A roundtable on the establishment and functioning of supervisory boards in vocational education institutions was organized by the EdUP project in cooperation with the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (MoES). The meeting brought together representatives of businesses, employers, education departments, and vocational colleges as part of a public discussion on the draft Model Regulation and the draft Model Procedure for forming supervisory boards.
The event was held in an open-dialogue format, where participants had the opportunity to share their views, comments, and proposals on the implementation of supervisory boards in line with the new Law of Ukraine “On Vocational Education.”
Supervisory boards were previously advisory bodies, but today their functions are changing—they are becoming governance bodies. “This is a real tool for engaging businesses: they will influence processes and the outcomes of cooperation with educational institutions that they expect.
The EdUP team conducted a preliminary survey and analyzed the results. Key remarks and positive aspects of the draft regulations were presented by Svitlana Vizniuk, EdUP project expert, and Yana Kochuhura, Head of EdUP’s “Private Sector Engagement” component.
Yuliia Yepifanova, EdUP Project Manager, emphasized that the most frequently voiced concerns include:
how to avoid the formalization of supervisory boards’ work
who and on what basis will perform the functions of board secretary
how to effectively engage businesses in the work of boards
what criteria will measure the effectiveness of supervisory boards
Most participants and respondents believe that the idea of establishing supervisory boards is timely and positively received. Although not all stakeholders fully understand the implementation algorithm yet, there is a clear awareness of the need for this step.
Legal experts from the MoES Reform Support Team presented the draft Model Procedure for forming supervisory boards and the draft Model Regulation on supervisory boards. The presentation highlighted the main points that sparked discussion.
Today we are talking about model provisions that are not rigidly prescriptive but allow flexibility. By developing your own regulations on supervisory boards, you will be able to adapt them to the specific needs of your institution, region, or employers.
Supervisory boards with the participation of business representatives are now an important element in the transformation of vocational colleges and vocational education, which is actively underway in Ukraine.
