PROJECT PARTNERS

The institutional characteristics of the members of this international consortium reflect the cross-national, cross-disciplinary, cross-purpose and cross-sectoral focus of this project. Each of the partnering institutions is representative of its respective region, state or country; each is closely involved with SCHE; and each brings its specific strengths, experiences and insights on a set of policy issues critical for SCHE. The partners in this international consortium include 2 institutions/organizations from 2 institutions from the United States, and two countries of the European Union, Bulgaria and the Netherlands.

The University of Toledo in Ohio, represented by a team from the Higher Education wing of the Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership in the Judith Herb College of Education, is the lead partner in this project on the American side. The department has a strong commitment to the study of higher education policy and the promotion of strategic partnerships with neighboring two-year and four-year institutions of higher education in the larger Northwest Ohio region and the state as a whole. It cooperates on a regular basis with neighboring two-year institutions, in both Ohio and Michigan. Thus currently, it collaborates successfully with Owens Community College, Ohio, Wayne County Community College, MI, and Monroe County Community College, MI. In addition, many leaders and teachers in neighboring two-year and four-year institutions receive their training at the University of Toledo. The Higher Education wing of the Department of Educational Foundations and Leadership is also presently the host of the National Council of Student Development (NCSD), which is an affiliate council of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) and the only organization solely dedicated to serving the needs of student development professionals in the community college.

The second partner on the American side is Owens Community College in Ohio, a comprehensive community college accredited by the Higher Learning Commission of the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools. Founded in 1965, Owens offers an affordable, quality education to those who are seeking an associate degree, continuing education courses and professional development. It offers 130 programs at the associate degree level and, between its two campuses in Toledo and Findlay, it serves over 45,000 credit and non-credit students annually. Owens has developed strong relationships with colleges and universities across the United States through transfer articulation agreements. A partnership with the Ohio Fire Academy even allows its students to earn Owens college credit via distance learning opportunities. Owens teams up with primary and secondary educational institutions by offering the Tech Prep Program and the Post-Secondary Enrollment Option Program. In 2005, Owens served more than 400 companies in business and industry partnerships and serviced over 18,000 individuals in workforce development and training. Through Workforce and Community Services, Owens broadened its presence in Lima, Ohio, by way of a partnership with Ford Motor Company’s Lima Engine Plant. At the Lima site, Owens teaches employees GED, college prep and computers courses as part of Ford’s Skills Enhancement Program. Owens Workforce and Community Services also provided avenues to partner with such organizations as the Associated General Contractors of Ohio to work with unions on safety and apprenticeship training, and Promedica Health System to offer computer training for its employees in Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan. Another notable 2005 partnership included collaboration with DaimlerChrysler’s Jeep Plant in Toledo to offer on-site credit and non-credit courses to help employees obtain a two-year degree and prepare for the challenges of the 21st century. Community partners are playing an increasingly pivotal role in higher education and Owens is proactive and entrepreneurial in establishing collaborations and addressing the social and economic needs of the region.

The lead European partner in the project is the International University College (IUC) in Dobrich/Albena, Bulgaria. The college is a non-profit, independent, successful, modern, professional higher education business school established in 1992 under a joint Bulgarian-Dutch project for cooperation of the Dutch government with Central and Eastern European Countries. It aims at preparing competitive, highly qualified specialists in management, marketing, tourism and hospitality management, economy and computer studies, trained to meet the needs of the Bulgarian and the international business and to face the challenges of an ever-changing labor market. IUC has established many international and national academic partnerships and has been active in addressing the needs of its region, the Northeast part of Bulgaria, where it serves as a significant economic motor.

IUC has managed a number of European projects related to student mobility, implementation of innovative learning approaches and promotion of tourism innovations across Europe, financed under the Leonardo da Vinci, Socrates/Erasmus and Phare programs of the European Commission. In addition to its established cooperation with the partners in the present consortium, IUC is developing cooperation with the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The IUC Rector participates in the Annual Governor's Conference on Travel and Tourism held every year in Las Vegas where he reads reports aiming to present Bulgaria as a tourist destination, delivers analyses on the Development of Tourism in Central and Eastern Europe and on the Economic Impact of Crisis on Tourism. In 2006, within the framework of a Leonardo da Vinci Project, IUC performed in-depth research of the human resource needs of the tourism sector in the Bulgarian Black Sea region, which indicated the preferences of the business sector for hiring high school graduates with good practical, language and communication skills and, above all, graduates of SCHE higher education programs. Thus the IUC management launched the idea of establishing a SCHE college educating specialists in a 2-year program that reflects the business employment preferences and standards. The present project will stimulate the practical realization of the idea via finalizing a general policy approach.

The second European partner in our international consortium, LEIDO (National Innovation and Expertise Centre for Lifelong Learning) comes from the Netherlands. LEIDO is the organization involved in the implementation of the newly-introduced Associate Degree in the Netherlands, as per order of the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and in cooperation with the University of Amsterdam. LEIDO partners in DASHE (the Dutch Association for Shorter Higher Education) with the Dutch Organization of Private Institutions, PAEPON. DASHE, the “joint venture” of LEIDO and PAEPON, has the former minister of education and now the Head of the Dutch Organization for Small and Medium Sized Enterprises as the Chair of its Advisory Board. In its management team, LEIDO has two representatives of public institutions of higher education, two representatives of Dutch employer organizations and two representatives of professional bodies for vocational education and training (VET). LEIDO is a network organization, active in many fields in higher education, including now also in Flanders, Belgium, in the development of the levels 4 and 5 in the National Qualifications Framework (based on the European Qualifications Framework). LEIDO is also involved in research activities and surveys, as per order of organizations such as the National Education Council and the National Project Management for VET. Since 1994, LEIDO partners in LICA (Dutch Expertise and Information Centre for Higher Professional Education), including a national network with representatives of all Universities of Applied Sciences in the Netherlands, involved in enrollment for Bachelor Programs.