Strategic plan 2012 - 2016

Sámi University CollegeSámi allaskuvla

Sami University College Strategic Plan

2012–2016

Vision: Knowledge and competence for society

Sami University College

• Aleadinghighereducationandresearch

institutionintheSamiareaandthe

indigenousworld

• CooperateswiththeSamicommunity,

particularlywithyoungpeople,topre-

serveandpromotetheSamilanguage,

traditions,occupations,skillsand

knowledge

• SupportsSamisociety’sprogresstowards

equalitywiththemajoritysociety

The values of Sami University College• Openness

• Innovation

• Equality

• Compassion

• Reliability

• Inclusiveness

Special competence

in education and

research

Favourable environ-

ment for learning

and working

Communication and

recipro

cal influence

with so

ciety

A transborder

university college

Knowledge and compe­

tence for society

Sami University College: a centre of Sami knowledge and academic competence

SamiUniversityCollege(SUC)isaSami-

languageacademicinstitutionthatwas

foundedin1989withtheaimofmeet-

ingtheneedforeducationamongthe

Samipeople.TheNordicSamiInstitute,

establishedin1973asaresultofSami

cultural-politicalendeavoursintheNordic

countries,mergedwithSamiUniversity

Collegein2005.ThedevelopmentofSami

UniversityCollegeoriginatesfromSami

society’sneedforitsownresearchand

highereducationinstitution.

SUCisanindigenousinstitutionthat

cooperateswithbothSamiandother

societies.Thereciprocalinfluencewith

societyisthemaincharacteristicofSUCas

anindigenousinstitution.Thisreciprocal

impactimpliesarelationshipbetweenthe

UniversityCollegeandsociety,wherethe

twosidesmutuallycontributetoonean-

other.

SamiUniversityCollegehasapan-Sami

andindigenousperspectiveinitscourses

ofstudy,researchandcommunication.

Wheneverplanningandprioritisingits

activities,theCollegeprimarilyconsiders

thebenefitsfortheprogressofSamiso-

cietyinthemodernagebutbasedonits

culturalheritageandatthesamelevelas

themajoritysociety.

SamiUniversityCollegehassince

itsinceptionconsciouslyworkedtoat-

tainthelevelofaspecialisedacademic

institution(inSami dieđalaš allaskuvla,in

Norwegianvitenskapelig høgskole).In2012

SamiUniversityCollegeofferstwomaster’s

degreeprogrammes,threebachelor’sde-

greeprogrammesandthreeprofessional

studyprogrammes.Amongthecourses

ofstudyareSamilanguage,Duodji(tradi-

tionalhandicraft),Samiteachereducation,

reindeerhusbandryandjournalism.Sami

cultureandtraditionalinformationand

knowledgealsoformpartofthestudies

atSUC.Duringthestrategicplanperiod

SUCseekstostrengthentheseestablished

programmes,butalsointendstointroduce

newcoursesofstudy,inparticularnew

master’sdegreecoursesandstudiesatPhD

level;thiswillensureabroaderrecruitment

baseofstudentsandwillsupporttheaim

oftheUniversityCollegetobecomeaspe-

cialiseduniversityinstitution.Thequality

oftheresearchandthegeneralprogress

ofSUCwillensuretheachievementofthis

goal.

DuringthestrategicplanperiodSUC

seekstodevelopteachingandresearch

activitiesallovertheSamiareainamore

empoweringmanner.SamiUniversityCol-

legeisatransborderuniversitycollege.

Staffandstudentscomefromallfourcoun-

trieswheretheSamiresideinadditionto

othercountries.Cross-bordercooperation

isenvisagedbytheUniversityCollegein

education,research,administration,infor-

mationandintheexchangeofstudents

andemployees.

TheSamilanguageisatthecoreofthe

activitiesofSUC.TheUniversityCollege

isamultilingualinstitution,althoughthe

mainlanguageisNorthernSami.However

onadailybasisworkersandstudentsalso

useotherSamilanguagesandseveral

othermajorlanguages.Inthestrategic

planperiodSUCalsowishestocreateare-

Sami University College shares a common vision with the WINHEC institu-tions: ”We share the visions of Indigenous Peoples of the world united

in the collective synergy of self-determination through control of higher education.”

nasforlearningwhichdonotinvolvethe

useofNorthernSami.Inaddition,Sami

UniversityCollegewishestostrengthen

theLohkanguovddáš(CentreforSamiLan-

guageinEducation),whichpromoteswrit-

tenandspokenSami,andwhichisapartof

theCollegesystemfrom2012.

