The event aims to facilitate critical discussion on programs promoting the educational access of persons belonging to historically marginalized and racialized groups, such as Roma. The conference, celebrating the 20^th anniversary of launching CEU’s Roma Access Program, facilitates critical discussion on programs promoting the educational access of persons belonging to oppressed groups. The conference promotes the participation of Romani scholars and professionals including those who took part in such programs earlier and aims to facilitate a knowledge exchange amongst various scholars and professionals from educational and social sciences.

Organization

Hybrid conference organized by the Romani Studies Program at Central European University with the Yehuda Elkana Center for Teaching, Learning, and Higher Education Research at CEU; the Roma Program at the FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University; and the Critical Romani Studies Department at Sodertorn University

Registration

Registration by 12 May at https://forms.office.com/e/uJmhz0rbxf

Argument

Neoliberal education systems reproduce and reinforce privileges and inequalities.  They frame structural socio-economic differences as if they were differences in capabilities, achievement, and merit.  In most European countries, Roma students are provided with segregated and/or low-quality education, which either prevents them from pursuing further studies or leads them to low-prestige and low-quality study options and career choices, if any, which perpetuates their exclusion from social, economic, and political participation. Moreover, the complex, historically situated intersected manifestation of epistemic and structural injustice hindering access to quality education from primary to higher education has inhibited participation in knowledge production.

Education could and should play a crucial role in dismantling structural inequality, marginalization, discrimination, and prejudice and in enabling Roma to fulfill their potential and participate equally in all areas of modern society. The Roma Graduate Preparation Program, started in 2004 named Roma Access Program, has been fulfilling this role for 20 years with outstanding outcomes.

The conference, celebrating the 20^th anniversary of launching CEU’s Roma Access Program, facilitates critical discussion on programs promoting the educational access of persons belonging to oppressed groups. The conference promotes the participation of Romani scholars and professionals including those who took part in such programs earlier and aims to facilitate a knowledge exchange amongst various scholars and professionals from educational and social sciences.

Selected papers will be published in Critical Romani Studies journal. Earlier issues are available at https://crs.ceu.edu

Program

Abstracts and biographies https://bit.ly/3xPPLIp

Location: Central European University, Vienna (room D-001) and online JOIN US BY SIGNING UP HERE  https://forms.office.com/e/uJmhz0rbxf

All times are Central European Time

16 May Thursday

12:00-12:30 Registration

12:30-12:45 Welcome

Welcome by Eva Fodor (Pro-Rector for Teaching and Learning, Former Academic Director, Roma Access Program, CEU) and Angela Kocze (Chair of Romani Studies and Academic Director, Roma Graduate Preparation Program, CEU)

12:45-13:30 Keynote Address Judit Durst (Senior Researcher, Centre for Social Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences and Research Fellow, University College London): False Promises and the Racial Glass Ceiling: Can educational support programs challenge the reproduction of inequality in Higher Education?

13:30-13:45  Coffee break

13:45-15:15  Roundtable Discussion 1: The Rationale, Significance, and Challenges of Access Programs

Participants: Angela Kocze (Chair of Romani Studies and Academic Director, Roma Graduate Preparation Program, CEU)

• Prem Kumar Rajaram (Professor of Sociology and Social Anthropology and former Academic Director, Roma Graduate Preparation Program, CEU)
• Michael Kozakowski (Director, Yehuda Elkana Center for Teaching, Learning, and Higher Education Research, CEU)
• Margareta Matache (Director, Roma Program, FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University)
• Jan Selling (Head of Department, Critical Romani Studies, Sodertorn University)
• David Ridout (Director, Center for Academic Writing; former English Director, Roma Access Program and Roma Graduate Preparation Program; and former Director, Roma English Language Program, CEU)

Moderator: Viktoria Vajnai (Academic Advisor, Roma Graduate Preparation Program, CEU)

15:15-15:45 Coffee break

15:45-17:15  Panel 1: The Opportunities and Limitations of Educational Support Programs

Chair: Marton Rovid (Visiting Professor, Romani Studies Program and Tutor, RGPP, CEU)

Papers:  Ismael Cortés (Universitat Jaume I, Castello): Higher Education for Roma and Epistemic Activism. A pathway to contemporary political praxis

• Julianna Boros (University of Pecs) - Judit Durst (Centre for Social Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences; University College London) – Zsanna Nyiro (Centre for Social Sciences, Hungarian Academy of Sciences) – Abel Beremenyi (University of Barcelona): Accumulating Roma Cultural Capital: The role of educational support programs in facilitating social mobility among first-in-family Roma graduates in Hungary
• Jethro Shirley-Smith (University of East Anglia): Reach Harder for Higher Educational Access Programs for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller People
• Judit Veres (CEU): Claiming Knowledge as Part of the Scholarly Dialogue

