The UG’s entire board of directors will travel to Utrecht this Thursday to attend a major demonstration against the government’s drastic budget cut plans.
University president Jouke de Vries, rector Jacquelien Scherpen, and board member Hans Biemans will participate in the protest march, as confirmed by the UG.
On Thursday, 14 November, a broad coalition of students, staff, and unions will hold a nationwide protest march. Organise the RUG, which coordinates the action in Groningen, plans to rent three buses to transport 180 people to Utrecht and has started a fundraising campaign for this purpose.
‘Strong message’
The board has previously expressed its support for the action and is allowing staff to take time off to attend if feasible. According to De Vries, it’s crucial to send a ‘strong message’, he said last week in the university council meeting.
In line with this, a scheduled meeting with faculty boards on 14 November has been postponed to allow board members to attend the protest.
Government plans
The Schoof cabinet plans to implement multi-billion-euro cuts to universities, amounting to the equivalent of shutting down a major university.
Additionally, the Internationalisation in Balance Act aims to reduce the number of international students coming to the Netherlands and re-establish Dutch as the primary language at universities. Universities fear this will come with a significant financial impact.
The first signs of these cuts are already evident. For example, Utrecht University announced last week that it would cut six humanities programs, with Leiden having similar plans.
Initial measures
In Groningen, precautionary measures have already been taken since the summer, such as vacancy management and a temporary halt to building plans.
Meanwhile, faculty and university-wide working groups are considering ways to absorb the cuts. Although everyone agrees that the goal is not to increase workload with fewer staff, it is clear that the already high workload is likely to increase further.