SUCreceivedWINHEC(WorldIndige-

nousNationsHigherEducationConsor-

tium)accreditationin2008asanindige-

nousinstitution.TheUniversityCollege

isanactivememberoftheWINHECand

UArcticnetworksandprioritisesindige-

nouscooperation.SUCcollaboratesactive-

lywithotherinstitutionsatnationaland

internationallevels.

TheNorwegianMinistryofEducation

andResearchisthemainsourceoffund-

ingfortheUniversityCollege.TheNordic

CouncilofMinistersalsopartlysupports

researchactivityatSUC.Thisisthelegacy

oftheNordicSamiInstituteuponmerging

withSamiUniversityCollege.

Goals

• Toprogressaccordingtochangesand

needsinsociety

• TopreserveandpromotetheSamicul-

turalheritage

• TomakevisibletheUniversityCollege’s

uniquenessasanindigenousinstitution

• Toconnectscienceandtraditionalknow-

ledge

• Tofacilitatesociety’sneedforcompe-

tencethrougheducationandresearchall

overtheSamiarea

• Toadmitmorestudentsandtoeducate

morequalifiedpersonnelforthebenefit

oftheSamiandotherindigenoussoci-

eties

• Toclarifyprioritieswithregardtosub-

jectsandresourcesfromtimetotime

• TostrengthentheSamilanguagein

administration,teachingandacademic

research

• Tofulfilthemajoritysociety’sneedfor

informationabouttheSami

Main strategies to achieve the goals

• Todevelopacademicdepartmentswith

shortandlongtermplansforacademic

prioritiesforteachingandresearch

• Tostrengthenstudentrecruitment

• Topromoteacademicprogrammesand

researchactivitiesthatenhanceSUC’s

advancementtothelevelofaspecialized

universityinstitution1

• TosupporttheuseoftheSamilanguage

inallactivities

• Toexploresociety’sneedsforeducation

andresearch

• Tofacilitatecollaborativeagreements

withnationalandinternationalinstitu-

tions,especiallywithintheNordicand

Arcticareas,throughappropriateeduca-

tionaloffersandresearchactivities

• Tosecureafirmeconomicframework

tosupporttheachievementofthe

institution’ssetgoalsandstrategies

• Tosecureandpromotequalityacademic

staffforresearchandadministration

throughaconsistentemployeepolicy

• Toupgradestaffcompetence

• Toplanefficientuseoftheinstitution’s

resources

• Toensureeffectivecommunicationwith

thestateauthoritiesandwiththeSami

parliaments.

1 Sámi dieđalaš allaskuvla, Norwegian vitenskapelig høgskole

Strategic priorities1.1 Special competence in education

Strategies• Assesstheinstitution’sacademic

strengths,andonthatbasisplanand

furtherdesignthestudyprogrammes

• Promotecompetencethroughtheuseof

newtechnology

• StrengthentheuseoftheInternetfor

teachingaswellasremoteanddistance

learning

• Designstudyprogrammesthatare

importanttotheSamisociety

• Adjustcoursesofstudytoaccommodate

internationalstudentexchanges

• StrengthenandfacilitateSamilanguage

educationatthebeginnerlevelinthe

institution

• Strengthenandpromotethequalityof

theeducation

• LeadtheregionalcooperationinSami

teachereducationinNorway

(Samarbeid–Arbeidsdeling–Konsentra-

sjon)2

The courses at the Sami University College are to be accessible, attractive and relevant in the Sami area.

