Crisis at the University of Potsdam: power struggle and reform backlog in AStA!

Crisis at the University of Potsdam: power struggle and reform backlog in AStA!

A huge conflict at the University of Potsdam reveals the shocking abysses within the General Student Committee (AStA). In the middle of threats to murder, sabotage campaigns and massive internal disputes, the newly elected student representative fought for a fundamental reform to modernize outdated structures. However, these efforts met with bitter resistance from employees who saw their benefices in danger. According to the Berliner Zeitung culminated the tensions in collective dismissal and the termination without notice AStA employee, which fully paralyzed the already overloaded administration and hit the students strongly.

dare a new beginning

After these serious incidents, the AStA structure is now being reorganized. On April 3, the student parliament (Stupa) decided extensive changes to make the areas of responsibility more efficient and need -oriented. The News platform Studis-bht.de reports that the changes enable flexible assignment of the presentations, which increases the ability of the AStA and the democratic coexistence in the committee should be promoted. These crisis -related reforms offer the opportunity to fundamentally improve the administration and at the same time better exploit the individual skills of the speakers.

Especially the revision of the statutes and the restructuring of the presentations, such as the merging of social, international and anti-racism department, are a necessary step to adapt the administrative organization to the needs of the students. The environmental department will now also be explicitly responsible for sustainable topics in order to meet the urgent requirements of the time. The example of the University of Potsdam could thus serve as a teaching for other public institutions in Germany: change is essential, no matter how uncomfortable the process may be.