An Ecuadorian education authority is considering closing 26 “deficient” universities. The Board of Assessment, Accreditation and Quality Assurance in Higher Education has given the institutions until April to improve in areas such as infrastructure and teaching, Prensa Latina reported. The universities involved were placed in the bottom category when audited by the National Council of Assessment and Accreditation in 2009. Guillaume Long, the board’s president, said 80 experts will visit the failing institutions this month to evaluate them before the council delivers the final report in April. Any institution that does not pass will be suspended and then wound up. Between them, the universities educate 47,000 students, accounting for about 9 per cent of Ecuador’s student population. Contingency plans are being drawn up to ensure that students are not left in the lurch if their university is closed.
Source: Times Higher Education http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=418642&c=1