was later confirmed by a former Council members who said: "Albert there was nothing we could do, the government wanted you out". As we know, it was not only me but also the other European Vice Chancellor John Warren.<br />
<br />
At UNITECH, staff is grouped into 3 groups: non-academic, national academics, and foreign academics. Only the National Academic Staff Association has been recognised by the state as an official industrial organization. The students have the Student Representative Council established by the Act of the University, however, this has now been indefnitely suspended. No date for election of SRC executives has been set.<br />
<br />
As Vice Chancellor, one of my most important organisational innovations was to create a monthly management forum each last Friday of the month, to have a chance to informally discuss issues, and explain management decisions. This consensus creating forum has now been discontinued.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
1-National Staff Association</h3>
Non-Academic, or professional support staff, is organized in the National Staff Association (NSA) The non-academic staff face challenges in terms of their ability to organize themselves effectively. Except a few who perform "essential duties" they are forced to live in the settlements. Some of them bathe in the river, where the university discharges its partially treated sewage water. It is a truly shameful situation, but I seemed to be the only to think so. There is no support among senior staff and management to improve their dwellings in any measure. <br />
<br />
NSA members are object of arbitrary policy decisions, brow beating by the senior staff, and continual harassment by the Registry. During the monthly management forums these abuses clearly came to light. The Registrar Mrs. Veronica Thomas usually refused to come to those meetings, though she was expected to attend.<br />
<br />
Many of the officers in the Registry are incompetent, and
produce an endless stream of complaints. Some got their own jobs through favouritsm. The current CEO of Accident Investigation Commission, Dean Curry, presented a clear report to Council, outlining how the Registry needs to slim down from 24 employees to 12, and hire competent people. Until recently, in the Registry there was hardly anyone who
had enjoyed a form of tertiary education, or had any experience in human
resource management outside university. Council has chosen not to follow through on these recommendations.<br />
<br />
The Registrar Mrs. Veronica Thomas, a skilled conspirator and fear monger, believes she runs the University, and simply ignores decisions of management or Council. Council in turn is easily misled by her, and fails in its duty of supervision and duty of care.<br />
<br />
After the 2014 institutional audit, it became clear that student welfare, and overall security on campus required major overhaul. As a result we had to dismiss the corrupt Dean of Students Ian Leklek, which was a rather straightforward affair. It took however until 2016 before the Registrar was able to make her move. Similarly, the sacking of the corrupt and drunk Chief Security Officer took ages. As soon as this was done, we were able to recruit hard working and more honest replacements. After the violence on campus in 2016 we also commissioned a security review, which made specific recommendations regarding my security. They were never acted upon.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yZPQ37DvoRg/XZG7_qQJZyI/AAAAAAAAacE/853CyBh1e2c7Cy_JqVuo5qKP68gI9RKbACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Upskilling_security.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yZPQ37DvoRg/XZG7_qQJZyI/AAAAAAAAacE/853CyBh1e2c7Cy_JqVuo5qKP68gI9RKbACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Upskilling_security.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First Reserve Police officers trained</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
In particular, in the upskilling and reorganization of UNIFORCE led by CSO Alex Warren, we were able to make considerable progress. Again the Registry did everything to frustrate him, and in 2017 even managed to lower the pay for certain categories. Mr. Warren left as soon as he could and UNIFORCE was demoralized. As a result, there is one break and enter attempt each night on campus. Not a good environment to study or live for anyone, and certainly not a place lecturers with experience at world class universities, or from abroad would choose to live.<br />
<br />
In fact, in 2017 my conflict with the Registrar came to a head over the Christmas holiday, while I was on an important mission abroad signing beneficial agreements with Australian and Indian institutions, assuring more resource for the University. I was in the habit of sacrificing my Christmas holiday to seal new deals or renew agreements with Australian universities and funding organizations. I also went to India 2 times sponsored by Trukai, signing 12 agreements for UNITECH to receive support in the form of visiting lecturers and scholarship from this country.<br />
<br />
Internationalization has been a huge success. In these years, we were able to send 77 faculty members abroad to get higher degrees or receive training abroad, many through the European Erasmus Mundus program. We had one professor from India, and one professor from the University of Sydney, for example, to spend a semester at UNITECH. We had a European professor from the Budapest University ot Technology and Economics (BUTE) as academic assessor. This is the first university of technology and economics in the world, and we signed an agreement with them to continue academic cooperation. After more than 7 years of negotiations, we even managed to become the sole distributor for the famous Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) distance learning programs, a long drawn out process started before I became Vice Chancellor. None of these initiatives are now followed through.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zNOsjnWYrtA/XZG5OhrKWSI/AAAAAAAAabk/AlF94bENINwTJHasQYZ0L8mnqBV4yWqnwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/USardar_Patel_Ester.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="600" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-zNOsjnWYrtA/XZG5OhrKWSI/AAAAAAAAabk/AlF94bENINwTJHasQYZ0L8mnqBV4yWqnwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/USardar_Patel_Ester.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First PNG Master - PhD student to India Sardar Patel University</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
Over Christmas 2016-7, upon advice of Mrs. Naomi Wilkins - ironically responsible for employee relations -, and Deputy Registrar Nancy Laena, they decided put over 60 casuals off payroll, without even having the decency to notify them in writing. Most of these casuals had been employed for years, far beyond the 3 months legal term. Admittedly, in some departments casuals were used as stop-gaps for lazy or incompetent staff, but in many other departments - such as security - they played a vital role. The personnel established has never been revised, so casuals were needed in those areas where activity had augments since 1975.<br />
<br />
When I returned, there were 50 or so very angry casuals and former-employees waiting for me in the parking lot. I met them, and decided to ask them to appoint a representative and invited them for a meeting later in the afternoon in the Council room. At the negotiating table, I found out their demands were completely reasonable, so the problem was quickly solved. They wanted to receive an official notification they would not longer be employed, and until then they wanted to be paid. This problem was so easy to solve, and had been even easier to prevent in the first place. <br />
<br />
After this episode I decided that we could not afford to dismiss the Registrar and her staff, but that she herself should no longer be involved in human resource management. It was easier for me to communicate management decision to the deputy registrar responsible for human resources, and give direct instructions. It was clear the Registrar was not loyally carrying out decisions of management, and devised every possible way not to be held fo account by Council.<br />
<br />
Subsequently, we organized a meeting with Chancellor Jean Kekedo and Sam Koim, who drafted up an agreement in this sense: Mrs. Thomas would be allowed to finished her EMBA degree, and focus on the tremendous backlog of work relating to the her other responsibilities as Secretary of Council and head of student affairs. I though this was a wise decision in the interest of the University. Regretably, with Kekedo and Koim, unwittingly I let the fox in the hen house. As I wrote earlier, Kekedo is responsible for the debacle caused by slavishly following the instructions of Peter O'Neill and some of his Ministers, pushing out the foreign Vice Chancellors before the APEC meetings, so that other could jump on this gravy train. Even if you are willing to overlook her personal weakness - overt racism, no university degree, unable to express her thought coherently or in writing - viciously attacking an accomplished and honest Vice Chancellor, with a 25+ years international career as an academic and higher education executive, is not only unforgiveably, but most importantly hugely damaging for the PNG university system.<br />
<br />
From 2012 to 2019, there was one chance to transform PNG universities from joint criminal enterprises into true universities producing highly competent and employable graduates, and that chance has now disappeared forever. For UNITECH this is the responsibility of Chancellors Nagora Bogan and Jean Kekedo, who willingly allowed its governance to be politicized by Peter O'Neill and his cronies for the purpose of gaining ever more patronage and political control over the university's budgets.<br />
<br />
After the unlawful dismissal of the casuals episode, little did I know the Registar and her staff immediately plotted revenge, and started a whisper campaign against me. Although she appeared to support me, the credulous Chancellor Jean Kekedo found it all too convenient to believe these lies without any evidence, or facts to substantiate them. Kekedo was eager push me out, and appoint a more pliable Vice-Chancellor, who is not from the highlands. She has stated her disdain and disapproval for "highlanders" many times in Council, and she seems to loathe them even more than white people. Now UNITECH has to live with the results, and they are already regretting it.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
2- National Academic Staff Association</h3>
Traditionally, NASA plays a leading role representing all employees of the University. The strike of 2007, however, was violently repressed, and all NASA leaders were summarily dismissed.<br />
<br />
Despite a large group of forward looking NASA members, who supported the transformation of UNITECH from a joint criminal enterprise into a true university, I knew I could never count on NASA's unconditional support, because it could swing either way. Within NASA there is a large group of academics, who would have preferred the old regime, which had promised to appoint 4 professors per department, no matter what the qualifications or performance. There are also groups who a strongly anti-foreign, and prefer a weak Vice Chancellor they can influence.<br />
<br />
Another group has some understanding that his would be ludicrous, but often fails to find a voice. Somewhere they all believe that in a corrupt system of favoritims and wantokism they would be personally better off.<br />
<br />
Like all staff NASA members have 3 choices: resign, influence/oppose or play along. To their credit, most decided to try to use their influence and use the management forum and their membership of Council and Academic board to exert their power. This has been key for example when ending the tribal fights on campus in 2016.<br />
<br />
Regrettably, when the trumped up allegations against me surfaced again, NASA found it easier to align themselves with Council and the government, although there was not reason. It was forgotten how my administration managed to send 77 of their members abroad to pursue higher degrees or training between 2014 and 2017. The whisper campaign of the Registry evidently had had its effect. As Edmund Burke famously wrote: 'The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.' <br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
3- Non-Citizen Staff Association </h3>
The share of non-citizens faculty is less than 25%. This is relatively low, considering that in most world class universities this is 40+%. At UNITECH there is only one Australian faculty member left, who had the misfortune to marry the dishonest and conniving Mrs. Naomi Wilkins. All Australians left soon after independence, and with academic salaries in Australia being among the highest in the world, they are unlikely to come back. The other Australian passed away 2 years ago.<br />
<br />
Foreign faculty at UNITECH is mostly from the Indian subcontinent: many Bangladeshi (Muslim), Indians (Hindu and Christians, North and South) and some Pakistani occasionally. At times, they bring their fights across. Many of them use PNG as a springboard for getting a visa for Australia. Most of them are not from world class university, and have never received any training on how to teach. Some have strong accents that making them ineffective as teachers. Some already live in Australia, but are unable to get an academic job there.<br />
<br />
Regrettably, most faculty members from the Indian sub-continent are comfortable in an environment with fantastic levels of academic fraud and corruption. Some even act as enablers, and behind the scenes do the writing for the management, or write large parts of their theses. Some of those responsible for budgets even manage to get kick backs from suppliers. The are some really nasty pieces of work among them, and at the same time some of the best professors are from India and Bangladesh.<br />
<br />
Most Europeans and Americans are usually put off by the toxic organizational culture, which disregards students academic development and success. They are also unwilling to live with endemic cholera, typhoid, open TB, and mostly the dengue and deadly brain malaria. It is completely incomprehensible, for example, why there is no regular fumigation on campus to reduce the population of mosquitoes and rats.<br />
<br />
Another mayor issue is the bad quality of electricity supply and the permanent interruptions. With a company in Cambridge UK I had negotiated a special deal which would allow UNITECH to becomea power producer and would have ended the need to spend so much diesel on GenSet due to dozens of power cuts per day, some lasting several days. Staff also needs decent housing, and access to internet in order to stay in touch with the family. The University is utterly ineffective in addressing these issues, and apparently not even trying.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
4- Student Representative Council</h3>
Finally, as to the students, they can never be expected to consistently drive positive change. They are students. I have worked with students for over 25 years, and learned how to manage large student groups.The student government changes every year, so it is hard to produce any type of continuity. This is a fundamental characteristic of any true university, where students always play a role in governance.<br />
<br />
In the past PNG university students had only two real choices: not to finish, or to finish with a worthless fake degree. Some would merely come to university to network, or become student leaders, which is seen as a prelude to a political career. As we said earlier, graduating or not made little difference, since companies were
indifferent between hiring university graduates or high school diploma
holder, sometimes even preferring the latter.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RCT8H39bqmY/XZG6LBhrx-I/AAAAAAAAab4/P20icR_dyPkxfamHDE1uukBrXB_rlOMXwCNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/Staff_houses.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="400" data-original-width="600" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-RCT8H39bqmY/XZG6LBhrx-I/AAAAAAAAab4/P20icR_dyPkxfamHDE1uukBrXB_rlOMXwCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/Staff_houses.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Staff houses built by PNG company PNG Forestry Products</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
When in 2012 students were offered a third opportunity: to have better lecturers, and get a real education, most supported this transformative program. They also reaped the benefits: in 2014, 32 staff houses were built to accommodate foreign lecturers, they got internet through the O3B system, - the <a href="http://bit.ly/2JW5mLx" target="_blank">first university in the world</a> - and in general the learning environment and teaching quality showed improvements. These gains however were soon forgotten.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CfLD4pzvpsY/XZG5cSYv-KI/AAAAAAAAabo/t_Gw63-Fbk4mPKPP5uEsxUBvbqflMaQFACNcBGAsYHQ/s1600/O3B_satelites.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="400" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CfLD4pzvpsY/XZG5cSYv-KI/AAAAAAAAabo/t_Gw63-Fbk4mPKPP5uEsxUBvbqflMaQFACNcBGAsYHQ/s320/O3B_satelites.JPG" width="213" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">First University with Satellite Intenet</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
In 2016, some national faculty members and local politicans influenced them strongly, and used the divide and rule tactic. Making promises, and saying that "they would always be there for them", while foreigners inevitably leave PNG. They believed them despite all evidence, that "being there for them" did not result in any concrete support or better career prospects, and that the traditional, politically bound, corrupt university management at best produce stasis, but most likely regression and a race to the bottom.<br />
<br />
We made a concerted effort to allow Papua New Guineans to obtain a real, internationally recognized degree, and an opportunity to get a Masters. The competences commonly associated in the country with degree holders,
are in fact not part of any Bachelor program, but require a master
degree. Masters or Doctorate is not price for long serving faculty, but a necessity for young PNGeans. Since this affected the status system and went against traditional organizational culture, I faced opposition from every corner. If PNG universities ever want to end their continuing dependency on second or third rate foreign faculty, they must allow their own talented graduates to proceed quickly to a Masters and a doctorate.<br />
<br />
It is a sad comment on the weakness, futility, and fragility of the current UNITECH management and Council, that they have not put in place any arrangements yet for assure open and democratic elections of student representatives this year or the next. Truly shameful for UNITECH, the first and so far only signatory of the <a href="http://www.magna-charta.org/magna-charta-universitatum/signatory-universities/signatory-universities/#P">Magna Charta Universitatum</a> principles, which guarantees a role for students in university governance.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Final Remarks: What Next?</h2>
Despite the disastrous economic situation in the country while I was Vice Chancellor from 2012 to 2018, and the far from propitious operating environment, we were able to produce many positive changes at the University. As a public sector manager, there are so many worthy investment to choose from, but the trick is to invest strategically and in such a manner that you don't increase the deficit (which should
