The Free Network project is a Joint Action to be implemented in Central America. Its general objective is improving business opportunities for research-based entrepreneurs, promoting spin-off services in Higher Education Institutions and strengthening the innovation ecosystem in Central America. The FREE Consortium identified a lack of institutional regulations supporting the creation and development of spin-off, and the absence in most of the Central America universities of specific units with qualified and skilled staff. As consequence there is a very limited capacity to exploit the research results coming from academic/research staff and students. In this context FREE proposes facilitating the creation and development of spin-off companies. The project specific objective is the creation and modernisation of spin-off support services within 12 CA Higher Education Institutions through institutional and capacity building and the use of a regional network and platform.The FREE Network activities, implemented by 12 CA HEIS and 3 EU HEIs, will include: - in-depth needs analysis on research-based entrepreneurship in PC will provide a good insight of the situation of the CA HEIs in terms of spin-off regulations and units supporting research-based entrepreneurs;- capacity building for Innovation Support Offices (ISO) staff;- creation/adaptation of ISOs with appropriate institutional legislation, qualified HR and relevant infrastructure for providing spin-off support services;- creation of a regional platform for transferring good practices and exploiting synergies at regional level; - an ambitious disseminating and exploitation strategy of the project outputs;

HICA, which was driven by university associations, universities and ministries in 6 Central American (CA) countries, aimed to support the reform, innovation and harmonisation of HE curricula. The project further developed/implemented a regional qualifications framework for Central American HE (‘MCESCA’) – proposed by the prior project Alfa PUENTES (2011-14) – that defines what a student should know, understand and be able to do after each HE cycle, in a Central American social and political context. HICA further completed the MCESCA by defining learning outcomes for pre-bachelor, short-cycle programmes. This was done through national focus groups and consultations with academics, students and other social partners in the different CA countries, guided by a Technical Team that was appointed by national university associations. The project also examined time/credits required for the different HE cycles, with the objective of defining credit ranges to achieve the learning outcomes of the MCESCA. The MCESCA was simultaneously 'piloted' in partner universities. CA partner universities selected at least one study programme to revise and reform, defining work-load based learning outcomes that correlate to the MCESCA. European partners shared practice on curricula innovation in support of this, via a training programme that entailed three workshops, webinars and visits of European experts to CA countries. The pilot outcomes and the MCESCA itself were promoted widely to regional and national political bodies, employers, accreditation agencies, etc. via national promotion workshops in April through June 2018, organised by the associations and the ministries. These were used to enrich and validate the MCESCA as a tool in the region. HICA has had diverse impacts: The revised academic programmes have created a catalytic effect, bringing leadership, students and teaching staff together to implement curricula reform. In addition, CA universities have networked and reinforced regional cooperation. National associations and the ministries benefit from a regionally agreed tool that they can use for quality assurance and teaching reforms taking place in their own systems as well as recognition of studies between countries. The European partners benefit from discussions on frameworks for HE reform in CA, which will provide an important mirror for similar reforms that take place in the context of the Bologna Process.

Latin American Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are currently facing major challenges: (1) the number of students enrolled is growing exponentially, while the number of teachers is growing at a much slower rate; (2) teaching is no longer confined to the traditional classroom, and must live together with virtual programmes and blended models; (3) teachers need constant training to be up-to-date; and (4) there is a significant gap between the needs of the industry, and the training students receive in HEIs, which contrasts with rising unemployment rates in the Region. Therefore, it is time to rethink the way forward for HEIs in the Region, based on innovation in teaching-learning processes. The PROF-XXI project aims to build capacities for the development of Teaching and Learning Centres (TLCs) in the HEIs of the Region, taking into account the current educational context. To this end, (1) guidelines and models of TLCs will be developed around three axes: pedagogical, technological and strategic management; (2) 4 pilot TLCs will be installed in the 4 partner HEIs in Latin America, following these guidelines and models; (3) training will be provided to the professionals of the TLCs installed, being these TLCs the basis for the creation and development of Teaching Training Plans in the 4 Latin American HEIs.; (4) the Cooperation Network created in the project will serve to extend the creation of TLCs to other HEIs in the Region. In the short term, this project will improve the quality of education in Latin America, both in partner HEIs and in those which join the Network. This effect will be transferred to the whole of Latin American society through the quality training received by the professionals who graduate from these HEIs, and also through the possibility of replicating the capabilities created from the open materials generated in the project.