Today, the so-called ‘’Yantai-committee’’ of the University of Groningen published his final report on the project to start a campus in Yantai. For Democratische Academie Groningen (DAG) the conclusion is very clear: the failed Yantai project is a symptom of a bigger problem: undemocratic management.
The report shows that the board of the RUG has spent a lot of time and money in a plan, which had already insufficient support from the beginning. This demonstrates that our university struggles with a democratic deficit. University managers can (more or less) do what they want because they do not have to be accountable to the academic community.
Democratische Academie Groningen, therefore, argues for elected university directors. This system ensures that our university directors have a dual responsibility; both towards the supervisory board and towards the academic community.
Unfortunately, the report is only in Dutch: EindRapport UGY commissie.