be zero) or increase the debt burden. During my 2 terms as Vice
Chancellor I was able to make many useful investments, simply by
controlling spending, and stopping wastage. In 2017, for example we were able to reduce
operational spending with K2.2 million, or about 20% of the total
operational budget.<br />
<br />
Before becoming Vice Chancellor, I was already an experienced and well-trained higher education executive. I had learned that groups anywhere in the world will behave opportunistically, for example, in my roles as Center Director at the School for Field Studies (USA-TCI) and Academic Director at Zuyd University (Netherlands). I have no illusions about the goodness of human nature.<br />
<br />
In describing the actions of my former colleagues in the university council management and senior staff did, , however, I realize with their asinine obstinacy, they took greed, spite and mediocrity to a whole new level. What boggles the mind at UNITECH, is how staff blinded by fear and pressured by politicians, failed to guard for their own long term interest, and let politcally motivated witchhunts and sheer madness take control over the university, to the detriment of their own positions.<br />
<br />
As I described earlier, Chancellor Jean Kekedo is functionally illeterate, and a total disgrace. She was only appointed because she has dirt on Peter O'Neill. She is responsible for the perversion of governance and the debacle with the appointment of the Vice Chancellor. Dr. Ora Renagi is a known coward and weakling, never able to take a decision independently, and always agreeing with the last person he spoke with. He is a convenient fool for Kekedo, and enjoys the political protection of Minister Puka Temu, who ironically has been equally ineffective as Peter O'Neill's minister of health. The Registrar Mrs. Veronica Thomas has done untol damage, by lying to Council about my academic credentials and other matters, filing untrue affidavits, and acting repressive and arbitrary manner towards certain groups of highland students.<br />
<br />
Now the risk for the UNITECH community is that the Marape
government will not accept the dishonesty, monumental incompetence and
total ineffectiveness the current university council and management
bring to the table, and show in all their actions and highly
questionable decisions. Why can't management provide proper internet access? Why are student dining facilities no longer compliant with health and safety regulations? Why is the quality of the food so bad? Why did the UNITECH community not stand up for
the long term interest of the university?<br />
<br />
How easy for a corrupt Prime Minister to appoint cronies and nincompoops
in university Councils and management. Everybody knew Peter O'Neill
would probably not even last until the next election in 2022, and in
fact he was set aside in 2019 after another crooked deal he did with
Total. Despite impossible odds, with Peter O'Neill being removed as Prime Minister by Parliament, we saw democracy triumph for a change. <br />
<br />
Making predictions is hard, especially about the future, as someone joked once. It seems clear however, that the cycle of student boycotts and staff strikes has not been broken. An unresponsive and calous university management, and a Council which has only political and personal interests at heart, will enevitably produce more boycotts and strikes. These may or may not lead to a change in the management or Council, as happened in the past.<br />
<br />
The alternative scenario would have been so much better for all staff and students. I would have finished my second term as Vice Chancellor, and would have produced the full range benefits stemming from a highly successful internationalization and engagement strategy.<br />
<br />
Internally, I would have brought up the healthy elements, and gotten rid of ineffective and dishonest deputies and senior staff. In fact, I was in the process of doing this, but they beat me to it. There would have been a peaceful transition, without court cases and newspaper headlines, and the reputation of the University would have been re-established nationally and internationally. By listening to self-interested voices, and unleashing a witch hunt, everybody looses. Because a few power hungry, greedy and dishonest individuals were afraid to loose their position, UNITECH's reputation is again in tatters. This is what UNITECH community has allowed to happen, and brought upon itself.<br />
<br />
As to my legal case, any hope of justice is by following the western way. I will win the Judicial Review case, and my remedy will be in damages. Many now know that this is in the millions of Kina: backpay, damages because of unlawful persecution and damages due to intentionaly defamation, based on manifestly trumped up and false allegations.<br />
<br />
The only alternative solution is the traditional PNG way. If justice is not provided by the legal system, anything can happen. PNG after all is the land of unexpected. Several generations of students fought hard for transparent and accountable university governance and improvement in the academic programs, so that these are internationally recognized. Now all these efforts have gone to waste.<br />
<br />
I learned in PNG that whether western justice or traditional justice prevails, the result is similar. There is no peace without justice, however, and the cycle of student boycotts has
not been broken. Most student leaders who stood up against the former University Council and the O'Neill government, have not found good jobs, and are either self-employed or work in small companies in remote areas.<br />
<br />
Many students have not finished their studies for standing up for accountable and transparent universit governance, and protesting against Peter O'Neill. Some have
physically and financially suffered. A large group has been kicked out by the arbitrary administration of disciplinary penalties meted out by a kangaroo court, run by the Registrar Mrs. Veronica Thomas.<br />
<br />
Some students have been arbitrarily accused of crimes by the Registrar Mrs. Veronica Thomas, and spent time in prison. In fact, much later I found out she had been actively cooperating with the police to achieve the arrest of students she did not like, and about whom she had no proof of wrongdoing whatsoever. These victims of her arbitrary actions are all still around, and some will even be coming back as students with an axe to grind. This creates a dangerous and potentially explosive situation.<br />
<br />
Personally, if I were current Council or management team member, I would be fearful, having gained my position through appointment by one of the most corrupt PM in the history of PNG, and by justifying my position on clear and apparent lies. The Marape government is unlikely to put up with this Council's dishonest shenanigans. The management and Council do not understand their lack of legitimacy and credibility as leaders, which however is clearly perceived by the majority students and many among the staff. They are just afraid to speak up yet.<br />
<br />
For 4 years, I tried to train this management team, but they have consistently refused to learn much, or anything at all. Their dishonesty, assinine obstinacy and extreme resistance to change is unmatched anywhere. As a consequence, with none of the University's problems are being solved in a sustainable and intelligent manner, frustration will again boil over, and the memories of how things improved during my two terms as Vice Chancellor become all the more salient. "Apres moi le deluge" (after me disaster) said a French king once, and that is my prediction for UNITECH in the coming years.<br />
<br />
Lesson from history were obviously not learned. The longer you postpone reform and doing justice, the more violent the reaction will be. Like the democratic revolutions in Europe in the 19th century, the only king (the Russian Czar) who refused to grant a democratic constitution, provoked a violent revolution, and in the end was murdered with his whole family.<br />
<br />
The human spirit craves for libery and justice. Both have a strange way of being unstoppable in their paths. It is not over. <br />
<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
References</h2>
Howes, Stephen (2019). Peter O’Neill’s eight years as PNG’s Prime Minister. ANU College of Asia & the Pacific. Retrieved from <a href="http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/news-events/all-stories/peter-oneills-eight-years-pngs-prime-minister">http://asiapacific.anu.edu.au/news-events/all-stories/peter-oneills-eight-years-pngs-prime-minister</a><br />
<br />
Howes, Stephen (2019). PNG’s faltering economic recovery - Devpolicy Blog from the Development Policy Centre. (2019, August 08). Retrieved from <a href="https://devpolicy.org/pngs-faltering-economic-recovery-20190808">https://devpolicy.org/pngs-faltering-economic-recovery-20190808</a><br />
<br />
"The True State of PNG’s Budget – K4,636 million deficit left by O’Neill" Papua New Guinea current news | Important News Headlines For Today - PNG. (2019, September 28). Retrieved from <a href="https://importantnewsheadlinesfortoday.com/the-true-state-of-pngs-budget-k4636-million-deficit-left-by-oneill">https://importantnewsheadlinesfortoday.com/the-true-state-of-pngs-budget-k4636-million-deficit-left-by-oneill</a><br />
<br />
UNITECH investigation finds criminal negligence in management of funds | PNGexposed Blog. (2019, October 02). Retrieved from <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/unitech-investigation-finds-criminal.html">https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/unitech-investigation-finds-criminal.html</a><br />
<br />
From Papua New Guinea Blogs: PNGBlogs Exclusive “The Sevua Report”. (2019, October 02). Retrieved from <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-papua-new-guinea-blogs-pngblogs.html">https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-papua-new-guinea-blogs-pngblogs.html</a> <br />
<br />
<br />
Here are the previous blog posts:<br />
Part 1 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html" target="_blank">A Childhood Dream. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (1)</a><br />
Part 2 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">Employable Graduates. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (2)</a><br />
Part 3 - <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-student-movement-experience-of-vice.html" target="_blank">The Student Movement. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (3)</a><br />
Part 4 - <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-staff-organizations-experiences-of.html">The Staff Organizations. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (4)</a> <br />
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Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-12471747923622549672019-08-31T14:46:00.001+02:002019-10-03T07:56:40.903+02:00The Student Movement. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (3)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<i>“Our lives are a battlefield on which is fought a continuous war between
the forces that are pledged to confirm our humanity and those
determined to dismantle it; those who strive to build a protective wall
around it, and those who wish to pull it down; those who seek to mould
it and those committed to breaking it up; those who aim to open our
eyes, to make us see the light and look to tomorrow [...] and those who
wish to lull us into closing our eyes”</i><br />
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― <a href="https://www.facebook.com/NgugiwaThiongoAuthor/posts/655133197832235:0" target="_blank">Facebook Post</a> by <span class="authorOrTitle"><a href="https://ngugiwathiongo.com/about/" target="_blank">Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o</a></span> (arguably one of Africa's greatest living writers)<br />
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(An extract of this article was published by Keith Jackson on <a href="https://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2019/09/dr-schram-moves-on-pays-tribute-to-one-of-his-finest-students.html" target="_blank">PNG Attitude</a> blog)<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
In Memoriam Mairen Manub</h2>
This words and this blog is dedicated to Mairen Manub who passed away on 8 August 2019, after a short battle with cancer in Port Moresby General hospital, which did not carry the principal medicines he needed.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NPNuFpmKTvU/XWfvR5NySqI/AAAAAAAAaW4/RS7PgaHDczkpxWDqxsE555lVloCc2nhZwCLcBGAs/s1600/Mairen.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="584" data-original-width="600" height="311" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-NPNuFpmKTvU/XWfvR5NySqI/AAAAAAAAaW4/RS7PgaHDczkpxWDqxsE555lVloCc2nhZwCLcBGAs/s320/Mairen.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mairen Manub - UNITECH student 2012-2015</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
From 2012, he was one of the legendary 'little helpers', fighting tirelessly from for access to better education, and accountable and transparent university governance.<br />
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There are so many stories about him, which we keep telling. We will never forget his wonderful personality, energy and intelligence but most of all his ability to bridge old and new, non-western and western worlds, based on shared humanity.<i> </i>We must find a way together to keep his memory alive.<i><br /></i><br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Introduction</h2>
We continue our detailed account of my experiences as vice-chancellor for two terms of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (commonly called UNITECH) from 2012 to 2018 after publishing the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html" target="_blank">first</a> ("A Childhood Dream"), and <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">second</a> ("Employable Graduates") blogposts.<br />
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My start as vice-chancellor in 2012 in Papua New Guinea was far from auspicious, and due to political conflicts in 2013 and my ban to enter the country, I spent a year in exile in Australia. A few Council member perceived their personal interests would be affected by my leadership, they started a politically motivated persecution in my regard, apparently not concerned with the long-term reputation of the University and the country, and with total disregard for logic, or their own dignity. They accused me of not having a doctorate, which is a common tactic when attachking a vice-chancellor. For some people, actively undermining authority is their favourite past time.<br />
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As a consequence in 2013, the government instituted an official investigation led by a former supreme court judge - the Sevua Report - which lasted over 6 months confirmed the legality of my appointment, and fully exonerated me of any wrong doing. It was very easy for me to defend me from these allegations, since my doctorate is demonstrably authentic.<br />
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Nevertheless, two class boycotts lasting several weeks in 2013 and 2014, and a massive student movement were required to assure a new University Council was institute, and assure my return as vice-chancellor. In a country like PNG, with 80+% of the population living in rural areas and barely educated, the students understandably feel they have to act as the "conscience of the nation", whenever grand corruption and bad government occurs. Even if there were a free press, the population can not know what is really going on.<br />
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Oddly, and totally unexpectedly, this same political witch hunt resumed in 2018. At the end of my second term in 2017, the new Chancellor Jean Kekedo and several Council members decided to publish a series of false allegations in my regard, which they had copied quite literally from the initial trumped up charges made in 2012. They did not even have the imagination to make up new ones. As a consequence, when returning home already as a tourist, I was charged and arrested for false pretense supposedly for having presented a false doctorate. In reality, my doctorate is recognized in all European Union Countries, Costa Rica and recently also in the United States. My current job is with a US based university, on army bases, so they carried out rigorous checks of my background and academic achievements.<br />
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Anybody who still believes this whole saga had anything to do with my academic credentials, my achievements as vice-chancellor, or that "Schram should prove his innocence" should familiairize him or herself with the facts. You can check the <a href="https://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972" target="_blank">official record</a> here, or you can give the renowned European University Institute a call, as some journalists did. They speak English.<br />
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When this ludicrous charge was finally dismissed by the courts in January 2019 for lack of any evidence, however, no apologies were issued in my regard, nor were the false allegations published on their internet pages taken down.For this reason, and although I do not like to assess other people's behaviour, I do not feel I need to hold back in the description of the behaviour of my former colleagues, and take their delicate sensibilities into account. Not after they have shown so much incompetence, spite and greed.<br />
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Knowing exactly what these people did, will be helpful for the younger generations to learn how politics should be about purpose, not who has what position, and access to money and resources. They will understand why institution building in PNG is so painfully slow. The small politics of over-inflated ego's and greed is what brought about the demise of UNITECH. As to their motives, I leave it to the reader to decide, and to ask them to explain themselves.<br />
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Meanwhile, my life moved on, while my former colleagues have no career and will never work anywhere else. I went back home to Italy, and exercise my old trade. Currently, work as Professor at the <i>University of Maryland University College - Europe, </i>teaching history and management course on US army bases in Northern Italy.<br />
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In last month's second <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">blog post</a>
in this series, we noted how PNG universities fall short in this sense.
They can not credibly demonstrate their graduates actually acquire
necessary and expected graduate competences. After all, the only way to
do this is by way of an international, independent professional
accreditation process. I am not optimistic the current management is supporting the engineering departments sufficiently in this effort. In the past they never did.<br />
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Any vice-chancellor can state his or her university is contributing to nation building, but if its graduates do not have the expected competences, you are not really doing this, are you? Universities should at the very least produce employable graduates, otherwise they are part of the problem, and not part of the solution. Graduates might look "good on paper" but in the end international companies hire just as many graduates straight from high school.
