Greta Šmaižytė: Abolishing the ideas of Artes Liberales is a step backwards

Recently, there have been various talks in the society regarding actions to optimize the network of higher education institutions in Lithuania. First, there was talk about the initiatives of individual universities, then the statements of the country's leaders about the necessary transformation began to be heard more clearly. I have always supported the idea of consolidation. In order to improve the quality of the offered study programs, it is necessary to reduce the number of higher education institutions in Lithuania. Our university - Vytautas Didižioj - was the first to show the initiative in order to merge with the Lithuanian University of Education. However, the current drive by the Ministry of Education and Science and the government to optimize the system as a matter of urgency raises many questions. The most important of them is what will happen to us Alma Mater and what university will we graduate from?

The working group established by the Ministry, without taking into account the university mergers that have already started, presented its conclusions on how the network of higher education institutions in Lithuania should look like. Vytautas the Great University no longer exists in those plans. It is connected to the newly created Kaunas University. The representatives of the government, having made such an accepted result public, do not provide the public with any explanations as to why this particular option was chosen. Where did Kaunas University come from? How is this plan useful for Lithuania? How will this reform be implemented? It is hard to believe that the responsible institutions that will decide the fate of all our students are not inclined to answer these questions. Although discussions are being organized, government representatives only repeat what is already presented in the conclusions of their work - the University of Kaunas.

Vytautas the Great University, which has deep traditions and Artes Liberales principles, extinction is illogical and unmeasured. We are the only state university in Lithuania where students are educated according to liberal arts traditions. The bright memory professor Leonidas Donskis has said that the university's mission is not to produce cheap labor, but to reflect on society, its social and political foundations, and the present and the future. That is why the university and Artes Liberales the abolition of ideas would be a huge step backwards for Lithuania. My studies are focused on careers and career prospects, so I know that strong employers are looking for employees who would not only be professionals in their fields, but would also have a broader education and understanding of the world and the processes taking place in society.

Students are not tools, some means or things that can be transferred from one university to another and reforms can be carried out without taking into account their opinion, without being properly informed about all the ongoing processes. Seeing the biased and biased work of institutions, the public attitude against Vytautas the Great University, I invite my Alma Mater students and the entire community to May 16on Tuesday 16:30 organized VDU community meeting in the Great Hall, during which we will be able to talk and discuss the current situation of the university and the ongoing consolidation process.