University World News Investigates "How Virtual Colleges are Keeping the Academic Project Alive"

A new article by Nathan M. Greenfield at University World News examines Smolny Beyond Borders, Parami University, and Invisible University for Ukraine, three virtual higher education institutions supported by OSUN partner institutions and faculty that are working to keep liberal arts academic values alive in the face of authoritarian pressures.

In the article, Bard College Berlin’s Philip Fedchin, project manager of Smolny Beyond Borders, explains how the online institution was established in 2021 in the vacuum after Bard College instructors teaching at St. Petersburg State University’s Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences were ordered to leave Russia. Kyaw Moe Tun, president of Parami University, discusses how Bard College Annandale founded the virtual liberal arts college after he was forced to flee Myanmar in 2021 following a military coup.

Oleksandr Shtokvych, head of the OSUN secretariat, explains how the Central European University established the Invisible University for Ukraine after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022 and the need arose for virtual courses to support Ukrainian students. He says the courses are designed to serve both the intellectual and emotional needs of students in challenging times. 

The article also contains interviews with students from each of the virtual institutions, who say any political risk they take because of their enrollment is offset by the benefits of a liberal arts education that helps them to learn to think more critically. 

Read the article

Post Date: April 1, 2024