The labour market teaches us that PNG universities add little, or maybe even negative value.<br />
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As institutions, PNG universities in 2014 failed to comply with the 13 quality criteria of the National Quality Framework, and are not even monitoring progress towards this goal. In particular, the 10th criterium regarding security and wellness of the students, required major attention. DVC Dr. Ora Renagi was responsible for following this through, but he never did anything. Soon there will be a new audit, and I doubt the university will do much better.<br />
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In last month's post, we focused on the first key dimension of university purpose and relevance: to deliver a modern, competence focused curriculum, so that universities produce highly employable, work ready graduates. This is a technical, educational dimension.<br />
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This month we will focus on the second dimension of the purpose or relevance of universities: active citizenship, producing graduates who can be responsible leaders in democratic societies. This is a more complex dimension, which involves creating a university culture of transparency, truth seeking (rigorous distinction between falsehoods and truth), and the ability of speaking truth to power.<br />
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Evidently, if we can not root out the old mindset associated with corruption, whisper campaigns, tribal fights, political witch hunts and chief killings in universities, they will fail to produce active citizens and democratic leaders, who respect the rule of law. As my experience show, this is easier said than done.<br />
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It was the combination of a corrupt government, and greedy and selfish staff, that led to my hasty separation from UNITECH. In <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">the second blogpost in this series</a>, we saw how today negative internal dynamics at UNITECH have led again to a complete disregard for the key mission of the University of assuring students learn necessary competences in a positive learning environment. Currently, only a few staff and Council members are able to extract all benefits from the university budget and assets, at the expense of all other stakeholder who are powerless, and to the detriment of the education of the students.<br />
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Although I presented the vision and set off the process to create transparent, accountable and student-centre university, it was the leadership of others who made it possible to get things done. <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2016/01/leadership-lessons-from-unitech-saga.html" target="_blank">Elsewhere</a> I have written about the contribution of those law abiding citizens, who played a key role in the great clean up of the former Council and management. There was hope same quality leadership would be exhibit by those in charge of reconstructing the governance and transform the culture of the University. Alas, it was not to be, because it was easier to cling to the toxic, but familiar institutional politics of old.<br />
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In this third blogpost of the series, we will see how the current Council and management strongly oppose the University producing active citizens, which led to the indefinite suspension of the SRC. We will reflect on the political role of civil society in developing countries in general and the particular relevant of the student movement in the context of the creation of rule-based, inclusive institutions. Corruption in PNG is systemic and enters in almost every transaction. Students understand that they are the only group in civil society to force the government to clean up its act, and prevent them from completely destroying state institutions by appointing political cronies, ignoring constitutional rights, and the rule of law.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Systemic Corruption and Failure to Develop Inclusive Institutions</h2>
In each blogpost, I like to present a theoretical framework, which helps to interpret my experiences and stories. The book "Why Nations Fail" published in 2013 by economists Daron Acemoglu (MIT) and James Robison (U Chicago) provides a productive framework for analyzing the importance of civil society movements in the context of national development in developing countries.<br />
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It turns out that the reasons why states fail, is the failure of civil society to fight for the creation of inclusive, democratic institutions, to replace the extractive institutions, which only serve a country's elite. Country's do not only fail due to an uncontrollable spiral of violence or civil war.<br />
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The implosion of PNG is Australia's worst nightmare, as it is obsessed by fully controlling and limiting it migration inflow. Rather then preparing a military response and detailed evacuation plans, Australia would be wise if they supported civil society in the slow process of creating democratic, effective, rule-based state institutions, that are inclusive and provide services for the majority of the population.<br />
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Dacemoglu and Richardson book describes how economic prosperity depends above all on the inclusiveness of economic and political institutions. Institutions are "inclusive" when many people have a say in political decision-making, as opposed to cases where a small group of people control political institutions and are unwilling to change.<br />
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Only a functioning democratic and pluralistic state guarantees the rule of law, and avoids arbitrary application of rules, and politicization of institutions. Inclusive institutions promote economic prosperity because they provide an incentive structure that allows talents and creative ideas to be rewarded, or in other words societies were competences of graduates are valued.<br />
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Let's first observe that viable and sustainable societies are not ones frozen in time, but those that adapt to their environment and respect the decisions and preferences of it citizens. We can admire for example the achievements of the Chinese Communist Party in reducing poverty and developing the country, but it comes at the expense of having Xi Jinping proclaim himself as life-time president.<br />
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From history we know that when too much power is concentrated in the hands of a small number of people, things will turn sour pretty soon. Or as Lord Acton, a famous 19th century British diplomat said "Power tends to corrupt, but absolute power corrupts absolutely".<br />
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In Papua New Guinea corruption is systemic. The people engaged in corruption don't do this once, but they keep doing it. This leads to destruction of state institutions, which no longer try to fulfill their mission, but act in a manner to maximize bribe revenue. The costs of corruption are enormous and all infrastructure projects will cost not twice but 10 times as much as would be justifiable.<br />
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There are consequences for organizations as well. When you don't accept bribes, you are a threat to all the others. As a consequence, whole organizations, like UNITECH, start to behave like joint criminal enterprises. I never accepted or paid a bribe in my life, so it was clear that I had to fight the system constantly.<br />
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PNG has the questionable honour of being one of the top scoring countries on the Corruption Perception Index: number 138th of 175 countries (higher ranking means more corruption). Because of the lack of cash of its citizens, this corruption takes the shape of direct extraction of funds - which economists call rents - from the state in large quantities. Corruption in PNG is not about extracting small payments from the citizens, simply because they are not cash rich enough.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UMBVNU8oVd8/XWpwxPLVZ4I/AAAAAAAAaX4/AMIzRxYBeAoqjcfod7WNuji1CCUMiSVzQCLcBGAs/s1600/Impossible_Odds.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="370" data-original-width="558" height="212" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UMBVNU8oVd8/XWpwxPLVZ4I/AAAAAAAAaX4/AMIzRxYBeAoqjcfod7WNuji1CCUMiSVzQCLcBGAs/s320/Impossible_Odds.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 2014 Student Protests motto</td></tr>
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Evidently, this means state institutions, including universities, can not provide the services they are supposed to. Even in most rural areas in Africa, for example, schools have desks and chairs, but not so in many PNG rural schools. The astonishing fact in PNG is that the "elected leaders" often tradition chiefs of "big men", who extract these rents, do not even feel the need to keep up appearances and give something back to their electorate. In other corrupt countries, the population will not put up with a corrupt leader who does not give back.<br />
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Instead PNG elected traditional leaders or "big men" (there are not women in Parliament) siphon off the money and spend it abroad. They are therefore strongly committed to a strong Kina which buys them many US or Australian dollars to the detriment of for example the local exporters of coffee who gets few Kinas for the goods, which are quoted in dollars in international markets.<br />
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In a recent article in <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/11/i-will-eventually-get-killed-meet-bryan-kramer-papua-new-guineas-anti-corruption-tsar" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>, for example, Brian Kramer describes the kind of pressures people who stand up against corruption and thievery in PNG face, saying he is sure he will eventually be killed. The reasons is that there is a whole economy around corruption, which involves not millions but billions of Kina or dollars. Let's hope this won't happen, but Hon. Kramer's point is taken. If they can seriously threaten to kill an MP, what can they do with a foreigner who has no strong family alliances in the country?<br />
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For corruption to thrive, you always find a buyer (corruptor) and
seller (corruptee). The third fundamental ingredients, however, are
impunity and tolerance by the general public. You can breed this
impunity assuring no indictments are made, or the police refuses to
carry them out. Tolerance is maintained by keeping the general public
confused by launching whisper campaigns, and spreading misinformation or
slanderous lies. The complicity of the people is required, and their silence must be bought or produce by terrorizing them.<br />
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As a result of corruption, universities state
institutions will not serve the interest of the citizens but exclusively
the interests of the political class. The mafia state is born and keeps
itself alive when terrorized citizens dare not speak out. As a result of corruption, universities will not serve the students or produce employable graduates. Universities start to act as joint criminal enterprises, and genuine academics and professionals will likely be expelled, because their very existence is a threat for all the others.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
UNITECH's Un-Holy Old Regime</h2>
Before we tell the story of the four student revolutions against UNITECH's Old Regime and the Government, which supported it, we need to describe the extent of general corruption in PNG, and the toxic situation I found at UNITECH in 2012.<br />
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None of the facts mentioned here are new or unknown. The Sevua Investigation report was published in 2013, and recounts many of the episodes. Among the University staff the exploits of the old regime of Misty Baloiloi were well known, but after the violent repression of the strike in 2007, they had learned to bite their tongues. The students knew a lot too. We must not forget they are someones son or daughter, and pick up a lot of information through the extensive family and tribal networks. Not all details are always correct of what they learn in this manner, but they get the big picture right.<br />
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Both anger about the fanastic levels of corruption the government of Peter O'Neill engendered and their lack of respect for the rule of law, and the general mismanagent of UNITECH formed the root cause of students' dissatisfaction. The combination of atrocious state of the learning environment, with the generally gloomy economic situation after 2012 with high unemployment, was too much for the students and their families. The low revenue from coffee harvest in the highlands - from which more than half of the students hail - due to overvalued Kina, and the drought in 2014, which meant almost a quarter million people in the highlands were displaced and depended on food from the World Food Program. In other worse, it was so bad, there was a famine.<br />
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Focusing on UNITECH now, in 2012 when I came in as Vice Chancellor I noticed that all contracts with suppliers were biased against the university. It was well known how the Vice Chancellor Misty Baloiloi, Registrar Alan Sako, Chancellor Phillip Staff and Pro Chancellor Ralph Saulep at the time, used the funds they extracted from the University to run their mostly unsuccessful political campaigns. These strong suspicions were later confirmed by the exhaustive Sevua Investigation, and should have been referred to the police.<br />
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In my first year, therefore, I had to cancel all contracts, and find new suppliers. The first contract which I did not sign was a retainer for Misty Baloiloi for 3 months after he stood down. For this fee, he refused to offer any service to the University in return. This was blatantly to pay for his electoral campaign.<br />
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Another inflated contract for about K1 million per year, for example, was with the Assembly of God, a Pentecostal church for which Misty Baloiloi acted as reverend. The same Church has been involved in the ill-fated Jubilee University, which has raised so many issues around corruption and academic quality. This church were to host all male second and third year students about half an hour from campus, but the university was to ferry them back and forth five times per day. The rooms were tiny and inadequate, and the students always arrived late, and transport was costing another K1 million per year.<br />
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Later after my return from exile in 2014, I had to set up processes in order to assure contracts were honest, and did not contain padding for kickbacks. One of the most effective measures, for example, was to lower the financial mandates of the heads of departments and colleges so that overpriced quotes for supplies could be stopped. In this manner from 2015 onwards I achieved millions of Kina in savings, which we spent on spend on teaching resources for students and staff.<br />
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The Old Regime had completely dismantled the committee system which give staff a voice. As per the Act of the University the principle of shared governance requires decisions to be made collegially in numerous committees of Council and Academic Board. The library had a hole in the roof. There was no internet.t. None of the apparatus in the laboratories was working. It was a total shambles.<br />
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Apart from shady finances, and irregular governance, there were strange cult aspects to Misty Baloiloi rule, comparable to Papa Doc Duvalier. Papa Doc was an infamous life time president in Haiti, who had gone mad, and ruled by fear. He installed his son Baby Doc as life time president.<br />
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At UNITECH, Narayan Gehlot, an Indian-American con man, who had been appointed as Professor and Head of Electrical Engineering Department by Chancellor Phillip Stagg played a key role in assuring succession. Misty Baloiloi, had agreed with Mr. Gehlot that his son, Wayne Baloilio would obtain a Masters degree in 1 year (normally two) and a PhD in the next year. We were unable to stop the conferral of the Masters degree, but this can always be withdrawn if it can be shown he did not comply with the academic requirements. In order to stop the second part of the plan from happening, however, the Academic Board, which I chaired, cancelled the PhD program, with great protest from Chancellor Phillip Stagg.<br />
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The rot went even further. Through a foreign lecturer, I quickly became aware of another very shady affair involving Narayan Gehlot. He would organize "parties" at his house, where at a price you would be introduced to a prostitute. At these parties, Stagg, Saulep and Baloiloi were frequently present. Later we found out that Gehlot had installed video camera's in his whole house, so that he had material to extort them.<br />
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The foreign lecture had shown interest in being hooked up with one of the prostitutes, but after he gave her the money, she left. When he complained about this to Gehlot, he gave him the money back. Oddly, the lecturer concluded that Gehlot was a "real gentleman". His words not mine.<br />
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Before the Sevua Investigation team did its exhaustive report in 2014 about the abuses of the former University Council and management, we did the internal Sengi Investigation. This revealed among other things how Narayan Gehlot, an Indian-American conman got himself appointed professor and then started to extract money from the university which he shared with the Chancellor and Vice Chancellor. We strongly suspected he committed identity theft, because he never exhibited the competences of an electrical engineer. In the USA identity theft is much easier than in Europe, where all citizens have a citizen number and a birth certificate.<br />
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For 19 years under Misty Baloiloi some University Council and management team members had stolen millions from the University, but there was never any hard evidence of this. The smoking gun for Misty Baloiloi was a personal cheque for Mr. Gehlot from 2011 of about K675.000 of infrastructure PIP funds, signed by the himself, and endorsed by the Registrar Alan Sako and Bursar Jimmy Imbok at the time. Gehlot flew to the USA first class for K30,000 ("because this was cheaper " ???), and went on a shopping spree. Part of this money he used to fly to Canada (first class) to buy spy equipment which is outlawed in the USA.<br />
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I gave the excellent and factual Sengi report to David Arore, the Minister of Higher Education at the time. Minister Arore's response when he learned about this was telling: "I am a big government Minister, and even I don't get a personal cheque like that". This was not a critique, but a praise on a fellow conman. It comes as no surprise that this Minister of the Moresby Night clubs, later became intimate friends with Gehlot. It took his successor, the good Hon. Malakai Tabar almost a year to settle more than K500,000 debt that David Arore had accred at various clubs in Port Moresby. I was unfortunate that the terrible David Arore was the first of 7 Ministers of Higher Education I worked with. Or maybe it was good because the others in comparison were geniuses and angels.<br />
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Instead of taking action, Arore took it as a manual to plan further mischief, and associated himself closely with this Indian American conman in trying to get rid of me and take over the University Council. Meanwhile, I pressured the Registrar to bring the matter to attention of the police, who concluded there was sufficient <i>prima facie</i> evidence to indict the suspects. It was the Registrar then who allowed several of her staff members. such as Naomi Wilkins, to refuse to sign the affidavits, so that the investigation would stall.<br />
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Gehlot was later hired as "consultant" for PNG power, where he also underperformed. Thanks to the introductions of his friend Arore, however, he was able to socialize with key members of the government, including PM Peter O'Neill. His habit of taking compromising pictures continued, and in the end Gehlot circulating a picture of Peter O'Neill in swimming trunks, made them finally realize Gehlot is bonkers and they revoked his visa.<br />
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It comes as no surprise that it was Gehlot who compiled the infamous dossier with false allegations about my doctorate. He thought he was very clever and asked questions about every comma, logo, name etc. The Sevua Investigation had set all this material aside in 2013.<br />
