The Constitutional Principle of Subsidiarity and the Scope of the Autonomy of Higher Education Institutions in the Modern Polish Legal Order

The subject of this article is the discussion of the basic issues concerning the principle of subsidiarity (helpfulness) and the concept of the autonomy of higher education institutions in the modern Polish legal order. While analyzing the scope of the autonomy of universities the fundamental question of the limits of such an autonomy arises. The main problem is finding the adequate proportion between the freedom of decision taking by higher education institutions and the interference of the government in the university’s activities. The object of the article is not the presentation of the detailed theory concerning the influence of the principle of helpfulness on the scope of the autonomy of higher education institutions nor the thorough analysis of the broad meaning of the concept of the principle of helpfulness and the autonomy of higher education institutions. The main aim of the author is the indication of the possibility of connection of the principle of helpfulness with the autonomy of higher education institutions. The combination of the principle of helpfulness and the regulation concerning the autonomy of higher education institutions may prove useful in the process of constituting and applying the provisions concerning higher education. What does the principle of helpfulness have in common with the autonomy of higher education institutions? The basis of the principle of helpfulness as well as the autonomy of higher education institutions is the affirmation of freedom, human subjectivity and subjectivity of human communities.