Rector Mona Forsskåhl elected to Arene's board

Arcada's Rector Mona Forsskåhl has been elected to the Board of the Rectors’ Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences Arene. The new board took office on 1 January.

The main goal of the Rectors’ Conference of Finnish Universities of Applied Sciences, Arene, is to promote the common interests of universities of applied sciences (UAS). Arene’s members consist of all 24 UAS and their rectors. Through her involvement in Arene's board, Mona Forsskåhl wants continue to strengthen the good cooperation that has been established.

Winds of change are blowing in the higher education sector. Large joint investments are being made, e.g. on digital service forms that have consequences for the entire sector. In this situation, there is a need to strengthen the understanding of Swedish-language higher education and its operating conditions. It is also important to keep in mind the special features of the capital region as a business environment for a UAS.

"With everything that is going on in the sector, we need to secure the operational environment for smaller units with a strong research focus and international ambitions. And the Swedish players in the field should of course also be able to operate in the future, even if the circumstances are clearly different from the context of their Finnish counterparts", says Forsskåhl.

The current chairperson Mervi Vidgrén (Savonia), Jouni Koski (Laurea), Turo Kilpeläinen (LAB), Vesa Taatila (Turku AMK) and Matti Sarén (KAMK) will continue on Arene's board.