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It was therefore very disappointing that Council Sam Koim in 2018 took all Gehlot's material at face value, and at some point started to send me emails threatening me with criminal cases etc. When I advised the Australian authorities about these threats, he lost all credibility and opportunity for lucrative contracts and appointments.<br />
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Another disappointment with Sam Koim was that when he took over the chairmanship of the notorious University Development and Consultancy Ltd (UDC), he failed to sort out the accounts, and take action to deal with the consequences of the corrupt land deal with Customs. Previous UDC Council and management had managed to steal over K3 million through this fake land deal.<br />
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Although Sam Koim only briefly exercised the function of Director of Task Force Sweep, and failed to achieve any major convictions, he built a reputation as "corruption fighter". In fact, he lacks court practice and he does not practice as a lawyer. When Koim was interviewed by ABC it was clear he had never tried to gather any credible, primary evidence for the trumped allegation in my regard that my doctorate was not genuine. A true corruption fighter, however, fights his cases in court transparently, based on truthful evidence, not on the basis of false allegations made up by mad man Gehlot. In a country where corruption is part of the system, it may not surprise us that a "corruption fighter" is actually covering up corruption.<br />
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Now Sam Koim has been appointed as director at the IRC - position formerly held by Sir Nagora Bogan -, so I hope he will explain to the public how he earned his living and paid taxes from 2012 to 2018 when he was unemployed, and did not practice as a lawyer. Some have said he probably worked for the Australian Security Intelligence Organization (ASIO), which would explain why he would take trips with then Minister of Foreign Affairs Julie Bishop in a private jet. It is clear that Koim is not transparent operator, and will need to explain himself.<br />
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In 2012, it was obviously the Old Regime saw me as a transient figure, and Papa Doc Misty Baloloi, was going to establish a hereditary vice-chancellorship by having Baby Doc Wayne Baloiloi take over, after I had been kicked out of the country. Meanwhile Misty Baloiloi believed he could continue to fool everybody acting as reverend, while in reality stealing from the university coffers, and leading a far from holy life-style.<br />
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From this account it is clear that UNITECH was operating as what is called a "joint criminal enterprise", meaning a conspiracy of those with access to power to extract rents and resources from the University. Because the leaders of this conspiracy, the former Vice Chancellor, the Registrar, the Bursar and the Chancellor were never indicted, it remained a possibilty that the old regime would be restored, and the stealing would resume, and this is in fact what happened.<br />
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Personally, it cost me 1 year in exile in 2013, but with the support of the students and some staff, I was able to push Chancellor Staff, Pro-Chancellor Saulep, Registrar Sako and Vice-Chancellor Baloiloi out. Little could I suspect that their replacements would only pretend to work with me on the academic quality and student employment agenda, but rather would cover for the Old Regime, and allow the statute of limitations to run out. With hindsight we can say that was their principal role.<br />
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At the end in 2018, in the period before APEC meeting, they panicked and started a whisper campaign and a political witchhunt based on falsehoods and allegations which had already been set aside by the Sevua Investigation. The dishonest Deputy Vice Chancellor was so eager to take the Vice Chancellor's place despite being eminently unsuitable and totally ineffective in all his undertaking. He could count on the support on the infamous and corrupt Puka Temu, his uncle, who continued the destruction of the health care system in PNG. The always suspicious and power hungry Prime Minister Peter O'Neill, and some of his underlings, were all too eager to believe these lies in my regard, and got me arrested and expelled, as well as the other European Vice-Chancellor Prof. John Warren at UNRE.<br />
<br />
I was arrested at the airport, my passport was taken from me, but I was not charge for about a week. When the honorary consult Stan Joyce came to protest and ask my passport back, the officer in charge fled and stayed in hiding.<br />
<br />
Eventually I was charged for "false pretense" and brought to the police jail, where I was held somewhere between the waiting room, and the places for crooked politicians. I met several young people some of whom had commited a crime, and others who were completely innocent. Since I was much older, I talked to them as a father or uncle and comforted them.<br />
<br />
Among the politicians, I met Tobias Kulang there, the son of Registrar Thomas, who had been indicted for murder. In a moment of electoral madness in Kundiawa in 2017 he shot his pistol into the crowd, and killed somebody. He had not been condemned yet, but was being held for a series of other made up charges his political opponents had filed with the police.<br />
<br />
The evening before I was taken to the police court, the prosecutor came to sollicit a bribe for "going soft on me". I of course refused, but it was clear the police court in Waigani was utterly corrupt. Fortunately, the judge in the national court was clear thinking and not corrupt, and noted that in 6 years Ralph Saulep and his people had not produced a single bit of primary evidence for false pretence. This could have been, for example, a statement from the European University Institute that there was something wrong with me or my doctoral degree. Of course, they couldn't because my degree is genuine, and I worked hard for it. In another <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/01/my-wrongful-dismissal-malicious.html" target="_blank">blogpost</a> I have quoted the judges sentence, in which he calls Sauleps allegations "ridiculous".<br />
<br />
In fact, Saulep had been thrown out of the law society numerous times. We know that he was trained in Australia as a pilot, but he is not flying either. In his case too, it is unclear how he makes a living. <br />
<br />
My early separation from UNITECH give me ample time to write my memoires, and to take steps to get an indictment for the violation of our human rights (malicious prosecution and unlawful arrest) from the European courts by the PNG police, and the UNITECH Council members (wrongful dismissal). Since the State of PNG has not been able to protect my fundamental rights (presumption of innocence), and I have exhausted all means internally to get justice, supra-national bodies can now take over.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Students Fighting & Struggling for the Nation</h2>
<br />
In the following sections, we will highlight the role of a few key student leaders, UNITECH's true and incorruptible SRC presidents Richard Mabiria (2015) Eddy Nagual (2014) and Joe Kaowai (2012). Below in the picture we can see them, when we invited them together for a lunch discussing the future of the PNG student movement. The two other members of the management team hide their displeasure behind frowns or fake smiles.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-suMDe72APT8/XWf1pSojQHI/AAAAAAAAaXQ/3nCgKxKoNDYr43rQsucxSn-KXtrMUkAVgCLcBGAs/s1600/Student_leaders.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="212" data-original-width="365" height="185" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-suMDe72APT8/XWf1pSojQHI/AAAAAAAAaXQ/3nCgKxKoNDYr43rQsucxSn-KXtrMUkAVgCLcBGAs/s320/Student_leaders.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Top row L to R: Richard Mabiria (2015), Eddy Nagual (2014), Joe Kaowai (2012)</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
UPNG SRC president Emmanuel Isaac (2012) also played an important role supporting UNITECH, and later as a practicing lawyer in keeping me out of jail when I was unlawfully arrested at Jackson's Airport in Port Moresby while on my way home. Heled the successful protest against the "judicial conduct act", another of these attempts at power abuse by Peter O'Neill.<br />
<br />
We must remember that these SRC presidents were support by a team of fellow executives who at times played an equally important role. In particular the role of the female UNITECH Vice Presidents Grace Winka (2012), Diane Mapiso (2015), and Michelle Banga (2016) played an important role in putting the voice of the female students on an equal footing with the males. Grace did work to improve the situation in the female dormitory which had become a disgrace.<br />
<br />
Michelle Banga held a speech during the SRC forum on Queen's day in 2016 urging the students to stop fighting and put their education first. After she finished, it was discovered some SHP students had come to the forum armed with bush knifes, and a fight broke out. She tried, but was unable to stop them, while SRC president David Kelma ran away.<br />
<br />
For these excellent leaders, unfortunately there were a few Livingstone Hosea (UNITECH SRC 2013) and David Kelma (UNITECH SRC 2016), who allegedly accepted cars, houses and jobs in return for betraying the student movement. Regrettably, in PNG society the corrupt ones are still doing well, while many of the true student leaders are struggling working in small companies or are self-employed. Meanwhile, the good ones suffer harassment in the work place and subsist running their own small activities, or work in remote areas.<br />
<br />
We apologize to all those civic minded UNITECH students we can not mention. Many sacrificed their only chance to get a higher education, which in PNG is your only ticket out of the village, for creating well governed, true universities that produce competent and employable graduates. To them my eternal admiration and gratitude.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
1- UNITECH's First Boycott of Classes & Revolution, 2012</h3>
In the sections above a picture emerge of a cult-like and corrupt university leadership, which had turned the university into a joint criminal enterprise. One thing people sometimes forget is that students are somebody's sons and daughters, and therefore they know what their fathers, mothers, uncles and aunties are up to.<br />
<br />
Before I came to UNITECH, the student body was thoroughly fed up with the Old Regime of Misty Baloiloi, which treated the students as the enemy, and refused to dialogue with them or anyone else for that matter. The year before a student had been shot and killed in an incident with a security guard.<br />
<br />
A few years earlier in 2007, there had been a class boycott by the students and a massive strike by the staff, which was violently repressed by the police of the task force. During the class boycott and strike of 2007, Chancellor Phillip Stagg was kidnapped for a few days.<br />
<br />
In order to stop commotion, the then Minister for Higher Education Don Polye decided to dismiss the Council. He appointed Sir Nagora Bogan as Chancellor and a few others as Council members, but they exercised their function only for a few days. Regrettably, Stagg and Saulep got a court order restraining the Minister. In 2012, they were still hiding behind this court order, refusing to vacate their seats, and getting themselves re-appointed time and again.<br />
<br />
At some point all Vice Chancellors were called for a meeting with the Chief Secretary, the late Sir Manasupe Zurenuoc. This highly intelligent man, and hard working public servant, in his inimitable way found a way to make me feel welcome. Without saying it, he also made clear he would supported me and the students in our fight to weed out the corruption at UNITECH and get rid of the Old Regime. Of all the smart, honest and hard working civil servants I met in PNG, for me he was the most impressive.<br />
<br />
At the hand-over, take-over ceremony on 7 February 2011, Chancellor Phillip Stagg held a rambling speech, half in English half in Pidgin, which I still did not understand at the time. One of the things he said was that UNITECH was a large, leaky ship, and he would try to keep it afloat. I found this rather uninspiring for an audience of eager, fresh first year students.<br />
<br />
In my speech, I referred to this ship analogy, but replaced it with an airplane en route to new and exciting destinations. Here I spoke the words "Let's make UNITECH Fly!", which later became the motto of the values campaing I led.<br />
Joe Kaowai, the SRC president spoke after me. He immediately understood the power of a positive image, and repeated many times "Let's make UNITECH Fly". Though not a great orator, Joe is extremely smart, strategic and courageous. Sadly, the Old Regime blames him and me for their demise, and he has suffered harassment in his place of work.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z0u6blAwVlQ/XWjsU8Fg7aI/AAAAAAAAaXc/G2Mt9nd3HU0l2qEDRVJZGVmEJCIsOmcYQCLcBGAs/s1600/DSCN3628.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="450" data-original-width="600" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-z0u6blAwVlQ/XWjsU8Fg7aI/AAAAAAAAaXc/G2Mt9nd3HU0l2qEDRVJZGVmEJCIsOmcYQCLcBGAs/s320/DSCN3628.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">SRC President Joe Kaowai "We will make UNITECH Fly!"</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
After the hand-over, I started to draft my plan for the first 90 days and my report to Council. At the April meeting of Council, I presented my findings about the state of the University, as I had found it in the reports which had been presented to Council earlier, and I had validated by interviewing a horizontal and vertical cross section of staff. Of course it was not pretty. Council did not like and refused to take responsibility for this state of affairs.<br />
<br />
At that point, while I was only 2 months into the job, Chancellor Phillip Stagg decided it was time to get rid of me. By that time, they also had figured their chances of winning the elections in their home districts were not very large. Registrar Alan Sako, organized a political dinner, after which he called Joe Kaowai aside, and offered him money for "staying out of Council business". Fortunately, Joe called me and said without saying it that Stagg was going to try to dismiss me. By trying to bribe the students, however, they had tipped them off, which gave the students time to spread the word.<br />
<br />
The next Monday Stagg barged into my office, but did not find me there. The next day he made an appointment and told me bluntly I was dismissed. When I asked for the ground of dismissal, he could not explain himself, but said something about me being "arrogant".<br />
<br />
What happened afterwards, I will never forget. When Stagg left the building, one student warned his mates at the main gate, and they closed it. When Stagg arrived there they did not let him through. Stagg then proceeded to the back gate, which he tried to ram. Mairen Manub, then only a first year student, was one of the students who ran after Stagg's vehicle, and told Stagg to go explain himself to the students. Stagg chose to jump over the fence and into a PMV. I called him at that point, and he seemed unphased, not knowing that his vehicle had been set on fire. The image of the burnt out vehicle quickly hit the social media, and the first UNITECH student revolution had begun.<br />
<br />
Joe Kaowai, meanwhile, kept talking with the students, urging them to keep the gates closed for their own safety. They had taken possession of all university vehicles and were driving around like crazy. The Acting CSO at the time, managed to convince them gently to give the keys back, and promised them they would be driven around by university drivers.<br />
<br />
Later, one evening, Joe called me saying he could no longer control the students. I could not really find out what was going on, and university staff advise me to wait until morning until talking with the students. This was a mistake. It turned out a few hotheads had filled up several 25 seaters with barrels of diesel fuel with the intent of setting fire to th port of Lae. Fortunately, Joe by himself stopped them at the gate and convinced them they would all be shot if they tried this.<br />
<br />
Of course there were many more students involved in this In order for me not to expose them, the code name was "little helpers". They were fanastic activists, highly effective, focused and extremely smart.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2016/01/leadership-lessons-from-unitech-saga.html" target="_blank">Elsewhere</a> I have told how a new Chancellor was appointed in November 2012, Sir Nagora Bogan, who with the help of the Attorney General at the time, Hon. Kerenga Kua engineered the appointment of a new Council and my return as vice-chancellor. Based on the Sevua Investigation, they cleared me of all baseless allegations.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
2- UNITECH's Second Boycott of Classes, 2013</h3>
The second boycott, I was already in exile, and I follow mostly through social media. The students demand was to allow me to come back as Vice Chancellor. Though I had never been legally dismissed, by not letting me into the country I was unable to lead the University.<br />
<br />
I would receive many messages, and I am sure I never asked the students to sacrifice their studies and strongly condemned any violence. I am sure of this because I did not know who was writing me, and they could easily have been people working for the other side.<br />
<br />
The boycott lasted about 3 weeks, after which SRC President 2013, Livingstone Hosea oddly called it off. Later we learned he received a house, vehicle and a job in return. He got very cross with me, when in 2014 I refused to give him the Vice Chancellor's leadership reward. He only has himself to blame.<br />
<br />
Behind the screens though he continued to undermine my authority and credibility, and apparently found a willing ear in then Minister Richard Maru. When Chancellor Jean Kekedo started to desauthorize me, and spread the gossip, Richard Maru was the first to assert his authority over the university, and start making promises. None of those of course are fulfilled until this day, and recently he was stripped of his Ministerial position for actively plotting against the new Prime Minister James Marape.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
3- UNITECH's Third Class Boycott of Classes and Revolution, 2014</h3>
During this class boycott, I was still in exile in Australia, but no the 4th of April I was able to return. Elsewhere I have reconstructed the story of this successful boycott, but I was not on campus in those days. A thorough analysis of why it was successful, I published <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/04/papua-new-guinea-blogs-why-2014-unitech.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-99GZ6W_Fmmc/XWpC0hf7taI/AAAAAAAAaXs/XS5rORFecfUyMdScLR4E4t_VMX8mnQ18QCLcBGAs/s1600/PNGBLOGS1.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="764" data-original-width="1272" height="192" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-99GZ6W_Fmmc/XWpC0hf7taI/AAAAAAAAaXs/XS5rORFecfUyMdScLR4E4t_VMX8mnQ18QCLcBGAs/s320/PNGBLOGS1.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My return after exile 4 April 2014 Mairen Manub was one of those carrying me</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
My triumphant return were my "15 minutes of fame". Nevertheless, I did not enjoy much, since I found myself completely alone rebuilding the governance and administration of the University. For this reason on 7th of May, I chose some internal candidates, who had committed to support me in transforming the University. I promised them to support their transition from the lecture room to the board room with coaching and training by external advisors.<br />
<br />
While I was in Australia, I had contacts with several lecturers who had influence with their student. There was no large organization or network, rather a series of autonomously operating cells. I had told them however that something need to be done in 2013, otherwise I would be unable to come back.<br />
<br />
Elsewhere I have recounted how the UNITECH SRC president 2014<br />
Eddy Nagual played an exemplary <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2016/01/leadership-lessons-from-unitech-saga.html" target="_blank">leadership</a> role in all this. At the time, he wanted to expand the student movement against the government, but I advised him to focus on his education. In fact, he graduated the same year.<br />
<br />
Another examplary leader among the staff was Ken Polin, who held a "one man forum" with a loud hailer, thus making students aware something fishy was going on. It all led to awesome welcome by extacti student, and a very successful academic year 2014 and 2015, without any conspiracies and political interference. My adversaries, however, would never stop.<br />
<br />
<h3 style="text-align: left;">
4- UNITECH's Fourth Boycott of Classes, 2016</h3>
In 2015, there was no class boycott, and it was by far the best years in term of having a positive learning environment. Finally, the anger was gone, and the students behaved like students again, engaged with their classes and learning activities, and having fun at the same time. The SRC 2015 President Richard Mabiria and his team, organized a large number of activities, which allowed students to developed their team working and leadership skills.<br />
