Australia¡¯s new tertiary education ¡°steward¡± will strive for connectivity between universities and vocational colleges, but appears unlikely to provide short-term solutions to the burning higher education funding problems.

The?Australian Tertiary Education Commission?(Atec) has begun operating in interim form pending ¡°legislation to make it permanent¡± next year. Education minister Jason Clare said the venue chosen to launch the new entity ¨C the Bankstown tower campus of Western Sydney University (WSU) ¨C was ¡°perfect¡± because its top eight floors were soon to be occupied by a TAFE, or public vocational college.

¡°The role of the Atec is critical ¨C it¡¯s about making the system more joined up,¡± Clare?. ¡°This is¡­not just about universities. We called this the Australian Tertiary Education Commission for a reason. We want to look at the whole system.¡±

The interim body reports to both Clare and skills minister Andrew Giles. It is led by two ¡°non-statutory expert commissioners¡± ¨C interim chief commissioner Mary O¡¯Kane and interim First Nations commissioner Larissa Behrendt ¨C working alongside Barney Glover in his role as Jobs and Skills Australia commissioner.

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All three were panellists on the?Australian Universities Accord, which recommended Atec¡¯s establishment. The commission is ¡°advisory in nature¡± and ¨C in its interim form, at any rate ¨C retains independence from the civil service, according to newly released terms of reference.

A division of the Department of Education provides policy advice, coordination and ¡°day-to-day support¡±. The department also briefs the education minister on ¡°opportunities or challenges¡± in the commission¡¯s advice.

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The interim Atec¡¯s priorities include ¡°shaping¡± the permanent commission¡¯s role, developing higher education funding arrangements, analysing the costs of teaching and learning, promoting Indigenous participation in higher education, and ¡°progressing tertiary harmonisation priorities¡±. The last of these priorities dominated discussion at the launch.

¡°People have been talking about harmonisation in tertiary education for a very, very long time,¡± Giles said. ¡°Today it becomes concrete¡­in a building that will very shortly bring that vision to physical life with the proximity of TAFE and university students.¡±

Glover, who?oversaw?the building¡¯s creation?when he was WSU vice-chancellor, was equally enthusiastic. ¡°When those TAFE students are here next year, this will be as big as most dual-sector universities in Australia,¡± he said.

¡°We¡¯ve got to get the balance right between higher education and VET [vocational education and training]. That¡¯s not about different ways of cutting the same cake. It¡¯s growing this cake.¡±

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Host George Williams, WSU¡¯s current vice-chancellor, said he looked forward to TAFE students ¡°whizzing up and down the lifts¡±. But Atec needed to address more pressing problems, he told the launch. ¡°It marks the opportunity to start fixing a broken system. We¡¯ve seen 10 to 15 per cent decreases in the number of students from¡­equity backgrounds?such as first-in-family coming to university.¡±

Williams highlighted the?Job-ready Graduates scheme, blamed for?A$50,000 (?24,000) arts degree fees, and the politically orchestrated erosion of universities¡¯ ability to cross-subsidise ¡°equity programmes¡± from?international education earnings.

O¡¯Kane ignored both issues, while promising to be a ¡°higher education whisperer¡± which ¡°interprets the higher education system to the community [and] government¡±.

¡°It¡¯s not just about people going to school and going on to higher ed,¡± she told the launch. ¡°It¡¯s about people being able to come back in to do university later in life. It¡¯s about going through different pathways.¡±

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john.ross@timeshighereducation.com