Accountability Report 2023

7 February 2024

Photo: Photo by Tyler Callahan on Unsplash

Department for Higher Education Policy

AStA Uni Hamburg

General information on the work of the Department for Higher Education Policy and FSR Networking

The Department for Higher Education Policy is one of ten departments in the AStA. There are five of us working in our department, including one lecturer, which means that we are smaller by one person compared to the previous year, but the number of hours remains the same and has only been redistributed. Three of us work purely project-based, once for the Professional Council Networking, then for the Open Space Networking, and finally for the student newspaper New Critique.

As with most departments, the tasks of the Hopo department are not defined in writing. As a result, there is a certain vagueness in the tasks, since - if properly interpreted - many issues on campus can be university politics. Our understanding is to look at the problems of students on campus and in general with a political perspective and to combat them in an approach. We work politically to improve the situation of students in general. But we also work to promote the groups on campus who are in turn committed to good conditions for studying. These are primarily the faculty councils, whose support is also in the name of our department. But we're also in favour of initiatives, spaces and other groups on campus.

Below we want to highlight once again the focus of our work in 2023:

Support of the specialist councils and the network of specialist councils (FSRV)

The FSRV has been constructive in recent years and has addressed a wide range of issues of student concern, although participation has been consistently low. We hope to change this in 2024. To better inform the FSRe about the work of the AStA, we have launched a newsletter for this in summer 2023.

Problem solving and mediation for students

Unfortunately, there are times when counsellors are no longer active or unable to support students in their specific problem. This is where the HoPo department steps in as a point of contact, establishing communication between students and the university and helping to resolve it. Furthermore, we have been able to encourage students to successfully challenge or sue with the help of academic and legal advice.

 Supporting initiatives on campus

This year, we organized the Market of Opportunities and the introduction days, which brought together a wide range of initiatives from higher education and local politics. We received good feedback and many students then turned to us with an interest in higher education politics and connected directly with initiatives such as TV-Stud, the DIG, the Freiraumen or the fzs. During the introduction days, two city tours through the political district of Hamburg were planned and carried out by one of our employees. About 30 freshmen per tour were offered the opportunity to network with (university) political groups and actors.

Networking with the free spaces and the free space networking

Together with the T-Stube-Collective we were able to secure the temporary location (container) for 2024 during the necessary relocation of the T-Stube from the building as a result of the renovations of the AP1, as well as initiate further discussions for a long-term solution. This was done both through personal attendance and through support in the communication process with the university.

Furthermore, the Freiraumvernetzung project was started in 2023, which should offer networking opportunities for open spaces and better communication routes to the AStA, analogous to the FSRV. Within this framework, a joint Christmas party was organized, which was followed by the plans for the Freiraumfestival parallel to the campus festival on 6 & 7 July 2024. In addition, current problems of open spaces were communicated to the ASt A, such as spatial difficulties in relocating the Philosopher's Tower by the collective of the Hübris (ex. Üterus).

During the introduction days for WiSe 23/24 organized by the HoPo Department, attention was also paid to the integration of the open spaces into the events. Specifically, the T-Stube was used for a lunch&lecture event together with the CIC and the ZGD. The Café Knallhart was also specifically involved in the introduction days, as well as all other open spaces on the main campus were visited and presented during the introduction days.

In addition, meetings of the open spaces were attended in order to be directly responsive to the concerns of the spaces, furthermore, the cultural department this year also sat down with the Café Knallhart (and previously also the T-Tube) regarding the event series “Schnöde Neue Welt”.

fzs - Free association of student representatives

At the federal level, the Department for Higher Education Policy was also active with a project force. For example, the AStA was represented at the Future Congress of Studies and Teaching and at the General Assembly of the fzs. Furthermore, one of our employees is a full member of the fzs Committee on Intersectional Feminism. The entire student body was also able to become a full member again - initially in a trial tariff - in the fzs thanks to the close cooperation of various departments, in particular the Finance Department and the Executive Board.

 Self-defence and sports group of the AStA

In addition, following a self-defense workshop organized by the department, a self-defense and sports group was created for the members of the AStA and the Free Space Collectives. It meets 1-2 times a week in the culture class room, is barrier-free and open to all gender and skill levels. To this end, equipment has been purchased together with the RBCS (Department for Disabled and Chronically Ill Students) to make the course accessible. If you are interested in this offer, please get in touch!

 Fairtrade University of Hamburg

We have worked with the sustainability department to ensure that the university applies for the Fairtrade seal and meets the necessary conditions to do so. This will include lectures on how to improve the quality of food and drink in the canteen and at the kiosks, better visibility of supply chains, and ultimately better pay for farmers, seasonal workers and suppliers.

Support for the Infocafé

The Infocafé is an open space in the AStA where students can drink coffee and tea, read newspapers and simply spend time in the warm without having to buy anything. After the pandemic, the idea was to bring this place closer to students and this was done through the strong involvement of the Infocafé during the introduction days of the winter semester 23/24. The current focus with regard to the space is mainly on collaboration for the distribution of the first bags and cultural cards.

Staff density in the HoPo department

The last year has been marked by sickness cases and staff changes, which is why we have been consistently understaffed. In spring 2024, these hours are to be reallocated so that from the 2nd quarter of 2024 we will be able to process the requests to us and the department's tasks in a timely and full manner. The remaining unfilled 11h will be refilled as soon as possible. Until then, the understaffing will be as much as possible within the current positions.

Balance sheet

We are positive that our work over the past year has led to better networking and communication with the open spaces, student initiatives and the university. Our event planning has improved and we are pleased that the events we planned have been so well received. Of particular note are the introductory days, which have increased significantly.

In addition to all our projects, the Hopo department has often stepped in where resources were lacking elsewhere in the AStA. For example, we have helped organize the planning of the OE performances, the distribution of free cultural tickets and first class bags, and the Fairtrade University of Hamburg process.

On the one hand, we are happy that we have achieved so much, but on the other hand, the sheer volume of our tasks has meant that some projects have suffered significantly from our lack of staff. This has particularly affected the networking of specialist councillors and the general support of specialist work. Especially after the coronavirus lockdown, more exchange is needed. Our FSR survey and newsletter were first steps to identify and address problems, but should definitely be the last. We also want to engage more in face-to-face exchanges with specialist councillors. We want to create more opportunities and strengthen communication, but also to maintain the autonomy of the FSRs.

Secondly, together with other AStA departments, we want to focus more on the social situation of students and social injustice. Whether it's corona, the energy crisis or the "Germany ticket" - here we would have needed more student protest actions and more public relations to better draw attention to the social situation of the students and ultimately to fight for improvements. Although we tried to implement regular actions and events together with other groups and other AStA, we did not have the necessary capacities to take on permanent tasks. We want to get more involved and significantly increase our efforts in 2024!

In addition to the previously mentioned points where we still see room for improvement in the coming year, we are very grateful for the past year and happy about what we have achieved together with you.