<br />
In terms of my personal agenda, I was able to make good progress since in 2015 the Council supported our actions, and the politicians were not interferings. On 1st of June, for example, we opened the O3B installation, which allowed the students for the first time to experience broadband internet.<br />
<br />
In 2016, the demands of the students were for Prime Minister Peter O'Neill to present himself for the courts after serious and credible allegations had been made over corruption. This had nothing to do with the university, so we decided to stay out of it, and allow the SRC to hold a referendum, as stipulated by their constitution.<br />
<br />
As long as the teaching time lost with the class boycott could be addresed by rescheduling, it was a matter for the Academic Board. The moment there were major financial implication for allowing the University to stay open extra weeks, it became a Council matter. In the end, because of the closing down of operation after the burning down of the dining hall, Council had to get involved. Nevertheless, we managed to finish an abridged version of academic year on 31 August 2016, for which we were often praised.<br />
<br />
After the traumatic shooting of hundreds of life rounds at peacefully protesting students on the UPNG campus on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdn4VlqbmC0&t=30s" target="_blank">8 June 2016</a>, the students were successfully side tracked by the government, and their attention was diverted from the student movements' principal goals to court action at UPNG, and to tribal differences at UNITECH. The shooting incidents broke something in the social fabric of PNG: the student voice was silenced, the press had already been muzzled, who would stand up for the common people?<br />
<br />
During the class boycott, there was extensive interference from outside. University students were made to believe that their traditional leaders would assure them life time positions in the state. In particular the SRC president David Kelma, who hails from Southern Highland Province, the same as Prime Minister Peter O'Neill, pretended unconvincingly to lead the protests against the same PM. In reality, he was looking for ways to derail the whole process.<br />
<br />
The political interference consisted in threatening the Vice Chancellor of UPNG and UNITECH to take this measure or other, favouring the groups that supported the government, especially the SHP students. It also consisted in buying "bush knifes" (machetes) for those student groups favourable to the government, and taking measures against the protesting students and their sponsors who demanded Prime Minister Peter O'Neill to resign in order to submit himself to justice for very serious accusation of grand corruption.<br />
<br />
The arming of the students of course made matters much worse, and in turn let to a reaction of the protesting students. Subsequently, on the UNITECH campus led to a true tribal war on campus, in which one student was seriously wounded and one tragically died. In addition, the dining hall and 3 other buildings went up in flames, which led to temporary closure of the University.<br />
<br />
Despite being unable to prevent these tragedies, in general at UNITECH it is generally agreed, the management and Council handled the conflict - in which after all the University was not a party- as well as we possibly could. In fact, the cooperation of the Lae Metropolitan Superintendent Anthony Wagambie Jr., and good coordination with the University's Chief Security Officer Alex Warren (who since then has left UNITECH due to continuous conflict with the Registar) allowed us to have fully deployed police presence on campus a few days before the fateful night of 24 and 25 June, when violence broke out and 4 buildings were lost to fire.<br />
<br />
The same MetSup had convinced the students earlier, when they responded to the infamous shooting at peacefuly demonstrating students on the UPNG campus on 8 June 2019, to stay on the UNITECH campus to prevent worse from happening. As you can see on the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRXEBRdS1jU" target="_blank">video</a>, none of my colleauges were there when I went out to get bring him on to campus, only our executive assistant Lemuel and driver Pelly. My contuous calls - <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radio-australia/programs/pacificbeat/png-schram/10282662" target="_blank">here</a> on an ABC interview - for a full investigation into these incident, was ignored by Peter O'Neill's government.<br />
<br />
Thanks to their personal interventions, we managed to re-open the University on 31 August, and finish the academic year successfully. It is lamentable that Alex Warren, who single-handedly saved the administration building from going up in flames was forced to leave due to lack of support and continual harassment from the current university management, and in particular the Registrar Veronica Thomas, and some of her entourage.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Final Remarks</h2>
The conclusion is inescapable. They used me to clean up the corrupt mess at UNITECH, which had turned into a cult-like joint criminal enterprise. Nobody else had dared to stand up against the old regime of Phillip Stagg, Ralph Saulep and Misty Baloiloi. Then the university council threw me under the bus.<br />
<br />
The main purpose of the current
Council, management and senior staff is to reach the statute of
limitation for these crimes (6 years) to assure their former colleagues
and friends are never indicted. It is also intent on keeping students outside the governance structure, and not allow a functioning Student Representative Council. Nothing else really matters. This approach has created a toxic culture, and pushed out so many good people. By forcing foreign academics like myself out, they ruined the reputation of the University as a credible academic partner.<br />
<br />
It is clear that as an outsider, and profesional university
administrator, I came with many new ideas and initiatives. My hope was
that if out of the 20 only 15 fail, there would be 5 successful changes,
which benefit the students and the University at large, as opposed to
particular elites. This in turn would slowly transform the
organizational culture from that of a small sect, into that of a true
university. By creating a structure, and improving processes, culture
would change. It was not to be. It felt so much safer to go back to the
ways things always were done.<br />
<br />
In 2012, we had such high hopes for the Papua New Guinea University system and for UNITECH. The government had decided to reform university governance, principally by slimming down council from 32 to 12 members, and support the academic quality and employability agenda, using the funds from the LNG project. None of these things happened, because of active undermining by members of the old regime, and my colleagues still supporting the most corrupt and dishonest ones.<br />
<br />
In another <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/10/the-proposed-amendments-to-png.html" target="_blank">blogpost</a> I have warned against derailing the governance reform, with the higher education act of 2014 instead focusing on the national government control over the universities. The content of my invited <a href="https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience" target="_blank">lecture</a> at the Australian National University on 18 May 2016 gives the same message. The government's pressure made sure that nobody read and understood, or heard this message.<br />
<br />
Today we continue see a shameful spectacle of some childish members of an unreformed Council, gossipping and at odds with themselves, in the end finding it easier to destroy the universities than to build them up. They don't have to bear the burden of presenting fake degrees of pretend universities when seeking employment. The politicization of the universites is at the clear expense of the students' only.<br />
<br />
Of course, students feel cheated. One could argue that only in this field PNG universities offer competence-based training involving active learning given the almost yearly student protest against government's excesses or attacks on democratic institutions. The professional accreditation is progressing too slowly, and all the laboratoris and computers are still not operational.<br />
<br />
These annual protests engage the student body, and provide an excellent opportunity for students to learn about active citizenship. Traditionally student movement was seen as the prodiving a leadership role to other civil society actors, and in fact always provided this leadership until the O'Neill government shut it down in 2016, with full cooperation from universities councils and management. Now who is left in the country as custodians of democratic values?<br />
<br />
My calculation in 2014, however, was contingent on the assumption that my leadership team was committed to putting the University on a financially sustainble footing, assuring its graduates were employable, and in general creating a rule-based, mission focused organization. I was wrong.<br />
<br />
The senior management team played along with me for a while it was convenient, because the circumstances of my return with massive support from the students had scared them. When they were able to suspend the student representative council indefinitely, they saw their chance and were able to go back to their mediocre, customary and comfortable situation, where a small group obtain all the benefits from being associated with the university through direct or indirect extraction, while the large majority and in particular the students perceive none.<br />
<br />
You can lead a horse to water, but you can not make it drink. It is the job of those Council members, management team members and senior staff who receive a formal university education (this excludes Chancellor Jean Kekedo who never got a degree) to take their responsibility, and create a university system where learning is assured, competences are built, and finances are accounted for.<br />
<br />
Instead they have run down the campus again, refusing to assure broadband internet connections, to deliver wholesome food in the student dining hall, to provide adequate services on
campus (Faculty restaurant, functioning ATM, decent shop) or monthly
fumigation against malaria. Examinations and graduation are still held in a tent. We are back to square one.<br />
<br />
Nobody who has worked at a world class university want to work in such a place. The transformation I was pushing for is necessary. My approach in which IT, industry partnerships and industrialization played key roles, was well known. Even the bulletin of the Association of Commonwealth University published my <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2017/06/how-to-transform-university-of.html" target="_blank">article</a> about it. The
current management will never deliver it, however, because it requires hard work and they can't be bothered. I have tried to train and work with them
for 4 year, but they seem unable to develop the necessary competences. <br />
<br />
As vice-chancellor I knew very well I was not part of the student
movement. I had learned however to manage student groups, having worked 20+ years as a an academic and professor in Latin America and Europe, of which 5+ years as
and Academic Director and Director in leading universities in the Netherlands. By
creating a student-centred university, where rules are respected, and
expectations met, I would have broken the boycott culture and there
would be no need any longer for annual student demonstrations. Without
transformation, of course there will be revolution again.<br />
<br />
Although misguided detractors continue to see me as a political threat, I only came to Papua New Guinea to do my job as Vice Chancellor, and train the senior management team members and staff to operate a true, rule based university. They refused to support the necessary transformation, however, and now they will have to live with the consequences, and the guilt of their lies and betrayal of their responsibilies for their country's education. <br />
<br />
My career will continue, but sadly most UNITECH graduates' professional careers will never take off. They will be hired as technicians but never as engineers. We could have made UNITECH fly, instead you collectively preferred a pilot and a crew who are driving it right back into the swamp of favoritism, elitism, and corrupt extraction of rents.<br />
<br />
The learning environment at UNITECH is again getting worse, there is
no consultation, and their issues are not being addressed. Library,
laboratories, internet, nothing is working well. Lecture halls,
dormitories, dining hall, are all still sub-standard.<br />
<br />
If UNITECH students want their representation back through the Students' Representative Council, there is no time to waste. They will have to demand elections, take action, and formulate their demands on the basis of the existing <a href="http://www.paclii.org/pg/legis/consol_act/pnguota1986446/" target="_blank">University Act</a>.<br />
<br />
From world history we learn that inclusive institutions are not given to one on a platter, but we have to struggle, and fight for them. I hope the fight this time will be smart and non-violent. It is inevitable, and although fighting sometimes against impossible odds, the country and the University can still be changed for the better.<br />
<br />
<u>References</u><br />
Acemoglu, D., & Robinson, J. A. (2013). Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty. Currency. Retrieved from <a href="https://www.amazon.com/Why-Nations-Fail-Origins-Prosperity/dp/0307719227">https://www.amazon.com/Why-Nations-Fail-Origins-Prosperity/dp/0307719227</a>, free audiobook at <a href="https://hotaudiobooks.com/why-nations-fail/">https://hotaudiobooks.com/why-nations-fail/</a><br />
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Lyons, K. (2019). 'I will eventually get killed': Meet Bryan Kramer, Papua New Guinea's anti-corruption tsar. the Guardian. Retrieved from <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/11/i-will-eventually-get-killed-meet-bryan-kramer-papua-new-guineas-anti-corruption-tsar">https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/aug/11/i-will-eventually-get-killed-meet-bryan-kramer-papua-new-guineas-anti-corruption-tsar</a><br />
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Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-89055927948669534292019-08-10T12:15:00.000+02:002019-10-03T07:55:53.953+02:00Employable Graduates. Experiences of a Vice Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (2)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
(This is the August episode of a series of blog posts. Here is the <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/07/a-childhood-dream-experiences-of-vice.html" target="_blank">first</a>, published in July)<i><br /></i><br />
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<i>"Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls ..." (</i>Robert F. Kennedy)<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Background</h2>
It is important to reflect on what a viable, sustainable and financially strong higher education system entails. Fundamentally, universities must show they continue to be relevant for society, or in other words are part of a societies solutions, not of its problems.<br />
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In this perspective, Universities must at least assure their graduates are 'work ready', in order to stay relevant for the societies they serve, and be worthy of the large grants of tax payers' money they often receive from government. The private sector is supposed to train them further to make them suitable for specific jobs, or 'job ready'. Work ready graduates are expected to be <b>sustainably employed</b> during their life time.<br />
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In addition, universities should assure students have an adequate understanding of their society, and can play a role as <b>active citizens</b> or <b>leaders</b>. Students should not keep quiet in face of injustice or when state institutions are dismantled or corrupted. In this sense, student activism and liberal democracy are a natural best match. Universities are the breeding ground of the next generation of leaders, and therefore being able to lead and strenghten state institutions are fundamental for a country's development. Sometimes this involves cleaning up the mess that one's predecessors left.<br />
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Relevant and true universities normally adhere to a set of common principles involving the freedom of inquiry, the inseparable nature of teaching and research, and the involvement of students in university governance, such as outlined in, for example, the <a href="http://www.magna-charta.org/" target="_blank">Magna Charta Universitatum</a>.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">UNITECH first PNG university signing Magna Charta Universitatum in 2015</td></tr>
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Finally, in order to stay relevant universities should offer opportunities for students for <b>personal development</b>, to develop so-called 'soft skills', more aptly called 'essential skills', such as leadership skills, but also cross-cultural communication and team working skills.<br />
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For more information on the relevance of universities see, for example, the <a href="https://www.utwente.nl/en/news/!/2018/8/301793/new-report-of-cheps-chegg-and-dzhw-on-the-relevance-of-higher-education" target="_blank">report</a> by Dutch CHEPS at the University of Twente, and the Belgian CHEGG at the University of Gent.</div>
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This week we will reflect only on the first, sustainable employment part, in particular the effort intiated by myself at UNITECH to create internationally accredited engineering degrees. Next week, we will reflect on the benefits of allowing a university to create responsible citizens and how they can contribute to the personal development of its students.</div>
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In particular, I will highlight those positive actions of the students and a few alumni, who from 2012 to 2016 as a group to always have pushed for real university reform, hoping that the ripple of good actions they created, would turn into a stream. In 2012, these hopes were high.<br />
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PNG universities had been founded in colonial times as Australian universities, and were presented as a gift to the newly independent state in 1975. Given the history of almost annual violent student protests and staff strikes, however, one can ask whether this gift was not a Trojan horse. The concept of a university operating under the law, producing employable and competent graduates, offering opportunies for personal development and promoting active citizenship, remains utterly foreign.<br />
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Hence successive governments continue to see universities exclusively as part of the political system and a source of patronage. They can not respect institutional autonomy, the freedom of inquiry, or academic freedom. It is no coincidende that since 1975, all foreign (white) Vice Chancellors - who were a product of the western university traditions - at some point have been threatened, blackmailed, insulted, and finally expelled from the country. The year 2018, in that sense was only exceptional in the sense that 2 instead of 1 Vice chancellor were pushed out by Prime Minister Peter O'Neill and some of his associates.<br />
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In this year, both the European Vice Chancellor of UNITECH, as well as the one from UNRE, were expelled in the period of frentic nervousness before the APEC meetings when the government knew the eyes of the world were upon the country, and China's favours had to be strongly courted at the expense of everything else, especially due process and decency.<br />
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Regrettably, since independence Universities have been structurally underfunded and run down and, as a result by 2012 these powerful instittuions to produce competent and employable graduates who contribute to nation building, were totally dysfunctional and practically rendered unusable. At UNITECH, for example, in 2012 there was no functioning internet and none of the laboratories, forest nursery, farm or any other potential teaching environments could be used to effectively teach students. Instead, these facilities were being used by some staff for personal benefit. Any prattical training, for example, invariably involved a "field trip", usually to the far away home province of the lecturer. This is the comfortable state of affairs for entitled university staff, when there is no effective leadership nor management.<br />
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In 2010, the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2012/06/presentation-at-5th-research-science.html" target="_blank">Independent Review of the PNG University System</a> (<a href="https://www.rossgarnaut.com.au/files/2016/01/PNGUniversitiesReview310510v7-2k43tan.pdf" target="_blank">IRUS</a>), called the Namaliu/Garnaut report after its main authors, made two key recommendations: reform University Councils and improve academic quality before anything else. The PNG government promised to invest the revenue from the new LNG projects improving the education system, among which the universities. These recommendations were approved by government in June 2012, and as Vice Chancellor it was my duty to facilitate their realisation with appropriate measures in the context of UNITECH, while upholding the provisions of the University Act.<br />