Discussant: Violetta Zentai (Senior Research Fellow, Democracy Institute, CEU)

15:30-17:00 Parallel event of the Center for Teaching, Learning, and Higher Education (room D002)

Student and the University: Identity, agency and action

• Keynote by Rille Raaper (Associate Professor in Sociology of Higher Education, Durham University)
• Comments by Martin Unger (Head of Research Group, Institute of Advanced Studies Vienna)                

17:15-17:30  Coffee break

17:30-18:30   Roundtable Discussion 2: The Professional and Personal Impacts of the Roma Graduate Preparation Program

Participants: 

• Ismael Cortes (Associate Professor, Universitat Jaume I, Castello, Spain)
• Anna Daroczi (Voluntary Service Coordinator, Phiren Amenca, Hungary)
• Mikulas Lakatos (Chief State Counsellor, Office of the Plenipotentionary of the Government of the Slovak  Republic for Roma Communities, Slovakia)
• Fridon Lala (Member of Parliament, Kosovo)
• Sunita Memetovic (Lawyer, Sweden)

Moderator: Pusa Nastase (Senior Program Manager, Yehuda Elkana Center for Higher Education and former Tutor, RGPP, CEU)

18:30-19.30 Hybrid Alumni Gathering of the Roma Access Program/Roma Graduate Preparation Program (only for alumni)

Organizers: 

• Miljana Cabrilovski (Quality and Development Assistant, Boffetti Balcan), (Serbia)
• Dimitar Dimitrov (MA, Global Tourism, University of Economics, Varna) (Bulgaria)
• Maria Dumitru (PhD Candidate, MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion, and Society), (Romania)
• Djuli Ramadani (Trainee, European Union Fundamental Rights Agency), (Serbia)
• Fernando Ruiz Molina (PhD Candidate, School of Society and Culture, University of Plymouth), (Spain)
• Kenan Tair (Communication Officer, Institute for Research and Policy Analysis, Romalitico) (Macedonia)

Moderator: Katalin Nemeth (Alumni Outreach, RGPP, CEU)

19:30-21:00  Light dinner and opening of poster exhibition 20 Years of CEU’s Roma Access Programs

Opening Remarks: Angela Kocze (RGPP, CEU) Viktoria Vajnai (RGPP, CEU)

Location: QS51, Glass Hall

17 May Friday

9:30-11:00 Panel 2: Access to Higher Education and Anti-Roma Racism

Chair: Rufat Demirov (PhD Candidate, DSPS, CEU)

Papers:

• Justyna Matkowska (University at Albany, State University of New York) – Simona Torotcoi (CEU): Antigypsyism and Roma Participation in Higher Education in Poland and Macedonia
• Martina Drobenova (Bulgarian Academy of Science) – Ognyan Isaev (Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridksi): Beyond Tuition: Addressing structural barriers for Roma students in Higher Education
• Sylva Reznikova (Czech University of Life Sciences Ara Art): Marginalization of Roma University Students Through Discursive Practices in Czechia
• Natascha Hofmann (University of Freiburg): Differentiating Markers in Educational Biographies of Sinti*zze and Rom*nja and the Power of Self-positioning of Sinti*zze and Rom*nja.

Discussant: Sanjay Kumar (Co-Director, University Access and Preparatory Programs, CEU)

11:00-11:30 Coffee break

11:30-13:00   Panel 3: Educational Empowerment and Legal Dilemmas

Chair: Simona Torotcoi (Research Fellow, German Marshall Fund and Tutor, RGPP, CEU)

Papers:

• Milena Parland (Abo Academy University, Finland): Countering Exclusion Inside Egalitarian Schools Creatively
• Zsuzsa Plainer (Romanian Institute for Researching National Minorities): University Places for Roma and the Romani Language Teacher Program in Romania. Acquisition of credentials or sources of educational and social mobility?
• Sina Van de Bogaert (European Commission): Ethnic Quota in Higher Education: Positive action tackling structural discrimination or unjustified differential treatment?
• Nick van Faals (KU Leuven): From ‘Equality of Opportunity’ Towards ‘Equality of Results’: A progressive shift of European Court of Human Rights case law about Roma school segregation

Discussant: Agnes Kende (Research Fellow, Democracy Institute, CEU)

13:00-14:00 Lunch break

14:00-15:30 Roundtable Discussion 3: The Pedagogy of Access to Higher Education

Participants: Petra Bakos (Tutor, RGPP, CEU)

• Andreea Nicutar (Tutor, RGPP, CEU)
• Lucija Balikic (Tutor, RGPP, CEU)
• Simona Torotcoi (Tutor, RGPP, CEU)
• Judit Veres (Tutor, RGPP, CEU)

Moderator: Angela Kocze (CEU)

• 15:30-15:45 Closing Remarks Margareta Matache (Director, Roma Program, FXB Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard University)