Royal University of Gotzborg

This article is a work in progress. As a result, it may be missing entire sections of information at this time.

The Coat of Arms of the Royal University of Gotzborg, designed by Sigrdrífa the Priestess on July 6, 2017, Ambassador of Stormark to Gotzborg.

The Royal University of Gotzborg (RUG) is the primary educational institution within the Royal Kingdom. It encompasses a range of specialized schools, both civilian and military, with the goal of increasing the knowledge and awareness of Gotzers and foreigners alike. It is governed by the provisions of the Royal University of Gotzborg Act.

Structure

The structure of the Royal University of Gotzborg has been defined by the Royal University of Gotzborg Act, a measure of the Sinclair Government, since April 7, 2011. This Act requires that the institution be primarily tasked with the provision of educational services and programmes to the Royal Kingdom's population, as well as foreign nationals where permitted by the Board of Regents.

A Rector leads the University, serving at His Royal Majesty's pleasure and acting as the institution's chief administrative and academic officer. The Rector may also serve concurrently as the Vice-Minister of State for Education, if so appointed by the Royal Chancellor.

Creation of internal regulations by which it is governed is the responsibility of the University's Board of Regents, which is a legislative body consisting of the Rector, as Chairperson, and a minimum of two other officers appointed by the Royal Chancellor. The Board adopts and amends internal regulations by a simply majority vote by open ballot, and it has charge of all academic-related matters. Among the specific powers of the Board of Regents as granted by the Royal University of Gotzborg Act are:

1. To determine the degrees, including honorary degrees, diplomas and certificates of proficiency to be granted by the University and the persons to whom they shall be granted;
2. To determine the conditions of matriculation and entrance, the standing to be allowed students entering the University and all related matters;
3. To consider and determine all courses of study and all matters relating to courses of study;
4. To regulate instruction and to determine the methods and limits of instruction;
5. To determine the conditions on which candidates shall be received for examination, to appoint examiners and to determine the conduct of all examinations;
6. To authorize the establishment of, or the abolition of, or changes in faculties, schools, institutions, and courses;
7. To consider all matters that are brought before it and to take action within the powers conferred by this Act;
8. To exercise disciplinary jurisdiction with respect to students in attendance at the University; and,
9. To make or alter a rule or regulation touching a matter regarding the University and consistent with this Act or with a law in force in the Royal Kingdom.

History

Initial Proposals

The development of the Royal University of Gotzborg began on January 29, 2005, when then-prospective citizen Christopher Harris-Till outlined a proposal to David Roest, then Deputy Vice-Minister of Health and Education.

Harris-Till was motivated, in part, by Roest’s desire to implement wide-ranging educational reform throughout the Kingdom, and was of the opinion that the formation of a university would assist that desire. “Since I have more than a little experience of the academic world and am currently without a significant way of contributing to Gotzborg, I would like to offer to assist with the establishment of a suitable national university,” said Harris-Till in outlining a six-point proposal that included:

1. The submission of the necessary legislation to the Chamber of Deputies;
2. The acquisition of the necessary charter of incorporation from His Royal Majesty;
3. The creation of a structure for the university, as described in statutes;
4. The establishment of faculties, as required, and possibly even distinct colleges should a collegiate structure be considered appropriate;
5. Potentially, outlines for several courses (including the supply of same for the faculty of history, so as to publicize Gotzborg’s fascinating past); and,
6. Communication with the land office to obtain suitable premises and with the necessary authorities to create employment opportunities for citizens.

Having spearheaded the recent development of a basic education bill within the Royal Cabinet Office for presentation to the Chamber of Deputies, Roest was receptive to Harris-Till’s proposal and suggested that he integrate the structure of Pendronia’s Richard Roelofs University, Roest’s alma mater. That university mimicked a macronational institution in its structure and included such faculties as science and medicine.

That suggestion was not universally supported. “It is more prudent for micronational institutions to focus on ‘civil service’ type programs primarily,” said Liam Sinclair, also a then-prospective citizen, who offered the example of Attera’s University of Munich, which focused on skills training for that micronation’s civil servants in addition to providing micronational-focused degree programs. “A micronational university should train its population to understand how the nation works and how to do their jobs within the laws of that nation and to the best result possible,” voiced Sinclair further.