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It was not to be, and the events of 2016 proved to be a watershed, after which everything went into reverse again. Due to the violent repression of the protests against Prime Minister Peter O'Neill in 2016, the subsequent political interventions by the PM and some members of his circle, and the violence on the University campuses of all public universities, the University Councils decided to suspend the Student Representative Councils (SRC) indefinitely. As a result, the voice of the students, which in the past was the only voice from civil society in the country powerful enough to force a government into making any concessions was silenced, probably forever.<br />
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Here is the story how some short-sighted and self-interested members of the government of Peter O'Neill in cahoots with the worse elements among the university Council, staff and Faculty, managed a 'palace coup' and stop all necessary university reforms, probably for the next 10 years. The consequences are to be born by the students: they are still not getting a true university education, and they will continue to be unemployable as university graduates.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Highly Employable Graduates</h2>
My ideal was to transform the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (UNITECH) so that it would produce highly employable graduates, and would serve its students, their sponsors and the broader PNG society well. Employable, that is, as university graduates, not as maintenance or operations technicians as they are now by the oil & gas industry or mining sector. The former Vice Chancellor for 19+ years, Misty Baloiloi, would say that there was nothing wrong with the engineering programs at UNITECH because the graduates were employed, even by foreign companies. Yes, they were employed but as technicians, not as engineers or project engineers (for which you need a Masters degree). You can not say that you contribute to 'nation building' when your graduates are not employable as university graduates.<br />
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Creating a real student-centred University is what I had in mind, and what I had experienced at <i>Maastricht University</i> in the Netherlands (ranked 5th in the world in the Times Higher Education ranking of young universities), for example, where I worked for 4 years responsible for a research grant portfolio of over $40 million.<br />
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When Sir Nagora Bogan was appointed as Chancellor in November 2012, I immediately found agreement with him on the matter of a focus on the employability of graduates. In fact, he said something to the effect of "Vice Chancellor, I am not an education man, but you have to provide the leadership so that UNITECH graduates are highly employable". His experience as diplomat had given him a broader vision than other Council members, and his activities as professional board director meant he understood well what the private sector needs.<br />
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I believe in 2014 our shared focus on employability of university graduates was the main reason he endorsed the findings of the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-papua-new-guinea-blogs-pngblogs.html" target="_blank">Sevua Investigation</a> into the practices of the former Univeristy Council and management, stating there was nothing wrong with my academic credentials or appointment process, and I have to be given a chance to exercise my Vice Chancellorship.<br />
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After my return from exile in 2014, I started by collecting evidence and in 2015, 2016 and 2017 I held graduate surveys at the graduation ceremony in April among those students who had graduated in November. It turned out that after 6 months only 40% of graduates were employed. In comparison for Universities in Fiji this is 60% and in industrialized countries this is abot 90%. This is a key metric, and everything should be done to make sure this number goes up.<br />
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Since then the Council members and senior staff at UNITECH have thwarted any attempt to indict the former Council members and management, although there was more than enough prima facie evidence to do so. What is even harder for me to understand how in 2018 Chancellor Bogan reversed himself completely in my regard, but most importantly failed to support the employability agenda for UNITECH's graduates.<br />
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As expected, however, after my departure in 2018 these surveys were discontinued, because the current management and Council could not care less about UNITECH students or graduates. Now they are blaming the students for being unemployed, and in rambling graduation speeches tell them to try harder. Frankly, I can not understand how students put up with these insults and shirking of responsibility. The current management is not even trying to provide them with competent lecturers with a terminal (PhD) degree, and are not providing them with an adequate learning environment with internet and functioning teaching laboratories or an adequate library.<br />
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Regrettably, this is a story with only very few heroes: the alumni who never betrayded their university, and those graduates, who were taken in by international companies which offer excellent training opportunities, and those we helped to get scholarship abroad.<br />
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In my office, we were always ready to provide a letter of recommendation, after checking a student's disciplinary and academic records. We also made special arrangements with universities in Australia and India for recent graduates students to receive scholarships to do their Masters and PhD. In the past, these were exclusively given to senior Faculty, who consequently would receive their PhD in their late 40s, which is of little use if you want to build up an academic department.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Addressing the Employability Gap</h2>
My early conversations in 2012 with prominent UNITECH alumni such as Don Polye (former Minister of Higher Education and Treasurer), Peter Loco (former PNG power CEO) and Ernie Gangloff (first PNG member of major accounting firm), made it quite clear that UNITECH graduates "only looked good on paper". Don Polye even put professional, international accreditation for UNITECH into his party's political program. From the outset, these men made an effort to meet me, even when I was in exile, talk with me, convince me, and treated me with the respect my role deserved, looking beyond my personal limitations, or looks. They also engaged directly with the students and staff, supporting the message that UNITECH needed a fundamental overhaul and transformation.<br />
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They told me incredible stories. UNITECH graduates would present themselves at job interviews with an impressive list of subjects and grades, but often when queried were unable to answer the simplest questions. Moreover, they had no idea about feasible career paths, and tended to exhibit a huge sense of entitlement and overestimation of their own capacities and value added. After all, the competences of somebody with a mere Bachelor degree are barely sufficient to exercise any profession independently, and nowadays a Masters degree is required.<br />
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The impression of insufficient competences of UNITECH graduates was confirmed by conversations with board members or people with access to the boards of, for example, Newcrest - an Australian mining company with 2 operating mines in PNG -, and ExxonMobil, which operates the country's only LNG project. As is my habit, I reported in detail about the content of all of my meetings to all members of the management team, and the Registrar as secretary of Council. I thought they understood the potential for obtaining major support from both PNG enterprises, as well as foreign companies. Now I wonder if they ever read my reports, although certainly they did not understand them.<br />
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It was sad for me to hear from both these companies Newcrest and ExxonMobil, that often they preferred to hire people straight from high school or directly from the village, rather than UNITECH graduates, who often suffered from an inflated sense of self, and exhibitd attitudinal issues. Local entrepreneurs were less diplomatic. One of them asked me publicly: "Vice Chancellor, why is it that your graduates are unable to do anything?" I was so happy to hear these comments, because if you can name the core of the problem you can find the solution. It was clear to me, however, that I had to widen this conversations, and in 2015 and 2017 I managed to hold monthly industry breakfasts with UNITECH departmental industrial training coordinators attending.<br />
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All these meaningful conversations can not be held over the phone or skype, and involve building a degree of trust. Alumni are a University's strongest assets, and their support has been essential for everything we did. When possible they took place in Lae, but at times we had to travel to Cairns, Sydney or Melbourne. Whenever I had meetings outside Lae, I would file a full mission report with the Registrar within 2 weeks after my return. In fact this was one of the conditions for being reimbursed. I tried to impose this discipline on my colleagues, without much success however.<br />
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The Deputy Vice Chancellor Ora Renagi was in charge of organizing the alumni with the PR office. In 4 years, he did not manage to set up the association of organize a single event. Only when I had left, did he make an attempt, which however largely failed.<br />
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Later, I was criticized for traveling too much, and the Registrar even implied I made things up. In fact 70 out of 254 work days, about 30% which is normal for a Vice Chancellor, and little considering that Lae is a remote location. What is more astounding is that Council and government members are so gullible that they believe self-serving lies from envious and selfish senior staff and management.<br />
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In 2012, for the first time in years, we had been able to hold the annual Career Fair and Open Day on campus, which are important events to allow recruiters to talk with students, and to increase engagement of the students. In 2013, when I was in forced exile, these events had been discontinued, but upon my return we started them again, and I started to make them more meaningful and effective.<br />
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In particular, the ongoing conversations with ExxonMobil were promising, with Newcrest focusing more on the <i>Lae National Polytechnic</i>, setting up a process of academic improvement in which we took active part. From the outset, it was made clear to us that if we implemented true academic improvements leading to professional accreditation of our programs, and got our finances in order, ExxonMobil could go a long way in supporting UNITECH. In fact, until in 2017 we obtained an unqualified audit of our accounts from the Auditor General's office, they supported the University mostly in kind, by giving a large GenSet to deal with the persistent power problems, a large server, countless computers and laptops, laboratory equipment etc. I was very grateful for this support.<br />
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Most importantly concerning the employability of graduates, we were able to set up the "Industrial Advisory Board" (IAB) with participation of all major foreign and national industries. This was part of the accreditation process for the engineering programs as per the Washington Accords. I was also able to ensure the advice and cooperation of the experienced Dean of Engineering of <i>James Cook University</i> at the time, who is an old friend of mine from my days at the <i>University of Utrecht</i>.<br />
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International professional accreditation is the key process driving the transformation of UNITECH and the delivery of a modern, competence focused curriculum. Today, it is simply not good enough when the Vice Chancellor prounces around saying his University's programs are "world class". International accreditation assures that an independent body visits the university, interviews all stakeholders, including students, and assesses the progams against international standards. It is distinct from "provisional accreditation" which is based on a promise by the University to do better.<br />
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Though I continued to monitor progress, I delegated this responsibility for professional accreditations to Dr. Augustine Moshi, the Pro Vice Chancellor Academic. In 2017, however, the members of the IAB made me aware there was insufficient progress, and therefore suggested I intervene. Dr. Moshi had made a hash of things, and believed that sending polite emails to the departments would actually change things on the ground. After complaints by several IAB members about Dr. Moshi lack of commitment and execution skills, I established some hard deadlines at the IAB meeting, but regrettably before those dates were reached, I had already been pushed out. The best chance to achieve even professional accreditation of one or more engineering programs had thus been lost.<br />
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In this members of my management team resembled the incompetent generals of the First World War, who send communications from a safe place dozens of miles behind the trenches, never understanding what was really going on. I tried to make them more aware by instituting a 'walk around' schedule for them, but this did not change their mindsets. When our executive team coach pointed out after 2 years that the members of my management team had not achieved a single of the objectives they set for themselves in their key performance areas, I should have replaced them with capable people. Regrettably it was too late, and they had already set up a whisper campaign against me with the Chancellor and Council members in a blatant attempt to mask their own incompetence.<br />
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In order to achieve the overall transformation of the University, a strong focus on the reform of the University Council and restructuring of the university's personnel, as well as on outcomes of academic improvement programs had to be kept. As to this first goal, I must admit with hindsight that we failed. The main reason was that the members of the management team and senior staff, who said they were committed to this transformation, found it too foreign to their beliefs, and too hard and so simply gave up. You can not drive the transformation of a University into a modern, rule-based organization, if you cling to an mediocrity mindset based on "this is how we do things around here".<br />
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As to the latter, many academic improvements were effectively implemented, although today the focus has shifted again, and the interests of the administrative staff and Faculty members again prevails upon those of the students. The University Council in 2017 instead of asking for accountability, chose the side of mediocrity and the status quo.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Chancellor Kekedo's Mediocrity Mindset</h2>
The current Chancellor, Jean Kekedo, is the main exponent of the mediocrity mindset, and well known for her ignorance, bias, and spite, in particular towards foreigners. She always portrays herself as a victim, and complains how she is being treated.<br />
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She has been in cahoots with Ralph Saulep, the former disgraced Pro Chancellor, who in 2018 was the one who paid the police offers to harass me, and in 2012 even sent his bodyguards waving their guns after my vehicle in Port Moresby. Even after January 2019, when all false allegations were thrown out by the courts for lack of evidence, Kekedo has refused to apologize or eliminate all the baseless accusations as published on the internet. A real class act.<br />
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Her power stems from being tapped into numerous gossip networks and knowing a lot of dirt on politicians. To my surprise, for example, she told several council members quite publicly in a break during a council meeting, how she had found Prime Minister Peter O'Neill in bed with Mrs. Ni the chair of the Chinese association and wife of a friend of his, while inspecting the presidential suite at the Airways hotel in preparation for the visit of Prince Charles - nambawan pikinini bilong misis kwin - in 2012. I am just relaying a story she volunteered to tell to myself, the UNITECH management team and at least a handful of other Council members. It is amazing how Peter O'Neill accepts her as an ally, while she openly dishes out the dirt about him. <br />
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Mrs. Kekedo herself is unimaginably gullible, unable to distinguish between truth and fiction, and believes all gossip staff tell her. She seldom writes anything down, and I found out she never reads or
understands any reports either. She is based in Kokoda, does not know
how to use the internet, and usually does not read or send emails.<br />
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She would tell amazing stories she heard about my driver, for example. Meanwhile, in all these years when she was on Council, she successfully blocked all efforts to prosecute the criminals in the previous Council, and blocked Council reform successfully. <br />
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She is also in the habit of disauthorizing the Vice Chancellor, and believes she runs the University. In my case, she never hesitated to publish a series of slanderous lies in the newspaper, and on the internet, for which she has never taken down these web publication or apologized to me after they were all proven false in the courts, as they had been earlier in 2013 in the Sevua Investigation report.<br />
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Given Kekedo's reputation and behaviour it is a complete disgrace that she was appointed as Chancellor by the Government of Peter O'Neill. I can only imagine why this happened. Chancellor Bogan should never have allowed her to become his successor, and reverse all good progress achieved under his own Chancellorship. Lack of succession policies and accoutability for results has reversed progress at UNITECH, and continue the boycott culture and tradition of often violent campus protests.<br />
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Student Involvement</h2>
So far I have described the role of some prominent alumni in driving the employability agenda, and the incomprehensible reversal on this matter by Chancellor Bogan. What was the role of students in all this? Surprisingly, it has been a very positive one, until in 2016 they fell prey to the manipulations of the politicians who set the various groups up against each other.<br />
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When I came to UNITECH the first time in 2011, I was appalled to see that some department and the University administration, had set up tiny windows behind bars through which students could ask for information. When I became Vice Chancellor, I ordered all these bars removed, which in fact happened in the teaching departments but not in the University administration. I quickly discovered that students were seen by the staff as a nuisance, and addressed as "children". There was a complete failure to understand the essential role University students must play in university governance in management.<br />
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As I mentioned above, the excellent university governance system inherited from the Australian colonial period, is based on the concept of dual governance and shared governance. Dual governance means academic freedom and freedom of inquiry is protected by having two separate boards of equal importance: the University Council which deals with all financial and corporate strategic matters, and the Academic Board which deals with all academic matters. The Vice Chancellor roles it to execute the decisions of both boards, and assure there is harmony between them. At UNITECH this is made easier with the Vice Chancellor being the chair of the Academic Board.<br />
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Conversely, the University Council is chaired by a Chancellor, who has not executive powers and is NOT 'the boss' of the University. As per the <a href="http://www.paclii.org/pg/legis/consol_act/pnguota1986446/" target="_blank">University Act</a> of 1986 (never revised), he or she is merely the ceremonial head of the University and chairs the Council meetings. In PNG this role is most often misunderstood, but it is essential that the Vice Chancellor be free in exercising his or her executive powers, and is then subsequently held accountable by Council. If the roles are confused, nobody ends up being responsible, and proper leadership can not be provided.<br />
