The Australian Academy of the Humanities wants a universities commission with a big role to play

In its submission to the O’Kane Accord the academy warns, “the lack of a permanent mechanism for expert academic input into higher education policy, independent of universities in competition with one another, is a limitation of current approaches.” Which makes the case for a national coordinating body to manage an Accord, “as a structured continuing process between higher education stakeholders.”

Plus (and it is a plus of prodigious proportions) a universities commission would, “have oversight of other areas where a national perspective is needed,” such as,

* “national capability gaps, including research training”

* “patterns of course offerings, including how teaching programmes are providing for broader economic and societal needs”

* monitoring pathways between vocational education and training and higher education

*  monitoring student participation and attainment

* providing overviews of workforce needs and seeding new models of industry engagement.

But given how governments ignore the humanities is this not a risk?

The Academy has thought of that, suggesting a “diverse stakeholder advisory body for the commission, including the learned academies of which the AAH is one, and their collaborative council, ACOLA.”

“The Learned Academies bring different domains together in ways that universities struggle to” (and) “would be well placed to develop national frameworks for the development of our disciplines, balancing expert academic advice, international best practice, data analysis, stakeholder input and national needs.”