A middle-ground between the stark proposals of Roest and Sinclair was the ultimate goal of Harris-Till in fleshing out his proposal. “I certainly agree that functionality needs to be taken into account in the structure … That said, I do not necessarily agree that an institution capable of reflecting Gotzborg’s needs as a micronation must completely dispense with macronation ‘flavour’,” he said. Harris-Till’s structure for the university would aim to mimic the character of a macronational university while providing practical courses suitable at a micronational level.

Bilateral Development with Attera

The proposed development of the Royal University of Gotzborg not only attracted the attention of Gotzers, but also of Attera, then one of Gotzborg’s closest allies. In a missive to the Foreign Office on February 4, 2005, Atteran Foreign Minister, Charles Beard, on behalf of Prime Minister Johanns fonn Klosso, proposed greater cooperation between the two micronations with respect to the development of micronational education.

As part of this proposal, the Klosso government would provide Gotzborg with control over the University of Munich, Attera’s national university, for integration into the Gotzborg education system. The offer was well-received by His Royal Majesty, King August Charles II. “I think that our Atteran Brothers are most generous in this offer and we would be remiss to decline such an opportunity to benefit both our nations,” he told Beard. Harris-Till agreed to incorporate the Atteran offer into his development.

On February 7, 2005, Harris-Till, now promoted to Deputy Vice-Minister of Health and Education (replacing Roest had since become Vice-Minister of the Home Office) issued a refined proposal reflecting the above-noted feedback, marrying the University of Munich micronational-focus with the Richard Roelofs University macronational structure. The Royal University of Gotzborg would consist of officers such as a Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and Registrar, along with governing bodies such as a University Council. The university would consist of faculties that would focus on providing micronationally-relevant courses in a variety of subject areas, with the faculties being organized into a collegiate structure in which colleges could be named to recognize the contribution of individual Gotzers and ensure the continuance of historical traditions.

By February 28, 2005, a mass exodus of citizens from Attera due to internal political strife had destabilized its government. The loss of key partners in the Atteran government (Beard and Sinclair), as well as a brief leave of absence by Roest, forced Harris-Till to postpone further bilateral development of the Royal University of Gotzborg.

Just over a week later, Harris-Till and the Royal Government formally abandoned the bilateral effort. “I am tempted to agree that rather than wait around [for Attera to stabilize] it might be better to establish a solely national institution,” he said. While Attera would not be precluded from future participation in the development of the Royal University of Gotzborg, it never did return to the table as it was unable to recover, in any meaningful way, from its destabilization.

Developing the University’s Structure

On March 7, 2005, Harris-Till released a tentative structure for the Royal University of Gotzborg that consisted of five distinct branches:

1. The Principal Officers, such as the Chancellor, Vice-Chancellor and Registrar of the university, who were to be responsible for the administration of the university. The Chancellor would be the serving Deputy Vice-Minister for Health & Education, who would appoint the Vice-Chancellor and Registrar;
2. The Council, which was to consist of the three Principal Officers plus additional members as appointed at His Royal Majesty’s pleasure;
3. The Regent House, the governing and legislative body of the university, responsible for creating the legislation by which the university operated. The Regent House would include the members of the Council, the heads of Faculties and Colleges, as well as the fellows of the Colleges;
4. The Faculties, which were to be the formal divisions responsible for teaching and the conduct of research; and,
5. The Colleges, which were the autonomous historical and administrative divisions of the university, to which all members of the university with the exception of the Principal Officers must belong.

The appointment of the Deputy Vice-Minister for Health & Education as Chancellor was controversial at the time, as most micronational universities maintained a separation from government as a means of ensuring academic independent. In explaining his proposal, Harris-Till noted that the Royal University of Gotzborg needed “at least one of its officers to be appointed ‘from outside’ in order to ensure contact with the world beyond the institution.”

The Council being composed practically of only all three Principal Officers, unless other individuals were appointed by His Royal Majesty, and their inclusion in the Regent House was designed by Harris-Till to protect the governance of the Royal University of Gotzborg against a potential lack of human resources in the future. “If it happens that only the principal officers are around, then by definition they make up the entirety of [the Council and the Regent House],” said Harris-Till, responding to concerns that absent participants may cause the university government to falter.

Despite being a national institution, the Royal University of Gotzborg would exist as a single institution, situated in Lonenberg City, as opposed to a collection of campuses spread across the kingdom. The styling of the structure was very much inspired by the Oxbridge Collegiate system in the United Kingdom, given that as a British subject, Harris-Till was most familiar with that system.

