A chara, – Dr Marie Clarke’s assertion (Leftfield, May 21st) that the Higher Education Authority has set out a “centralised and technically based proposal to distribute educational and research activity among institutions to replace existing systems of research activity” has no basis in fact.
The HEA, in implementing the Government’s strategy for higher education, is working towards the creation of a more coherent system where the contribution of each institution according to its mission will be co-ordinated to achieve high-quality outcomes. As part of that process the higher education institutions will, as requested by the HEA, set out their institutional mission. They will do so by reference to current strengths and the history and traditions of the institution. There is no prospect of the HEA determining the mission of an institution or distributing educational and research activity as Dr Clarke believes.
With autonomy, however, comes accountability and it is important that institutions, in the performance of their mission, contribute to achieving national policy objectives, social and economic. It is also important there is a high level of collaboration across the institutions, the more effectively to deliver on those objectives. – Is mise,
MALCOLM BYRNE,
Head of Communications,
Higher Education Authority,
Shelbourne Road,
Dublin 4.