Universities UK, the Association for University Research and Industry Links and the Higher Education Funding Council are holding a conference to decide how to offer up our education system to profit-making businesses.
This conference will be attended by executive/managerial staff including Vice-Chancellors of universities all around the UK.
Join the action against the marketisation of our education, and save our universities from the demands of corporations.
***Marketisation does NOT mean better education***
In response to the economic crisis, university bosses and the government want our universities to completely reform themselves into institutions which serve business interests. Just as the bank bail-outs used taxpayers’ money to prop up a failing, moribund financial system, the people inside this conference want to use our collective resource, our public services and public institutions, to prop up an unfair and unworkable system of private profit over public good – the assumption that private profit always equates to public good is a false one, the financial crisis has shown us that we cannot trust the profit motive to make important decisions in a rational fashion.
Not only do Universities UK and the AURIL want limit our education to teaching us how to make profit for big business, many of them also want to charge us huge amounts of money for the dubious privilege.
Many members of Universities UK recently supported a report that called for tuition fees in higher education to be raised to £5,000, or even £20,000.
It is our belief that the University, as a public institution, should serve the public good and the interests of its students, not the interests of profit.
Help us preserve our education system as a free space, free from the harsh competition for profit, free to nurture critical thinking and support active, fulfilled people.
Universities can be environments from which ideas about positive social change and justice can flourish, NOT an environment which engenders only raw individualism and narrow-minded profiteering.
Join us on May 7th to call for a free, democratic and accessible education.
The action is also being held in solidarity with a protest on the same day being held at at London Met, who have seen huge cuts in staff and learning spending, as a result of the same narrow-minded thinking which the Universities UK conference demonstrates – LETS SUPPORT OUR FELLOW STUDENTS, AND STOP THIS NONSENSE!
Bring anything you have to make a noise and GET YOUR VOICE HEARD AND HELP SAVE OUR EDUCATION SYSTEM!
Facebook group: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=90552618392&ref=mf
May 12, 2009 at 9:17 am |
Could you please publicise the 16th May Palestine march?
http://www.palestinecampaign.org/Index7b.asp?m_id=1&l1_id=3&l2_id=62&Content_ID=554