University councils to downsize

New Zealand’s government has decided to go ahead with plans to make university councils smaller and remove the requirement to have staff and student representatives on them, writes Sarah Robson for 3News.

Tertiary Education Minister Steven Joyce says the changes will modernise councils and allow them to react quickly and more strategically. The current limit of between 12 and 20 members will be reduced to between eight and 12, and specific representative requirements will be removed, making council membership more flexible.

Joyce says it will be up to universities to decide whether they include student representatives on their councils. "The indications are that they will include student reps, I think we consider them adult enough to make those decisions," he told reporters.
Full report on the 3News site