Commemoration of the 20 editions of Campus Ítaca
On November 22nd an institutional event was held in the central administration and executive offices of the UAB to commemorate the 20th edition of the social and educational programme Campus Ítaca. This programme, which fights against premature school-leaving, was initiated by the UAB in 2004 and is sponsored by Santander Universidades. During the event, which was broadcast on the university’s YouTube channel, a study conducted by the ATLAS research group and the FAS was presented and, in addition, a round table was held with different people who had participated in the Campus.
23/11/2023
“20 years of commitment to educational success” was the title of this event which was held on November 22nd last, at 12.30pm, in the function room of the central administration and executive offices. The event was attended by people who had participated in the programme during the past 20 years and was an opportunity to look again at the origins of the programme and to take stock of it.
The Secretary General of the university, Esther Zapater, opened the meeting. In her speech, she affirmed that this project is “an important part of the umbilical cord that ties the UAB to the territory”.
Next, the impact assessment report of the Campus was presented, which was carried out by the Atlas group and the Fundació Autònoma Solidària. Angelina Sánchez, a lecturer from the Department of Applied Pedagogy, delivered the main results. One of these is that one third of students from third year compulsory secondary education in Spain [ESO] who participate in Campus Ítaca end up pursuing university studies in the UAB. Sánchez also explained that almost 6,800 people, from 33 different towns and cities, participated in Campus Ítaca during the twenty editions. 73% of them are from unstable socioeconomic situations and 90% do not have adult role models with university studies in their everyday environment. Among other data, the report also shows that 98% of the participants express, upon finishing Campus Ítaca, that they want to continue their education; 17%, in addition, affirm that their idea about what they want to do has changed after the stay. Almost 99% of the participants complete compulsory secondary education and the majority of them go on to do further upper secondary academic education [batxillerat] and, to a lesser degree, vocational training.
The event also included a round table called “Opportunities for educational success”, in which different people linked to the project over the years participated: Neus Sanmartí, director of the Institute of Educational Sciences [ICE] of the UAB between 2002-2008, an organisation that promoted the creation of Campus Ítaca in 2004; Anna Marbà, lecturer from the Faculty of Educational Sciences, who participated in a trip to Scotland to study the project of Strathclyde University and a collaborator with Campus Ìtaca since the first edition; Maria Antònia Parera, a teacher from the Can Jofresa Secondary School in Terrassa, who has participated in the project since the outset and has helped 27 of her students to be awarded the Beques-Salari study grants; and Sergio Corral, former participant of Campus Ítaca and fourth year student of the Bachelor’s Degree in Translation and Interpreting at the UAB who is following his university studies thanks to Beques-Salari study grants, which have enabled him, among other things, to go to Japan for a period of time. For his part, Rafael Merino, lecturer from the Department of Sociology and moderator of the debate, affirmed that Campus Ìtaca has the characteristic of “bringing the UAB closer to distant settings” despite their geographical proximity.
Next, a video was shown which takes a look at how the idea of the Campus came to be, with speeches by the team behind the project, such as the rector Lluís Ferrer and the coordinator of the Campus, Pilar Garcia. In addition, young people, group monitors and teaching staff participate in this video, as well as institutional representatives of the programme.
In the closing speech, the rector of the UAB, Javier Lafuente, referred to the data from the ATLAS assessment report because “they reaffirm the positive impact Campus Ítaca has by motivating and encouraging young people to continue their studies”, as well as “helping them to travel in time and giving them the opportunity to form a part, for a few days, of our university community”. The president of Santander Universidades, Matías Rodríguez Inciarte, emphasised the importance of public and private collaboration and of supporting programmes such as the Beques Salari Ítaca Santander-UAB and Campus Ítaca because they demonstrate the value “of accessing higher education, the culture of hard work and the role of universities in economic, cultural and social progress”.
Presentation of the Beques Salari study grants
In another event that took place in the afternoon of the 22nd, diplomas were presented to the last four classes of students who had received the Beques Salari Ítaca (UAB-Santander) study grants.