Chilean government requests closure of Universidad del Mar

The Ministry of Education submitted its request to the National Council of Education (CNED) on Monday for the closure of Universidad del Mar, following a five-month audit. University officials, employees and students were not officially notified of the request and were instead informed of the possible closing upon reading local press publications.

The request was made after officials accused the private university with 14 campuses throughout Chile of violating its own constitution.

“First you have to listen to all the sides and decide if what the ministry is saying and asking for is correct,” Universidad del Mar Director Patricio Galleguillos told the press. “If it is, we will begin a gradual closing of the institution and, at the same time, we and the Council will ensure the timely certification of university students or their transfer to other institutions of higher education.”

The ministry’s investigation found inequalities among university administration of the various branches and statute violations involving the election process of the university board.

In a statement made Tuesday, Galleguillos and the university’s board of directors voiced their expectation of the Ministry to formally notify the university of their conclusions. They also noted that, according to the law, the university has the right to present a defense before the CNED.

“We will exercise all rights to help the university in defense of the interests of students, faculty and staff,” the statement said.

The university also denounced the fact that the ministry did not inform the university directly.

- The Santiago Times