With the release of the tentative structure, interest amongst Gotzers in participating in the Royal University of Gotzborg continued to swell. Daniel Dreesbach, a recent immigrant from Attera, offered to take on the position of Vice-Chancellor or Registrar, while Ernest Wilde offered to instruct in law. Sinclair, now appointed as the Deputy Vice-Minister for Communications & Information further offered to have his ministry support the creation of the Royal University of Gotzborg’s official website.

Meant to evolve as a centre for excellence in micronational academia, Harris-Till further designed the Royal University of Gotzborg such that its instructors and other staff would demonstrate some level of competence in order to obtain positions. Harris-Till nonetheless noted that the overriding and most important requirement to join the university as a member of its staff was enthusiasm to participate in its development.

Official Creation and Beginnings

On March 15, 2005, His Royal Majesty signed the Royal Charter officially creating the Royal University of Gotzborg.

By March 24, 2005, Harris-Till, in his role as Chancellor of the university, opened its first two offices: the University Central Administrative Office (UCAO), responsible for its general organization; and, the University Board of Academic Studies (UBAS) for the development of academic programmes.

Degree programmes were quickly structured in line with a proposal by Wilde that was based on the designation of core units and electives for any given programme. For example, he envisaged that the Law programme at the Royal University of Gotzborg would consist of core units such as Criminal Law and Procedure, Torts, Evidence, etc., plus several electives that touched on more specialized areas such as Media Law and Comparative Law.

On June 18, 2005, His Royal Majesty bestowed on Harris-Till the Cross for Loyal Service, in part for his efforts in developing the Royal University of Gotzborg.

2005 to 2007

The Royal University of Gotzborg was quickly setback in its development when, in May 2005, the Gotzborg community forums, then hosted by Ezboard, suffered a mass deletion which left only a couple of dozen threads recoverable.

It was not until 2006 that the university began to recover its footing, at which point it became a popular venue for general interest public lectures on a variety of topics by Juergen de Cautzburg, as well as a public lecture by General of Cavalry Sir Hugh O'Neill on his survey of Ansbach.

On November 10, 2006, the Royal University of Gotzborg granted its first degree, admitting Sinclair to the degree of Bachelor of Engineering with Distinction, in recognition of his macronational university education in that field of study.

Yet while it was used for public lectures, the university did not regain the initial steam it possessed and its faculties failed to organize and offer degree-granting programmes. By April 2007, when Gotzborg entered into a three-year activity hiatus, the Royal University of Gotzborg saw no further development of its structure or its academic programmes apart from that conceived in the 2005 formative discussions.

Rectors

Terms of Appointment

There have been two Rectors since the foundation of the University. Both Rectors to have served have hailed from the Archduchy of Pendronia and have Richard Roelofs University as their alma mater, reflecting that institution's influence on the development of the University in 2005.

#	Name	Term Commencement	Term Conclusion
1	His Grace Nicholas	September 28, 2010	January 29, 2014
2	Sir David Roest-Westhin	January 29, 2014	Incumbent

Sir David Roest-Westhin

Since January 29, 2014, the Rector of the Royal University of Gotzborg has been Sir David Roest-Westhin, KB, who was appointed by the Royal Chancellor, His Grace Liam. Roest is a graduate of Richard Roelofs University and was appointed to the position in recognition of his long-standing interest in the development of the educational systems of both Gotzborg and Pendronia.

Chancellors

Prior to the creation of the position of Rector upon Gotzborg's return from hiatus in 2010, the Royal University of Gotzborg was led by a Chancellor, who normally held the position of Deputy Vice-Minister for Health and Education. There was only one Chancellor prior to the dissolution of the position, that being Christopher Harris-Till, the architect and founder of the Royal University of Gotzborg. Harris-Till served in the position from March 15, 2005 until Gotzborg entered into an activity hiatus on April 22, 2007. Harris-Till was replaced by McAlpin when Gotzborg returned to activity as he was no longer an active citizen.

Courses

The Royal University of Gotzborg focused its course offerings on micronational studies, as well as practical skill development for those individuals employed by the Crown Service. Offerings were available in the following subject areas:

• Introductory Law;
• History (Gotzborg, Pendronia, Anthelia, Victoria and Intermicronational);
• Micronational Political Science; and,
• Crown Service Skills (Administration, Report Writing, Law/Regulation Writing, and Diplomacy);

The University was also responsible for military studies courses offered through the King Charles III War Studies College.

Certain course content is available through Micras Wiki.