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Now as to the students, they have meaningful representation - one male and one female - in both the University Council and Academic Board, as well as the relevant 40+ committees where the operationally important decisions are taken. When there were honest SRC presidents like Joe Kaowai in 2012, Eddy Nagual in 2014, Richard Mabiria in 2015, we cooperate well and assured students understood the issues and were able to participate meaningfully. Apart from the statutory obligations, I am convinced the PNG universities need more than less students involved in governance. In fact, with a small grant in 2012, we were able to organize a workshop on leadership for all the countries SRCs with a small grant from Australian aid program. Regrettably, it proved impossible to repeat this experience in 2014 and following years.<br />
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When I observed the scant understanding of university governance, the disregard for the voice of the students, and the continual efforts of government to intervene in the appointment of management but also of professors, I decided was important to assure the UNITECH receive support in sticking to its fundamental and constituting principles. For this reason, in order to save university money, during my annual leave on behalf of UNITECH I signed the <a href="http://www.magna-charta.org/magna-charta-universitatum/signatory-universities/signatory-universities/#P" target="_blank">Magna Charta Universitatum</a> in Bologna, the oldest University in the world, thus becoming the first PNG university to do so.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8q2i945LlEQ/XVJ5zf8ziXI/AAAAAAAAaVI/a4NmhSlhtKYmqwFHKvHsE_ngoCBwN8idACLcBGAs/s1600/MCU_signaroties2.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="333" data-original-width="499" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-8q2i945LlEQ/XVJ5zf8ziXI/AAAAAAAAaVI/a4NmhSlhtKYmqwFHKvHsE_ngoCBwN8idACLcBGAs/s320/MCU_signaroties2.jpeg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Signing MCU to support student involvement at UNITECH</td></tr>
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Apart from these formal mechanisms of constant consultation and involvement of the students in university governance, I created a few informal ones. First, it made it known that after 4 pm, student leaders but also individual students could ask an appointment with me, which I would give the first day. Similarly, Head of Departments could ask between 8 am and 9 am, but they seldom did. The students however came regularly, and often I was able to help them by taking a few simple measures. Of course, the Registrar Veronica Thomas and her closest underlings were always appalled by the idea that a Vice Chancelor would talk to students, because they wanted to keep me from knowing what was really going on. I came to PNG however to serve the students, not the staff. The staff is supposed to implement the decisions of the Vice Chancellors office, not the other way around.<br />
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In addition, the last Friday of each month we had management forum with the students and staff. A forum does not have a fixed membership so the students could bring whoever they wanted. Regrettably, after 2016 when some students had been radicalized by their provincial politicians, and SRC leadership faltered, distrust crept in and these meetings became less productive. Moreover, my colleagues in the management and least of all the Registrar would always avoid attending these meetings.<br />
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It was mostly through these informal mechanisms that I became aware the students to their credit demanded better lecturers, world class programs, library internet, in short all basic aspects of a modern University. They understood the world is changing fast, and having a fake degree without any content is not in their best interest.<br />
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<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Final Remarks</h2>
Most observers agree that we are living a period of accelerated change, also called the 4th industrial revolution, which will change the way we do everything. The first industrial revolution was initiated by the steam engine, the second one by the adoption of electricity, the third by computers, and the fourth by internet, robots and artificial intelligence. Only now are the effects felt of ubiquitous the internet, mobile phones, robots, now powered by artificial intelligence using big data in real time.<br />
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As a consequence of the 4th industrial revolution, which we are living now, the role of knowledge and in parallel the role of education become increasingly important. Professionals nowadays are expected to have at least a Masters degree. Regrettably, in PNG the state does not sponsor post-graduate degrees, and the universities are still struggling to assure graduates have the required competences and are employable.<br />
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It is therefore vital that universities adapt to the increasing speed of change around them to assure their graduates remain highly employable. Regrettably, University governance is set up for a sedate "community of scholars" and it is hard to drive necessary changes through a university organization. Only by involving students in a meaningful way can we assure universities keep pace with the rest of society, and deliver a modern, competence based curriculum. I never stopped trying to improve the academic programs, but in the end I seem to have been the only one, except for the students who know it is in their own best interest.<br />
<br />
My experiences at UNITECH demonstrate that if students themselves don't take action on the matter of university reform, demanding qualified lecturers, adequate learning environments, functioning laboratories, efficient management of operations, and internationally accredited programs, the current Council and management will not do anything for them. UNITECH is not a true university, and its main purpose at the moment is to serve its staff, some of whom feel entitled to life time salary without any accountability or professional performance.<br />
<br />
After reading my experiences, one can conclude PNG has wasted 10 years by not implementing the recommendations of the Namaliu/Garnaut report, and will probably waste another 10 years with the notoriously corrupt and illegitimate Peter O'Neill government having just apointed Chancellors and Vice Chancellors in all public universities, and expelled the two foreign Vice Chancellors.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, the rest of the world moves on: the University of the South Pacific with Council support and good leadership, for example, in 2012 had no internationally accredited programs, while in 2017 it had over two dozen programs with international accreditation. Their employment rate 6 months after graduation is 60% and growing, while UNITECH remains 40% and not growing. Moreover, many UNITECH graduates are not employed as graduates but as clerks or technicians.<br />
<br />
It is sad that in this story there are no heroes. I managed to achieve a lot of academic quality improvements in the 6 years I was Vice Chancellor, and it has been a pleasure and honour to serve the bright UNITECH students. It is sad, however, that the necessary university council reform, and personnel restructuring was blocked by a few ignorant, selfish, and spiteful individuals.<br />
<br />
The negative internal dynamics, brought the university back to where it started. As a result, I was unable to achieve international professional accreditation of one or more engineering programs, necessary to produce highly employable graduates. The best chance for UNITECH students to receive a real university education, and be employed as graduates during their professional career was wasted.<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<u>References</u><br />
CHEPS (<a href="https://www.utwente.nl/en/">https://www.utwente.nl/en/</a>) & CHEGG (<a href="http://www.chegg.ugent.be/">http://www.chegg.ugent.be/</a>) and DZHW (<a href="https://www.dzhw.eu/">https://www.dzhw.eu/</a>) successfully concluded the study “Promoting the Relevance of Higher Education: Trends, Approaches and Policy Levers“ <a href="http://bit.ly/33spWu6">http://bit.ly/33spWu6</a><br />
<br />
<br />
<u>Background Readings</u><br />
Dr. Albert Schram Official PhD Record:<br />
<a href="http://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972">http://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972</a><br />
<br />
Cambridge University Press book: <a href="http://www.cambridge.org/it/academic/subjects/history/european-history-after-1450/railways-and-formation-italian-state-nineteenth-century?format=HB&isbn=9780521571593">http://www.cambridge.org/it/academic/subjects/history/european-history-after-1450/railways-and-formation-italian-state-nineteenth-century?format=HB&isbn=9780521571593</a><br />
<br />
UNTIECH Glassdoor Reviews by former employees:<br />
<a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Employee-Review-Papua-New-Guinea-University-of-Technology-RVW21228726.htm">https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Employee-Review-Papua-New-Guinea-University-of-Technology-RVW21228726.htm</a><br />
<br />
<u>Media Articles</u><br />
Consternation in Italy about Vice Chancellor Schram's Unlawful Arrest (In Italian)<br />
<a href="http://www.larena.it/docente-veronese-prigioniero-in-nuova-guinea-7.1747352">http://www.larena.it/docente-veronese-prigioniero-in-nuova-guinea-7.1747352</a><br />
<br />
Albert Schram: My wrongful dismissal and malicious prosecution – a warning<br />
<a href="https://asiapacificreport.nz/2018/05/29/albert-schram-my-wrongful-dismissal-and-malicious-prosecution-a-warning/">https://asiapacificreport.nz/2018/05/29/albert-schram-my-wrongful-dismissal-and-malicious-prosecution-a-warning/</a><br />
<br />
ABC Radio Interview<br />
<a href="http://www.abc.net.au/radio-australia/programs/pacificbeat/png-schram/10282662">http://www.abc.net.au/radio-australia/programs/pacificbeat/png-schram/10282662</a><br />
<br />
Times Higher Education article 1 (registration only required):<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/former-v-c-arrested-return-papua-new-guinea">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/former-v-c-arrested-return-papua-new-guinea</a><br />
<br />
Times Higher Education article 2 (registration only required):<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life</a><br />
<br />
Times Higher Education article 3 (registration only required):<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ousted-vice-chancellor-may-never-return-papua-new-guinea">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/ousted-vice-chancellor-may-never-return-papua-new-guinea</a><br />
<br />
The Australian 1 (pay wall):<br />
<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/png-vicechancellor-albert-schram-charged-with-false-pretence/news-story/27f51e82a24e9f67fddaa294dce40174">https://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/png-vicechancellor-albert-schram-charged-with-false-pretence/news-story/27f51e82a24e9f67fddaa294dce40174</a><br />
<br />
The Austalian 2 (pay wall):<br />
<a href="https://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/second-foreign-vicechancellor-runs-into-strife-in-png/news-story/bbbaa39241cf2696f051b5d95f5a194b">https://www.theaustralian.com.au/higher-education/second-foreign-vicechancellor-runs-into-strife-in-png/news-story/bbbaa39241cf2696f051b5d95f5a194b</a><br />
<br />
Times Higher Education article 4 (registration only required):<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/exiled-v-c-fights-to-return-to-papua-new-guinea/2012196.article">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/exiled-v-c-fights-to-return-to-papua-new-guinea/2012196.article</a><br />
<br />
Minister Arore investment that never came:<br />
<a href="http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20130712171327182">http://www.universityworldnews.com/article.php?story=20130712171327182</a><br />
<br />
ANU Australian National University website:<br />
Australian National University blog 1:<br />
<a href="http://www.devpolicy.org/albert-schrams-arrest-20180513/">http://www.devpolicy.org/albert-schrams-arrest-20180513/</a><br />
<br />
Australian National University blog 2:<br />
<a href="http://www.devpolicy.org/papua-new-guinea-loses-another-vice-chancellor-20180820-2/">http://www.devpolicy.org/papua-new-guinea-loses-another-vice-chancellor-20180820-2/</a><br />
<br />
Dr. Schram's ANU lecture<br />
<a href="https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience">https://devpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/news-events/events/7612/university-reform-papua-new-guinea-unitech-experience</a><br />
<br />
<u>UNRE Case Vice Chancellor John Warren</u><br />
Times Higher 1:<br />
<a href="https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life">https://www.timeshighereducation.com/news/expatriate-v-c-flees-papua-new-guinea-fearing-his-life</a><br />
<br />
Telegraph UK 1:<br />
<a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/09/22/professor-took-cheats-forced-fleepapua-new-guinea-university/">https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/09/22/professor-took-cheats-forced-fleepapua-new-guinea-university/</a><br />
<br />
Blog<br />
Second Expat Vice Chancellor Goes<br />
<a href="http://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2018/08/second-expat-vice-chancellor-goes-png-universities-turn-nasty.html#more" target="_blank">http://asopa.typepad.com/asopa_people/2018/08/second-expat-vice-chancellor-goes-png-universities-turn-nasty.html#more</a><br />
<br />
<u>VIDEO UPNG RIOT</u><br />
8 June 2016 UPNG students shooting<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdn4VlqbmC0">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bdn4VlqbmC0</a><br />
& <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJtsDwkVVCU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJtsDwkVVCU</a><br />
<br />
<u>VIDEO UNITECH RIOT</u><br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRXEBRdS1jU">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yRXEBRdS1jU</a></div>
</div>
Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-664793887116568460.post-11924279796630188152019-07-24T08:47:00.011+02:002022-07-04T19:28:30.049+02:00A Childhood Dream: Experiences of a Vice-Chancellor in Papua New Guinea (1)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Introduction & Background</h2>
It has been an extraordinary privilege for me to serve two terms, a total of more than 6 years as Vice Chancellor of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNGUoT also sometimes UNITECH), and this is my story.<br />
<br />
The title of this blog post is somewhat ironic because nobody can ever imagine becoming a Vice-Chancellor or University President in Papua New Guinea as a child. It can not be anybody’s childhood dream, although it could have been mine.<br />
<br />
While still very young, I noticed how Universities, such as those where my parents worked, were so badly managed. Therefore, in 2003 I made it my mission in life to improve this sad state of affairs, by providing transformational leadership and effective management.<br />
<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FTHEdnrlHLY/XTgJLY2G0XI/AAAAAAAAaRM/orohjMy5xC4ZkO8NlmWRDxeUBSUI15uRwCLcBGAs/s1600/Snow.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-FTHEdnrlHLY/XTgJLY2G0XI/AAAAAAAAaRM/orohjMy5xC4ZkO8NlmWRDxeUBSUI15uRwCLcBGAs/s320/Snow.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Visiting home in the Italian snowy mountains, before taking off to PNG.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
The reconstruction of the story of my experiences in PNG is based on my 280+ <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2011/11/" target="_blank">blog posts</a> published earlier, and other publicly accessible materials, which readers can consult if they are interested in details.<br />
<br />
While writing down these experiences today, I am preparing a book proposal about the future of higher education in developing countries, which is not exclusively based on my PNG experience, but also on my broader readings plus working and living in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Turks and Caicos Islands in the Caribbean.<br />
<br />In 2018, I happily went back to my old trade as a <a href="https://bit.ly/UMGCfaclist" target="_blank">professor</a> teaching hybrid and online history and research methods at the <a href="https://bit.ly/UMGCawards" target="_blank">University of Maryland Global Campus</a>, being happy and being grateful each day to have escaped with my life and health from the cesspool of crime, greed, spite, and mediocrity which the management and senior staff of UNITECH have created for themselves.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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As happened in the past with all of my white predecessors at UNITECH, and colleagues and friends like Vice-Chancellor John Warren of UNRE, and Doctor John Nesbitt at Angau hospital, those who come genuinely to serve and live in the community, we became subject of a whisper campaign, and political with hunts, and left the country either penniless or in a coffin. </div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">None of this would have happened if the Director-General of the Office of Higher Education, David Kavanamur, had not decided to establish government control over the public universities through the infamous Higher Education Act of 2014. He justified this by saying the "boycott culture" had to end and PNG universities needed "strong medicine" for at least 10 years, creating a Chinese Communist Party, and not a Western model university system. With this, university autonomy and academic freedom in PNG effectively ended, hence Kavanamur's nickname of "the destructor general of higher education." The late Chief Secretary Manasupe Zuerenoc, one of the few true and honest civil servants, tried to stop him but to no avail.<br /><br />
Although my experiences in PNG were "mixed" to use a common euphemism, it has been a great experience to serve the courageous students of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology (PNGUoT). I am proud of my accomplishments and believe I made the learning experience at the PNGUoT considerably better. On the other hand, if I had worked with some government support, a more effective executive team, and more honest university staff, we could have achieved much more.<br />
<br />
In the coming weeks, I will post 6 more articles of 2,500 words, with each article identifying one or more "change heroes", and a few villains as well. After all, the current UNITECH management and Council's only purpose is to let 6 years pass of the statute of limitations so that Misty Baloiloi and his gang of thugs can no longer be prosecuted. In the beginning, however, Chancellor Nagora Bogan pressed for starting prosecution. He told me he had had a meeting with Minister Charles Abel, expressing concern that Misty Baloiloi had been appointed as the Minister's chief advisor, saying: "Doesn't it bother you that your Chief Advisor will soon be criminally charged?". In face of the unwillingness of Minister Abel to take any action, Nagora Bogan chose the side of complicity, helping to cover up for the crimes of the old Council. Later he was instrumental in pushing me out and giving jobs to people connected to the government.<br />
<br />
Now that all frivolous and <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/01/my-wrongful-dismissal-malicious.html" target="_blank">vexatious legal action</a> in my regard has been dismissed for lack of the accusers in over 6 years to present any evidence, it is time to open up about them and serve them some of their own medicine. Thie legal action was instigated by one of the principal enforcers of the O'Neill mafia, the disbarred lawyer Ralph Saulep, "the master of disaster" and Pro-Chancellor of the PNGUoT when Baloiloi was Vice-Chancellor. He was involved in harassing opposition members, civil society groups, journalists, and academics. For those who did not get the memo: my separation from UNITECH had nothing to do with my record of performance or false allegation about academic credentials.<br />
<br />
When I took over at UNITECH, the university could best be described as a joint criminal enterprise. Key-figures were the Chancellor Phillip Stagg, the Pro-Chancellor Ralph Saulep, the Vice-Chancellor Misty Baloiloi and the Registrar the late Alan Sako. Another infamous criminal with links to international terrorism was Rex Paki, whose exploits were later described in <a href="https://bit.ly/rexpaki" target="_blank">The Guardian</a>, the international newspaper based in the UK.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">The crimes of the old management and Council are public knowledge in PNG, and were highlighted in the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/unitech-investigation-finds-criminal.html" target="_blank">Sengi investigation</a> as well as the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/03/from-papua-new-guinea-blogs-pngblogs.html" target="_blank">Sevua Report</a>, the official investigation by the government of PNG. The Sengi investigation revealed a cheque of over K675,000 from the PIP funds was misappropriated and the proceeds were probably split up among Council members. The Sevua Report revealed the unwillingness of the Council to hold the former management accountable, and numerous irregularities in its proceedings, which subsequently were never addressed. What is more astounding than the acts of the criminals themselves, is those who keep covering up for them.<br />
