Towards a robust and reputable non-state higher education sector - SLANSHEI holds its AGM 2022
Sri Lanka Association of Non- State Higher Education Institutes (SLANSHEI) held its annual general meeting on 30 March 2022. SLANSHEI Strategic Plan 2022 – 2025 which focuses on developing the nonstate higher education sector in Sri Lanka to be one of the most robust and reputable in the region was adopted at the AGM.
SLANSHEI was established in 2016 through the initiation of seven leading private higher education institutes to address the needs of and provide leadership to the non- state higher education sector in the country. The founding members included Aquinas College of Higher Studies, Asia Pacific Institute of Information Te ch n o l o g y ( APIIT), Colombo International Nautical and Engineering College ( CINEC), Horizon Campus ( HC), Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology ( SLIIT), and the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka (CASL). Today, in addition to the founding members, its full members include Business Management School (BMS), ESoft Metro Campus, Gateway Graduate School, International Institute of Health Sciences ( IIHS), KAAT S U Institute f or Undergraduate Studies ( KIU), SAEGIS Campus, and Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy (SIBA).
The Strategic Plan covered several aspects vital to the non-state higher education sector such as expansion, improving the quality and standards, attracting increasing numbers of foreign students, enhancing the research profile and research output, and promoting internationalisation.
The following Executive Committee for 2022/2023 was elected: President : Dr. Athula PitigalaArachchi, Deputy Vice Chancellor International (SLIIT)
Vice President : Prof. Veranja Karunarathne, Vice Chancellor (CINEC) Honorary Secretary : Mr. Gamindu Hemachandra, Chief Academic Officer (APIIT)
Honorary Treasurer : Dr. Kithsiri Edirisinghe, CEO (IIHS)
Committee Member : Prof. Ruwan
Committee Member : Rev. Fr. Malcolm Candappa (Aquinas)
Committee Member : Prof. Nalaka Jayakody, Vice Chancellor (SAEGIS) Committee Member : Mr. Nizam Razzaq, CEO (BMS)
The official proceedings were followed by a keynote speech on ‘ The Role of the Non-State Higher Education Sector in Sri Lanka in the Current Context’ delivered by the chief guest for the occasion, Prof. Ananda Jayawardane, Chairman of the Commercial Bank, Council Member of the UGC, and former Vice- Chancellor at the University of Moratuwa.
In his keynote, Prof Jayawardane pointed out that non- state higher education institutions have great flexibility in managing their operations including the facility to collaborate with foreign universities to offer innovative study programmes such as joint degrees and dual degrees. He stated that to maintain a competitive advantage, non-state higher education providers must be mindful of addressing the needs of the industry and professions. He stressed on the importance of a high-quality learning environment, which includes dedicated, qualified, and trained fulltime staff, e-library resources, modern teaching and learning resources and opportunities to engage in research to ensure that students acquire graduate attributes demanded by the industry.
Prof. Ananda Jayawardena urged SLANSHEI to establish a quality assurance and accreditation mechanism to ensure the continual improvement of study programmes within the non- state higher education sector. He pointed out that such a mechanism would give confidence to the public as to the quality of study programmes offered by the sector and thereby contribute to the growth of the sector.
SLANSHEI looks forward to yet another year fulfilling its mission of contributing to socio- economic advancement of Sri Lanka through training & development, research, and scholarship.