02/02/2024 – 20:35
The Minister of Education, Camilo Santana, made the second change of command in high-level positions linked to the department this week. Santana fired this Friday afternoon, the 2nd, the Secretary of Regulation and Supervision of Higher Education, Helena Sampaio. The minister has made adjustments to the team after completing one year of management at the head of the Ministry of Education (MEC).
Public servant Marta Abramo, who headed the secretariat between 2014 and 2016, was chosen for the role. Before that, she had already worked directly in the office of former minister Fernando Haddad, now in the Finance department.
In this third term of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), Marta was in charge of the MEC's Directorate of Monitoring, Evaluation and Maintenance of Basic Education since August.
The change is part of a set of changes made by the minister in an attempt to enhance the portfolio's deliveries. There was a view that a more accomplished profile was needed at the head of Seres which, among other functions, is responsible for the accreditation of private universities and promotes regulation of the sector.
Last Wednesday, the minister fired the then president of Capes (research agency linked to the MEC) Mercedes Bustamante. To replace the academic, the minister chose the department's then Secretary of Higher Education, Denise Pires de Carvalho.
One of the reasons for the change was Bustamente's lack of rapport with the MEC team. According to sources, the department was unaware of what was being done in the municipality. Reports of alleged moral harassment committed by one of Mercedes' subordinates would also have strained his management.
The minister's movements have surprised the MEC's top brass. It is still doubtful whether Santana will promote new exchanges. The minister has made it clear that he wants to prioritize profiles in the portfolio that have execution potential.
Private higher education
The regulation of private higher education, mainly, has bothered the MEC. There is a perception that the secretariat does not have the structure to do the work satisfactorily. Minister Camilo Santana announced that the government intends to create an agency to regulate the sector. In an interview with Estadão last month, Camilo Santana stated that the department may charge fees from private universities to fund the operation of the future regulatory structure.
“We defend the creation of an institute, with robustness, with a larger team, so that we can carry out an evaluation, monitoring, regulation, of private higher education in Brazil”, he stated.
According to the minister, the costs of guaranteeing the accreditation and inspection of universities are very high. “To authorize a Medicine course, you need to send a commission. They are often doctors who go there to assess whether the physical structure is capable of receiving the course. And this needs to be paid for. There is nothing fairer than charging institutions, which are private, and whose objective is to make a profit”, he defended.
#MEC #command #secretariat #responsible #regulating #private #universities