Amendments to academic laws ban off-campus programmes, centres

AMMAN — The Lower House on Sunday endorsed amendments to the Jordanian Universities Law and the Higher Education and Scientific Research Law.

Amendments to the Jordanian Universities Law restrict the establishment of centres for education, training, consultation and services outside university campuses, and also ban universities from establishing schools, special programmes or liaison offices off campuses, the Jordan News Agency, Petra, reported.

The bill outlines procedures to terminate services of heads and members of universities’ boards of trustees and establishes an authority tasked with renewing university presidents’ contracts.

The draft law allows faculty members who reach the age of 70 to have their contracts extended and reviewed on a yearly basis. The extensions will be limited to a maximum of five years based on certain conditions. 

Amendments to the Higher Education and Scientific Research Law organise the affairs of non-Jordanian universities not affiliated with higher education institutions and their liaison offices.

MPs maintained the text of the original law regarding the Higher Education Ministry’s loans and grants for students of public universities. A special bylaw will be issued for this purpose. 

Lawmakers also referred amended drafts of the Judicial Independence Law and the Petra Development and Tourism Region Authority Law to the House’s Legal and Tourism and Antiquities committees, respectively.