Thuringian University Act

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Basic data
Title: Thuringian University Act
Abbreviation: ThürHG
Type: State Law
Scope: Thuringia
Legal matter: Special administrative law
References : BS Door 221-1
Original version from: June 24, 1992
( GVBl. P. 315)
Entry into force on: July 7, 1992
Last revision from: May 10, 2018
(GVBl. P. 149)
Entry into force of the
new version on: 		May 24, 2018
Weblink: Text of the law
Please note the note on the applicable legal version.

The Thuringian Higher Education Act ( ThürHG ) is a state law on higher education law enacted to regulate the higher education system in the Free State of Thuringia .

history

Provisional Law of 1991

The People's Chamber of the GDR , elected in 1990 , initiated its own university framework law in the same year, which was only passed as a statutory ordinance due to time pressure . Nevertheless, this should continue to apply until 1993 , even after reunification . In Thuringia, however, various provisions of this ordinance were viewed as not tenable. Therefore, in 1991 a provisional Thuringian higher education law was passed, which was to apply until the end of the winter semester 1991/1992 and which should create sufficient time for the elaboration of a full higher education law for Thuringia. This was adopted on April 19, 1991 with no votes against and eleven abstentions. It was a modified version of the University Framework Ordinance.

Thuringian Higher Education Act of 1992

The tight deadline made it necessary to be in a hurry when drafting the State University Act. While the legislative process in the provisional university law was still mainly characterized by a united will of all parties, consolidation developments in the young democracy can be seen in the legislative process , namely a differentiation of the individual party interests. Points of contention were, among other things, the nature of the Council of Universities and the composition of the university bodies. In the end, the law was adopted on June 24, 1992 with one abstention by the Thuringian state parliament .

New version 2006

The new version of the law brought about the implementation of the Bologna Process on the one hand, and on the other hand the university autonomy was expanded in the course of this , for example through the regular approval of the statutes of the universities by the head of the university instead of the previous ministerial involvement and more responsibility being transferred to the universities Instruments introduced for the political control of universities, such as target and performance agreements . As part of this amendment, the councils were abolished and university councils were introduced, in which, in particular, non-university members decide on the fate of the universities. In addition, numerous competencies have been transferred from the collegial bodies to the university management and the regulations for the "self-governing bodies below the central level" have been abolished.

The university councils of the Thuringian Higher Education Act have been used for the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court to Hannover Medical School believes 2014 in the legal literature unconstitutional.

The comprehensive trial clause according to §4 is also criticized in terms of state politics, as it allows deviating from all regulations of the law by means of a statutory ordinance, which can be seen as a breach of the separation of powers and the principle of democracy .

Introduction of the dual university in 2016

With the dissolution of the Thuringian State Study Academy on September 1, 2016, the Gera-Eisenach Cooperative State University was incorporated into the law as the legal successor. It was conceived as a university of its own type and regulated in a separate part of the law.

Amendment 2018

The 2018 amendment to the University Act was preceded in the early summer of 2016 by an extensive phase in which the universities were involved in a public dialogue process with the Minister of Science Wolfgang Tiefensee , the so-called Thuringian University Dialogue . The amendment was planned to come into force in spring 2018, but this should be postponed until early summer 2018. The second reading was postponed several times, most recently at the end of March 2018. The reason for the amendment was not only state and university policy considerations, but also the BVerfG ruling on the Hannover Medical School in 2014 and the VerfGH Baden-Württemberg on the organizational guarantees of academic freedom.

The main points of the article law are:

  • Changes in the co-determination of all status groups, such as the influence of students on the courses offered,
  • Changed composition of the Senate, equal representation of the status groups (“quarter” or “third parity”), whereby a professors majority is provided for in all questions of research and teaching , even if the BVerfG only demanded this in the university judgment if it was “directly affected”. However, the Senate, which has equal representation, should be responsible for the teaching assessment.
  • Introduction of the university assembly as a new organ for the election of the president and the chancellor as well as for the structure and development plan. It decides with a majority of its members and a majority of professors (“double majority”).
  • Equality: 40 percent quota regulations for the filling of boards and commissions (appointment committees) with women and strengthening the position and rights of the equality officers
  • Creation of diversity officers with a position similar to the equal opportunities officer and the task of ensuring the equal participation of all members of a university, regardless of ethnic origin, religion or belief, disability, age or sexual identity in research and teaching, studies and further education as well as taking responsibility for disabled and chronically ill students

Further points:

  • Establishment of study commissions; in which students should be granted participation, design and influence rights in all teaching, examination and study matters
  • Obligation to enter into qualification agreements with temporary staff in mid-level academic staff
  • Improvement of the doctoral opportunities for graduates of the technical colleges
  • Obligation of universities to issue guidelines for “ good work ”, which a. Must contain specifications on the relationship between permanent functional positions and temporary qualification positions, for a better work-life balance and for health management.

The constitutional conformity of the amendment is repeatedly called into question. In May 2019, 32 Thuringian university lecturers around the Erfurt constitutional lawyer Hermann-Josef Blanke filed a constitutional complaint against the University Act before the Federal Constitutional Court . In October 2019, Blanke also submitted an expert opinion on behalf of the Thuringian CDU parliamentary group , in which the views on the unconstitutionality of the University Act are further elaborated.

