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Organisational structure

Founding appointment committee

A founding appointment committee for the five professor positions in the central institute has been set up by the Faculty Council of the Department of Philosophy. This committee is responsible for the appointment procedure.

The appointment committee also includes members of the faculties in which the professor positions to be filled are to receive second membership. The agreement to allocate a second membership to another faculty to the professor positions was reached with the support of the appointment committee on the basis of the priorities. A declaration of intent will be sought from the faculty council of the second faculties tying the professor position to a desired denomination as second members. The faculty councils have also been asked to grant their own members a mandate to be on the appointment committee. After their appointment, the post holder can request a decision from the faculty council of the faculty in which they are aiming to be granted second membership according to paragraph 29 of the Berlin Higher Education Act. In the case of subsequent appointments after the first professor positions, joint appointment committees are to be set up by the Institute Council and the Faculty Council of the faculty to which the professor position or junior professor position is allocated according to paragraph 74 of the Berlin Higher Education Act.

Institute Council

The appointment of Dr Helmrath as the Founding Director, who will take on the tasks of the Institute Council until it is constituted on 1 October 2019, was made by the university management in coordination with the Catholic Church. At the invitation of the Founding Director, four professor members of the appointment committee and one member from each of the remaining status groups on the appointment committee have been asked to request a second membership at the Institute of Catholic Theology. The professor members should come from the faculties being considered for second membership for the professor positions to be filled. Following a resolution in the respective home faculties, these members are then linked to the Institute as a second membership. There will then be an election to a Founding Institute Council. This Founding Institute Council will initially be made up of four professors and one person from each of the membership groups of academic employees, students and service, technology and administration employees.

Statute

A statute shall be established by a committee under the leadership of the Founding Director with the involvement of the Development Planning Committee and taking into account ecclesiastical regulations and passed by the Founding Institute Council. Among other things, the statute shall regulate subsequent elections to the Institute Council once the institute professor positions have been filled.

Study and examination regulations

The objective is for initial study and examination regulations to be established by a committee under the leadership of the Founding Director and with the involvement of the Teaching and Studies Committee and external expert academics with the ecclesiastical regulations taken into account in order to allow study to start from the 2019/2020 winter semester. At the same time, continuation of study by students at both FU and HU should be enables in close collaboration with the Free University, and the protection of legitimate expectations should be ensured. The principles of a new, innovative Bachelor’s programme in “Religion and Society” will also be developed. The study regulations will then be passed by the Founding Institute Council.