At a meeting held on the UIS Floridablanca campus, the Ministry of National Education and the Industrial University of Santander presented the second phase of the project “Academic Communities That Transform Regions,” a national government initiative aimed at creating spaces for collective action to strengthen the regionalization of higher education.
This process includes collaborative workshops that will enable an analysis of the academic conditions and realities of different regions through coordination with productive, social, and governmental sectors. The goal is to design proposals that more effectively address regional needs and expectations regarding higher education offerings.
“This is a huge challenge, because it requires UIS staff to be highly committed to a project that does not focus on offering programs, but rather on listening, co-creating, and engaging in dialogue with communities. We must coordinate multiple stakeholders to develop academic proposals with high territorial relevance,” said Olga Mercedes Álvarez, UIS Vice Rector for Academic Affairs.
The project includes a call for proposals to organize 10 meetings in different regions of the country, which will address the areas of knowledge defined within this territorial agenda. These events will receive logistical support from nine public universities participating as partners.
For her part, Alexandra Cortés, a professor at the UIS and project leader, explained that the initiative aims to generate proposals for educational planning tailored to the specific characteristics of each region. “We want union representatives, government officials, academics, and social organizations to actively participate in this exercise. From their various roles, they can contribute to the development of proposals that acknowledge the realities and challenges of each region, especially when planning the rollout of academic programs in these territories,” she stated.
The agenda taking place on April 16 and 17 at the UIS Floridablanca campus marks the start of the 10 planned meetings, which will be held in different regions of the country during April and May 2026.
“The Industrial University of Santander has been a great ally of the Ministry of National Education, thanks to its ability to create spaces for dialogue and knowledge-sharing in the regions, as well as the quality and relevance of its academic offerings. These strengths position it as a leader in this process at the national level,” noted Luis Mauricio Urquijo, Director of Quality for Higher Education at the MEN.
