ROMA VERSITAS ALBANIA

Background
Roma Versitas Albania as a program is existing for already two years. Following-up the increased number of Roma students and their need for ownership of joint initiatives, organized and followed-up from one place, following-up the need for space for individual and collective development in order to make them able to respond to challenges the Roma community is facing in Albania, on April 8, 2016 Roma students came with a joint initiative that was supported by the f Roma Education Fund - submission a formal registration request. Roma Versitas Albania was registered on May 30th, 2016.
Roma Versitas Albania's structure is composed by the:
General Assembly,
Advisory Board. and the
Administration.
General Assembly is the higher body of the organization and its composed by all the members of the organization. It has same function, like the selection of the members of AB; the selection of Executive Director; approval of strategy and the yearly plan & budget, etc.
Advisory Board that is composed by 5 members selected by General Assembly. The Advisory Board is the decision-making body in the period between the meeting of General Assembly and exercise all the powers of decision-making, with the exception of those powers that the law or statute expressly recognizes only to the General Assembly.
The Administration is composed by the Executive Director, Finance Manager and Secretary-General, as well Local Coordinators and Project Coordinators in base of the projects that the organization is implementing. Curator and director of the administration is the Executive Director. By the request of the Secretary-General and with the approval of the Executive Director can be created departments for the implementation of projects and programs in relation with the Statute and the Internal Regulations of Roma Versitas Albania. RVA has also created the ALUMNI from Roma graduated and have volunteers counting over 120 members both Roma and non-Roma students and graduates.
1.Executive Director has the following powers: Directs the activities of the Association; It represents the Association in relations with third parties; Approves and signs all acts arising on behalf of Roma Versitas Albania; Chairs the meeting of the Advisory Board; Coordinate activities between association members and other consulting organizations, if such rise; With the approval of the Advisory Board, it employs administrative staff necessary for the implementation of different programs and projects of the association.
2.Finance Manager is responsible for the welfare of all expenditures and financial documents necessary for the functioning of the association. He/she performs his/hers function on the basis of internal procedures of the association and the Albanian laws.
3.The Secretary-General is the person who manages and coordinates the implementation of projects and activities of the association. The Secretary General has the following powers: is responsible for overseeing the functioning of departments in accordance with the Internal Regulations of the association; Coordinates the work of departmental staff; It keeps the minutes at meetings of the General Assembly and the Advisory Board; Holds the book of decisions, orders, instructions and correspondence; It keeps the register of members as well as any other documentation provided by the statute or by a decision of the General Assembly.

Objectives & Mission: Roma Versitas Albania has three principal programmatic fields:
" In Education, were RVA's objective is to increase the Roma students average, capacities, graduation, registered in tertiary education, leadership, advocacy, professionalism, etc.;
" In Employment, were the RVA's objective is to do lobbing and advocacy for Roma graduates employment, especially in the public administration that work on Roma issues;
" In Participation, were RVA's objective is the increase the number of Roma in decision-making.

Roma Versitas Albania Strategic Objectives:
" To aim to gradually rise up the number of students registered and to have tertiary Education graduated Roma students from all state and private universities in Albania;
" To aim to build nucleus of Roma professionals, Intellectuals and Leaders successful in their careers, but also capable to understand and contribute to Roma empowerment on local, national and international level;
" To aim to build group or groups of Roma graduates proud promoters of their identity, and at least half of the graduates to have professional devotion to Roma inclusion in Albania;
" To aim to successfully support (by lobbying and advocacy) the employment of graduated Roma students in Public Administration and Institutions.

Roma Versitas Albania Mission:
" To gradually increase the number of Roma students registered in tertiary Education;
" To i gradually increase the number the number of Roma graduated in Albania;
" To build nucleus of Roma professionals, Roma Intellectuals and Roma Leaders successful in their careers but also capable to understand and contribute to Roma empowerment on local, national and international level;
" To build group or groups of Roma graduates proud promoters of their identity, and at least half of the graduates to have professional devotion to Roma inclusion in Albania; and
" To successfully support, by lobbying and advocacy, the employment of Roma graduated per year in Public Administration and other Institutions.

Work: Impact of RVA's work fall in 3 main categories:
a) Education;
b) Employment;
c) Participation.

Human Resources
Roma Versitas Albania have employee:
" 4 Full-time
" 2 Part-time
" 3 Interns
" 200 volunteers.

Projects & Donors: Roma Versitas Albania was created after the implementation of the Roma Versitas Program supported by REF-Roma Education Fund during 2014-2016, from which comes the name of the organization. To archive the main objectives from 2016 Roma Versitas implemented and is implementing the follow projects:
" To aim to gradually rise up the number of students registered and to have tertiary Education graduated Roma students from all state and private universities in Albania from 2016 to 2018 is implementing the Roma Versitas Program in Albania in its three resource centers Tirana, Elbasan and Korca, supported by Roma Education Fund.
" To aim to successfully support (by lobbying and advocacy) the employment of graduated Roma students in Public Administration and Institutions from November 2016 is implementing the project "Internship scheme for Roma and Egyptians University students and High School graduates" in four main cities Tirana, Durres, Shkodra and Berat supported by UNDP/ESERE Albania (Economic and Social Empowerment for Roma and Egyptians - A Booster for Social Inclusion Project).
" To aim to build nucleus of Roma professionals, Intellectuals and Leaders successful in their careers, but also capable to understand and contribute to Roma empowerment on local, national and international level from October 2016 implemented "Barvalipe School Albania "ViMeSemAkate" supported by RIO/OSF and is in waiting of approve to implement the following second year of this school.

Media
From the beginning of the Program, from September 2016 till now Roma Versitas Albania had it presence in many public and private television, through it Executive Director, because previously he was involved like Local Consultant of the ODIHR, Facilitator for Protection from Discrimination of the Ombudsman, Expert in Roma Rights and Roma Rights Activist, etc. Some of the media links are below:
https://youtu.be/KIClCwAcnLg
https://youtu.be/o1k-OV-IVf4
https://youtu.be/b1YhmKPQTEo
https://youtu.be/HP9U3QX3yQk
https://youtu.be/YNMt6VNN5U8
https://youtu.be/zwmR0gocibU
https://youtu.be/czCtNYKx2nY
https://youtu.be/ubaHP4DGHiY
https://youtu.be/odZ73TkUL1w
https://youtu.be/I5dt7-kaNv8
http://www.mapo.al/2015/11/emiliano-aliu-nje-frymezues-me-ane-te-shembullit/1
http://www.lapsi.al/lajme/2015/10/23/uet-100-bursa-sociale-p%C3%ABr-student%C3%ABt-ekselent%C3%AB#.V2yA9Gh97IU