2 Collaboration–Segregation of duties–Concentration

Strategic priorities1.2 Special competence in research

Strategies• Ensureefficientresearchactivityand

soundresearchmanagement

• Ensurefirmlinksoftheresearchto

society

• Prioritiseresearchthatstrengthensthe

coursesonoffer

• Stimulatebasicresearch

• Strengthenthefollowupframeworkfor

successfulimplementationofthePhD

projects

• Stimulatethepublicationofscientific

andpopularscientificarticles,textbooks

andothereducationalaids

• Elevatetheinstitution’sresearchseries

Dieđuttothelevelofacademicpeer

review

• Establishpermanentplatformsfordisse-

minationofscientificresults

• ActivelypromoteSamiresearchasapart

ofindigenousresearch

The research activities are to further the progress of the Sami people.

Strategic priorities2 Favourable environment for learning and working

Strategies• Supportthedevelopmentofthestudent

environment

• Promotestudentinfluence

• Supportgoodconnectionsbetweenthe

students,researchanddevelopment

work

• Strengthencounsellingthroughacade-

micandtraditionalmeans

• Provideefficientmanagementofinfor-

mationinternallyandexternally

• Strengthencommunicationonequality

andacceptance

• Encouragesensibleuseofsocialmedia

• Strengthenthelibraryasasourceof

informationforeducationandresearch

• Enhancetheinstitution’sadministrative

activities,technologyandinfrastructure

insupportofacademicqualityand

productivity

• Recruitemployeesandstudentsfromall

overtheSamiarea

• Developandfollowaclearemployee

policy,withrecruitment,competence

buildingandsustainabilityatthecore

• Strengthenthecooperationwiththe

StudentWelfareOrganisationinInner

Finnmark

• Cooperatewithlocalandnational

authoritiestoensuresuitablehousingfor

studentsandemployeesinadditionto

meetingtheneedsofsociety

• MakevisibletheSUCemployees’

traditionalknowledge

Sami University College is to be convenient, attractive and challenging, where students and employees develop professionally and thrive.

Strategic priorities3 Communication and reciprocal influence with society

Strategies• Tomakeuseoftheinformationand

knowledgeofeldersandtradition

bearers

• Enhancesociety’sknowledgeaboutthe

institution’sactivities

• EnhancecooperationbetweentheSami

centresoflanguage,culture,tradeand

educationintheSamiarea

• Improvecommunicationbetweenupper

secondaryschools(joatkkaskuvllat)inthe

Samiarea

• Enhanceclosecommunicationand

cooperationwithlocalcommunitiesin

theSamiarea

• Disseminatestudyprogrammeactivities

• Clarifythepossibilitytoestablish

campusesinpriorityareas

• Facilitatethemarketingactivityofthe

institution’sacademicpriorities

• Giveprioritytothemajoritysociety’s

needforinformationaccordingtoavaila-

bleresources

Sami University College is to have a firm connection and good communi- cation with Sami society, as part of the progress in a new era based

on the Sami traditional heritage.

Strategic priorities4 A transborder university college

Strategies• PrioritiseSUC’sexpansionofactivitiesall

overtheSamiarea

• CooperatewiththeotherNordiccoun-

triesandhighereducationinstitutions

intheindigenousareas,particularlyin

connectionwithWINHEC,inordertopro-

moteresearchandnewcoursesofstudy

• Promoteinternationalcooperation

throughstudentandemployee

exchanges

• Continuetheresearchgrantagreement

withtheNordicCouncilofMinistersand

activelycommunicatetheresearchout-

comesfinancedthroughtheCouncil

• Promoteandfacilitateindigenous

researchandeducationwiththehelp

ofthelatestresultsoftheactivitiesof

theUniversityCollege.

Sami University College is to enhance its position as the leading higher education and knowledge institution in the Sami area, and in the

indigenous world as a whole.

Monitoring

TheimplementationofthestrategicplanistobepresentedannuallytotheBoard,andwill

befollowedupbyBoarddecisions,plansofactivities,annualplans,andbudgetdocumen-

tations.

Thisstrategicplanwasapprovedon9.12.2011andisapplicablefrom1.1.2012until

31.12.2016.

Sámi allaskuvla / Sami University CollegeHánnoluohkká 45, NO-9520 Guovdageaidnu/Kautokeino, NORWAY

www.samiskhs.no - [email protected]: Johan Isak Siri, Sámi allaskuvla.

Sámi University CollegeSámi allaskuvla