Content and range

The state universities to which this law applies are finally listed in Section 1 of the law; it also applies to state-recognized, private universities. Currently this is the SRH University of Health Gera and the IUBH International University . The Thuringian University School of Public Administration is deviating through the Thuringian administrators Higher Education Act regulated, which also addresses the educational center of the Thuringian police is affiliated (BZThPol) in Meiningen. In contrast to other federal states such as B. Saxony, the regulations for the Studierendenwerk Thuringia are formulated in a separate law.

See also

literature

  • Hannes Berger, Lukas C. Gundling: University policy and university law. Using the example of the state of Thuringia . Dr. Kovac, Hamburg 2015, ISBN 978-3-8300-8622-2 .
  • Hermann-Josef Blanke and Isabelle Oberthür: Country Report Thuringia . In: Max-Emanuel Geis (Ed.): University law in the federal and state levels , loose-leaf collection, folder 2, CF Müller, supplementary delivery 46, Heidelberg 2016.
  • Hannes Berger, Lukas C. Gundling: On the law for the establishment of the Dual University Gera-Eisenach , in: Thüringer Verwaltungsblätter (ThürVBl) 12/2016, pp. 293-298.
  • Lukas C. Gundling, Hannes Berger: On the Reform of Thuringian University Law , in: ThürVBl 11/2017, pp. 257–265.
  • Klaus Dicke : University Policy , in: Torsten Oppelland : Politics and Government in Thuringia , Springer, Wiesbaden 2018, ISBN 978-3-658-20001-5 , pp. 329–347.
  • Margarete Mühl-Jäckel: Thuringian higher education law is on the move again - on the government draft of a new higher education law for Thuringia , in: ThürVBl 4/2018, pp. 73-78.
  • Hermann-Josef Blanke and Sebastian Raphael Bunse: University Law . In: Manfred Baldus and Matthias Knauff (eds.): Landesrecht Thüringen. Study book , Nomos, Baden-Baden 2018, ISBN 978-3-8487-2649-3 , pp. 437-447.
  • Hendrik Jacobsen: The Thuringian University Organization on the Scale of Scientific Freedom, in: LKV 7/2018, p. 299–307.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ BVerfG, decision of June 24, 2014 (1 BvR 3217/07) .
  2. ↑ Lukas C. Gundling: Unconstitutionality of the university councils of the Thuringian Higher Education Act - Alternative "Nordhäuser Model" , in: Landes- und Kommunalverwaltung - LKV 6/2016, pp. 253-257.
  3. ↑ Franz Frach / Lukas Krämer: The university senates' rights to participate in structural measures according to the case law of the Federal Constitutional Court , LKV 2015, p. 481 ff.
  4. ↑ Hannes Berger / Lukas C. Gundling: Hochschulpolitik und Hochschulrecht , 2015, p. 248 f.
  5. ↑ Hannes Berger, Lukas C. Gundling: On the law for the establishment of the dual university Gera-Eisenach , in: ThürVBl 12/2016, pp. 293–298.
  6. ↑ Thuringian Ministry of Economics, Science and Digital Society : Press release from September 12, 2017 Cabinet adopts draft for new Thuringian higher education law .
  7. ↑ BVerfG, decision of June 24, 2014 (1 BvR 3217/07) ; also Lukas C. Gundling: Unconstitutionality of the University Councils of the Thuringian University Act - Alternative "Nordhäuser Model" , in: Landes- und Kommunalverwaltung - LKV 6/2016, pp. 253-257.
  8. ^ Judgment of the Constitutional Court of Baden-Württemberg in proceedings 1 VB 16/15 on the management structures at the state universities.
  9. ^ Page of the state parliament on the draft and status of the legislation of the Thuringian law to strengthen co-determination at universities as well as to change other university regulations.
  10. ↑ BVerfGE 35, 79 - University judgment .
  11. ↑ a b Lukas C. Gundling: Teaching evaluation as an interference with teaching freedom? , in: Journal for State Constitutional Law and State Administrative Law (ZLVR), 1/2018, pp. 18–21.
  12. ↑ Hendrik Jacobsen: The Thuringian University Organization on the Scale of Scientific Freedom, in: LKV 7/2018, p. 307.
  13. ↑ Lukas C. Gundling, Hannes Berger: On the Reform of Thuringian University Law , in: ThürVBl 11/2017, p. 262 ff.
  14. ↑ Scientists file a constitutional complaint against the Thuringian University Act , article by the Thuringian General of 23 May 2019.
  15. ↑ University Act violates freedom of science , article in research and teaching of October 10, 2019.
  16. ^ Opinion on the Thuringian Higher Education Act causes controversy , article by Die Welt from October 10, 2019.
  17. ↑ Hermann-Josef Blanke, Robert Böttner, Sebastian R. Bunse and Isabelle Oberthür: On the constitutional assessment of the Thuringian University Act , legal opinion for the CDU parliamentary group in the Thuringian state parliament, presented in October 2019.