<br />
All efforts to start a prosecution based on massive <i>prima facie</i> evidence were thwarted by a dishonest Registrar Veronica Thomas and her crew of eternal staff members (Naomi Wilkins, Anna Wakana and Nancy Laena, among others), and by Misty Baloiloi himself, who happened to be trusted advisor to Charles Abel, the deputy PM in the O'Neill government. UNITECH staff refused to sign their statements and affidavits, and Chancellor Nagora Bogan never pushed the issue although he knew Peter O'Neill was protecting Misty Baloiloi, and all the other crooks.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
During my 24+ years of academic career in Europe and Latin America, I was never directly confronted with the criminal actions of key individuals. I was not prepared for it, and in the end, I did not have the tools to defend myself from their whisper campaigns, political persecution, and police harassment.<br />
<br />
The following articles are all dedicated to all those other Papua New Guineans who shared my vision for a better university and a better country. They were not following orders from anyone, least of all from me, but rather showed courage, wisdom, and leadership. Some of their names are unknown, and some are still struggling, having been sidelined by the current regime. Conversely, those who sold out to the corrupt leaders during the fantastically corrupt and obscurantist era of the Peter O'Neill government received houses, cars, and positions.<br />
<br />
Here are the provisional titles:<br />
<a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/employable-graduates-experiences-of.html" target="_blank">Part 2 - Employable Graduates</a><br />
<a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-student-movement-experience-of-vice.html">Part 3 - The Student Movement</a><br />
<a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-staff-organizations-experiences-of.html">Part 4 - The Staff Organizations</a><br />
<a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/10/the-opportunity-cost-of-navel-gazing.html">Part 5 - The Opportunity Cost of Navel Gazing</a> <br />
<br />My goal is to present an unfiltered version of my experiences to the new generations of Papua New Guineans, so that they can insight how the governance of state institutions in the country has deteriorated, and take courage and inspiration from those change heroes, who occasionally stand up hoping to bring better education, health, and prosperity to the population.<br />
<br />
I dedicate this series to my parents, who taught me to always do the right thing, and try to make a difference. My family also made me sensitive to diversity and inclusion issues. My wife, who is from Kenya, who stood by me every step of the way. My mother is an Italian migrant, and her family lost all their property when their house in Milan was bombed on 24 October 1943. My father was the first one in the family to graduate from university, and whose father was the first one to leave farming. My late father was always brutally honest and instilled in me a strong aversion to colonialism and a sense that international cooperation is the only hope for mankind. To all, they made me what I am today.<br />
<br />
Furthermore, I continue to commit my efforts to the good people of <a href="https://bit.ly/gkgnbusamang" target="_blank">Busamang village</a>, who during my stay in PNG were the only ones who gave me a sense of normality and cheer, despite their own tremendous daily struggles. Like so many villages in PNG, they have been completely left to their own devices since independence. Finally, to all my dear friends and family in PNG, especially those who passed: the late <a href="http://albertschram.blogspot.com/2019/08/the-student-movement-experience-of-vice.html" target="_blank">Mairen Manub</a>, who passed away too young in 2019, and the late Associate Professor <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2017/07/obituary-for-dr-larry-orsak.html" target="_blank">Dr. Larry Orsak</a> of the PNGUoT Forestry Department, with whom I engineered my return in 2014, and who led the way for me to become part of the PNGUoT community and PNG society.<br />
<br />
<h2 style="text-align: left;">
Years of Preparation</h2>
Before starting in my role as Vice-Chancellor, I thought I had come well prepared. I had served in executive positions at leading universities in the Netherlands and had carried responsibility for budgets of over $40 million, and several graduate programs. I had read most principal studies and reports about the country. I spoke to other European who served in-country for many years. In addition, I was given 6 months of executive coaching from Right Management by my employer in Europe to prepare for the VC role, which meant I had an outline of a 5-year work plan ready before I came.<br />
<br />The reality, however, was harsher than anyone can imagine. I remember well I had planned 3 weeks to give the University proper internet access, which in the end took almost 3 years. Nothing, however, could have prepared me for what transpired in the 6 years I served as VC.<br />
<br />
My academic career began in 1994 after obtaining my <a href="http://cadmus.eui.eu/handle/1814/5972" target="_blank">doctorate</a> at the renowned European University Institute, in Florence Italy. This institute was established by an international treaty among the EU's founding members, and only accepts doctoral students. For this reason, it is not listed in any university ranking, which caused a lot of confusion among some people in PNG.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ufkLqrJOFx4/YZ9qMz59nyI/AAAAAAAAgl4/8uz5ojI3v08CV5C0vZg2rob4uetykIj9ACNcBGAsYHQ/s2048/EUI%2Bcard_2.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="My EUI student card" border="0" data-original-height="1270" data-original-width="2048" height="124" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ufkLqrJOFx4/YZ9qMz59nyI/AAAAAAAAgl4/8uz5ojI3v08CV5C0vZg2rob4uetykIj9ACNcBGAsYHQ/w200-h124/EUI%2Bcard_2.jpg" title="In younger days, obtained my doctorate 30 years old" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">In younger days: obtained my doctorate 30-years old</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">In 2012, I had served already 12+ years in developing countries and lived in Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Turks and Caicos Islands. I had made it my mission to serve those underprivileged and excluded learners, who find it challenging to go to University because of the inadequacies of the primary and secondary school systems in their countries,<br />
<br />
Since 2006, I had decided to become a higher education executive and first served as Pro Vice-Chancellor Academic and International Affairs at Zuyd University's Maastricht Hotel Management School and then as Development and Research Funding Director at Maastricht University in the Netherlands. In both these roles, I was accountable to a board or council, and I learned much about university governance.<br />
<br />
<h2>
Taking over as Vice-Chancellor 7 February 2012</h2>
When coming from abroad and having worked for world-class universities, my plans were over-ambitious. I had just spent 7.5 years at world-class European universities as a researcher and an executive, so I came to my role with a lot of new projects.<br />
<br />
Some of the obstacles I encountered in carrying out my plans, therefore, were to be expected. In PNG, the multiple attempts to deport or arrest me, the disloyalty, disobedience, and fierce resistance of some University staff, and the two-faced nature of the team members, however, were totally uncalled for, and could never have been foreseen. What does not kill you, makes you stronger.<br />
<br />
I visited the country for the first time in June 2011. On 7 June 2011, I remember giving a presentation for Council, staff, and students on the fact that Universities often lose focus on their students. While requiring transformational leadership, most universities choose transactional leaders, who keep all stakeholders nicely in balance, basically by buying them off with promises or favours. For me, it was clear the PNGUoT needed strong, transformative leadership, in order to be given a new lease of life.<br />
<br />
Although it took more than 6 months to come to a decision, I believe my selection as Vice-Chancellor was the result of a compromise. There were at least 3 PNGean professors, who all believe they deserved to be Vice-Chancellor. In addition, there was an Indian-American Narayan Gehlot with a narcissistic personality disorder, who had bribed his way into becoming a professor, and was proceeding along the same path. Mr. Gehlot had probably committed identity theft which in the USA is rather easy, while in Europe nearly impossible.<br />
<br />
Since nobody wanted him, and the choice between the three professors would have been awkward, I became a compromise candidate. Part of the reasoning was that they assumed that "surely" I had a substantive position in Europe, so that if former Chancellor Phillip Stagg, Vice-Chancellor Misty Baloiloi, and Registrar Alan Sako would lose the elections, it would be easy to make me flee the country and force me to go home. The Pro-Chancellor Ralph Saulep was not running for elections, but he played a key role in orchestrating all this. He has been in the service of various politicians and was my principal accuser. Despite my smiley exterior, however, I proved to be a much tougher nut to crack.<br />
<br />
I took over as Vice-Chancellor of the Papua New Guinea University of Technology on 7 February 2012, having visited the campus only once. I had seen the generally dilapidated state of the buildings, the library and the laboratories, the overall neglect of the campus, and the bars in the departments keeping the students from interacting normally with the staff. I had asked students and staff questions and listened attentively to their answers.<br />
<br />
In my communications with the previous Vice-Chancellor Misty Baloiloi and Registrar Alan Sako, I had noticed that my predecessor, who had been Vice-Chancellor for 19 years, had no vision nor a plan. It was hardly surprising he had been unable to provide any leadership. Misty Baloiloi was running for elections in his district and the first thing he did was to try to get a 3-month "retainer". I declined, saying we no longer required his services, which he had not offered to begin with.<br />
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All contracts signed by Misty Baloiloi administration proved to be crooked. I called them con-tracts. Another scam was a deal he made with his Assembly of God Church for almost K1 million per year to rent dormitory space off-campus, about 5 km away. This arrangement was completely unworkable, since the rooms were inadequate, and an additional K1 million had to be spent ferrying the students up and down. Transport was always delayed and students would arrive late for classes, and what is worse for breakfast. We invested in bunk beds and got all students back onto campus.<br />
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The Registrar at the time, the late Alan Sako was generally more effective than the VC who spent most of his time in Port Moresby. Mr. Sako, however, behaved like an uneducated mafia-type, and proved to be totally untrustworthy. The letter he drafted for my appointment, for example, was poorly written and incomprehensible. He loved to rule by fear, and his underlings liked to copy his intimidation techniques. The Deputy Registrar, Mr. Jephta Girinde, for example, once managed to fire an unsuspecting nurse, who had done nothing wrong, in a public space in the middle of campus.<br />
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Mr. Sako had made a contract with KEC electrical for K75,000 per month to give maintenance to 75 A/C units. For K1,000 per month, I considered this overpriced and canceled the contract. In fact, Mr. Sako managed to fund his political campaign in this manner. Later KEC managed to win the court case and demanded damages, so this information is already public.<br />
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There was a widely known scam with university vehicles, which forced me to buy a new vehicle every month. I refused. Mr. Sako had put two fake mechanics in the workshop, who would declare each vehicle a total loss so that it could be auctioned off to their wantoks.<br />
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Another scam we discovered much later was that a few maintenance crew after each repair would sabotage the compressor of the main A/C units, and then order a new one. They would sell the compressor in town. It went on and on, a million ways to steal, with the university management and Council leading by example.<br />
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On the day I took over on 7 February 2012, it was the first time I <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2012/02/concept-of-university-for-unitechs.html" target="_blank">addressed</a> the whole PNGUoT community on 13 February. Before me spoke Chancellor Phillip Stagg. I did not know then that he had been dismissed in 2009 by the then Minister of Higher Education Don Polye, and even had been kidnapped by the students, but he had taken out a court injunction - which had since been set aside. He stubbornly clung on to his seat and considered it his life-long entitlement.<br />
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Mr. Stagg rambled on half in Tok Pidgin (which I did not understand at the time) and half in English. He was kind of apologizing for the sad state of the facilities, blaming the government for never sending enough funds. In truth, of course, there was massive misappropriation taking place, in particular from the infrastructure (so-called PIP) budget, but also from the payroll. In fact, in 2017 when finally proper financial controls were put in place, we managed to <a href="https://bit.ly/hooray0" target="_blank">save over K2M annually</a> or about 20% of the operational budget, and balance the budget.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LbVTsOoL65M/YZ9q_BXVirI/AAAAAAAAgmA/AeTsOIMJj14jxH-UyOcjay-QtCccnpP9QCNcBGAsYHQ/s1024/VC_cuts.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="1024" height="180" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-LbVTsOoL65M/YZ9q_BXVirI/AAAAAAAAgmA/AeTsOIMJj14jxH-UyOcjay-QtCccnpP9QCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/VC_cuts.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">At some point, during the hand-over take-over ceremony, Mr. Stagg said that the PNGUoT was like a big, leaky ship and that they all had to try not to make it sink. I guess he had the ferry disaster in mind. I found it appallingly bad taste, and also the wrong message to give to young students. When I took the floor, I said that if students and staff worked together, the PNGUoT was not like a leaky ship, but rather like an airplane. Together we could make it fly! The famous 2012 SRC president, Joe Kaowai, who spoke after me, liked the metaphor, and from then on, the motto "I make UNITECH fly" became popular.<br />
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Another memorable moment was when I told the students that after graduation they would encounter global competition in the workplace. Their degrees, therefore, needed to be internationally recognized. I told the story of how Indian students sleep only 4 hours per night. A few weeks later one UNITECH one student told me he had tried it, and it worked. I warned him to get enough sleep.<br />
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From the outset, I felt that most UNITECH staff were lying to me, or at least hiding the truth. My response was to tell them that I would not lie to them because I was too busy to be able to remember different versions of the same story, and who I told what. I also told my staff they should not lie to me, because in the end, people will tell the VC everything. This might have had a short-term effect, but eventually lying is so easy, and if there are no immediate consequences people think they can get away with it.<br />
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With the students, there was an immediate understanding. Their priorities were first to get better lecturers, fully qualified - with a doctorate - and preferably work experience at a world-class university. They also wanted a better learning environment, and wanted the wastage and stealing to stop. They also considered a University Council with 32 members way too large and a huge waste of money. I considered these requests quite reasonable and put them on top of my to-do list. Coincidentally, this was the same agenda that the Independent Review of the PNG University System (<a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2013/03/council-reform-and-financially.html" target="_blank">IRUS</a> - Namaliu/Garnaut Report), commissioned by the Somare and Rudd Government in PNG and Australia respectively had recommended.<br />
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In order to attract better Faculty, an international search had to be conducted, since many qualified PNGeans leave the country for studies, never to return again. For these new Faculty members, an adequate living and working environment had to be provided. We proceeded immediately to build 23 new staff houses. In my absence in 2013, however, the "forever" staff managed to move into these houses.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">We also prioritized getting a better internet connection and the revamping of the network. The whole university had a bandwidth of 10 MB/s through a small V-Sat dish. Later we managed to open a new satellite station with the <a href="https://albertschram.blogspot.com/2014/08/minister-tabar-visit-23-august-2014.html" target="_blank">O3B system</a>, which is a temporary solution waiting for Lae to get a reliable fiber connection. Though I worked with 3 Chancellors and 7 Minister of Higher Education, it was Hon. Malakai Tabar who most stood out in his support for the transformation of PNG universities, is seen here opening the O3B installation.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sXWRybF1dW4/YZ9rbubzM3I/AAAAAAAAgmI/AmdJOyzGCGE-qYiuTzlSRUikMco-LvhAgCNcBGAsYHQ/s1024/1st_University_with_O3B.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="768" data-original-width="1024" height="240" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-sXWRybF1dW4/YZ9rbubzM3I/AAAAAAAAgmI/AmdJOyzGCGE-qYiuTzlSRUikMco-LvhAgCNcBGAsYHQ/s320/1st_University_with_O3B.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Let me close with two nice memories. During my selection procedure in June 2011, Dr. William Tagis was the Director-General of Higher Education. Although the challenges he faced were insurmountable, he was someone who never gave up. He asked if you were selected as Vice-Chancellor, would you be "there". He already had had a stroke and his speech was not completely clear, so I asked him what he meant. He said: "Will you walk around?". I promised him I would be present and walk around, and so I did. All rumours that I was never on campus are greatly exaggerated. In fact, each year I was off-campus an average of 70 workdays including my annual leave, and never missed a Council meeting and chaired an average of 60 committee meetings per year. You can't do that if you are away.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">In fact, later with all my deputies, we had weekly "walk-around" turns, which were extremely illuminating for them, since they tended to sit in their offices and send email all day, without understanding much of what was happening around them. Personally, I always made a point to inspect the dining hall on the weekend and make sure the students would get something nice like chicken or ice cream on Sundays.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">The other nice UNITECH memory that stands out is the 2014 graduation after the SRC President Eddie Nagual had led a 5 weeks boycott to allow me to return to my post from my exile in Australia. The pride and energy of the families and the tribes who supported the students was palpable. Many students dress in traditional attire, which makes the whole event uniquely colourful.</div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1i8vu8OzVqo/YZ9ttyqyR0I/AAAAAAAAgmQ/inJWc-B1yrsydqDIsuw2w1Zr_JvdPlhIgCNcBGAsYHQ/s300/2014_Graduation_with_SRC_president_Eddy_Nagual_small.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="267" data-original-width="300" height="267" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-1i8vu8OzVqo/YZ9ttyqyR0I/AAAAAAAAgmQ/inJWc-B1yrsydqDIsuw2w1Zr_JvdPlhIgCNcBGAsYHQ/s0/2014_Graduation_with_SRC_president_Eddy_Nagual_small.png" width="300" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The 2014 graduation with SRC President Eddy Nagual to my left</td></tr></tbody></table><div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><br />
In the following part, I will elaborate on these themes, and briefly recount the students' efforts to turn UNITECH from a joint criminal enterprise conferring fake degrees into a rule-based, and efficiently run University producing employable and competent graduates. I worked very hard, and at least I tried. </div>
Albert Schram, Ph.D.http://www.blogger.com/profile/15396434433206432650noreply@blogger.com0