Tertiary education linkages (TELP) project

The project, to be implemented through grants to HBIs and NGOs and a TA contract, will include components in educational policy analysis and planning, institutional capacity-building, and institutional linkages. To support educational policy analysis and planning, a national conference and follow-up regional fora will be held to produce a planning document for South Africa"s tertiary education system. The project will fund research papers on critical policy issues at both the macro level (e.g., how to restructure HBIs while enhancing quality, the role of community colleges and of adult and continuing education programs, programs for nontraditional and female students, government subsidies) and the local level (e.g., enrollment and matriculation requirements, human resource and curriculum development, matriculation requirements, etc.). Secondly, to improve HBI institutional capacities, the project will (1) fund applied research (e.g., needs assessments) for use in strategic planning and institutional development; (2) fund seminars, workshops, training programs, and fellowships to promote the professional development of HBI staff in administrative, academic, and non-academic (pedagogy, counseling) areas; (3) develop improved curricula and materials to strengthen research and instruction in priority disciplines -- math, science, engineering, public administration, economics, and oral and written English; and (4) foster student development through support for tutoring, career counseling, mentoring, job placement programs, remedial education, etc. A limited amount of equipment and supplies will be funded. The third component will promote linkages among South African HBUs and HBTs and between South African and U.S. institutions. Efforts will include, inter alia, establishing research consortia and information and staff exchanges, strengthening administrative and academic infrastructures and TA sharing, developing community outreach programs, developing centers/institutes devoted to public administration and the advancement of women, and promoting linkages between educational institutions and business firms and associations, resulting in student internships and practica. The project will also support linkages between U.S. and South African student groups.