Investment plans still unknown

The definitive ‘re-evaluation agenda’ (herijkingsagenda) which was published this week only begins to answer this question.

At issue is not only savings aimed at arriving at a balanced budget, but also the freeing up of funding to reinvest in research, education and infrastructure. This was message that TU Delft’s Executive Board delivered to the faculties and support services at the start of this process. But what educational projects exactly, which research groups and which faculties will this funding be allocated to?
The definitive re-evaluation agenda is short on details but long on future visions. As such there are seven areas that may be eligible for future (re)investments: earth and climate research; architecture, building and building technology; healthcare research; ICT; materials research; process technology and fluid mechanics; and transport. This list overlaps with previously published faculty synergy plans. In addition, the four Delft Research Initiatives (energy, health, infrastructures and environment) are also in the running to receive extra funding.
In the field of education, the re-evaluation agenda is considering investments in collegerama, open courseware, iTunes U, digital coaching, the virtual lecture hall and the learning centre. Other possible necessary areas of investment include: fire safety services, the overdue maintenance of university buildings, and 24-hour opening times for as yet unspecified faculties.
Staffers who expected to have all their questions answered in the definitive re-evaluation agenda will therefore be disappointed. But as the Executive Board stated during an open meeting held in May: the 30 million euro that will be generated through savings and reinvested will not appear overnight. The first step is to arrive at a balanced budget, and thus 15 million euro must be achieved through implementation of the savings plan.
More details will also emerge with the publication of the 2011-2014 long-term faculty plans in the third quarter and in the 2011-2014 institutional plan in the fourth quarter.

De ombudsman voor studenten, Wil Knippenberg, is woensdag 16 september op non-actief gesteld. Hij heeft zich ziek gemeld. Volgens directeur onderwijs & studentenzaken Anka Mulder waren er al langere tijd signalen over problemen met zijn persoonlijk functioneren. Studenten met vragen kunnen terecht bij student and career support aan de Jaffalaan 9a (studentandcareersupport@tudelft.nl, 015-2788004). De website van de ombudsman verwijst tevens naar Nellie van de Griend, sinds kort hoofd van de afdeling studenten- en docentenvoorzieningen en formeel leidinggevende van de ombudsman. Omdat de ombudsman onafhankelijk is, zal Van de Griend klachten niet zelf behandelen, maar ze doorsturen naar het studentendecanaat. Studentendecanen werken net als de ombudsman op anonieme basis. “We weten nog niet of dit een definitieve oplossing is”, zegt Mulder. “We overleggen met de studentenraad over de beste constructie en kijken daarbij ook naar andere universiteiten.”