The decision on the creation of the specialised standing committees of the Academic Council of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute was approved in September 2019. It was dictated by the need to improve the management system of the university's research activities. And, of course, the need to ensure a comprehensive study of the issues laid before the Academic Council, and the formulation of proposals regarding the decisions that university scientists make at its meetings. It was determined that standing committees were created for the term of office of the University Academic Council, and they were formed from members of the Academic Council and employees of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute.
Then, let's recall, 9 standing committees were formed. They were an educational activity committee, academic personnel audit committee, scientific and innovative activity committee, a science-and-technology commission (council) for specific subjects, legal matters committee, international relations committee, ethics and academic integrity committee, and university economics and finances committee, as well as formulation of proposals for legislative and regulatory documents committee. Later, two more committees were added to them - the social and educational work committee and the university strategic development committee.
Three years have passed since then. Now the standing committees of the Academic Council are the usual bodies, it is impossible to make any important decision regarding the educational, scientific, organisational, economic and other types of activities of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute without their preliminary review and recommendations.
The performance of the University Academic Council for 2022 testify the effectiveness of their work. Mykhailo Ilchenko, the chairman of the Academic Council of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, talked about that. Therefore, we provide our readers with some provisions of his speech and information about the work of committees.
Throughout 2022, the standing committees of the Academic Council, despite all the difficulties, continued to work fruitfully, creating the expert environment in which ideas for the university's effective operation and development were born and formed.
Currently, we have 11 standing committees, and more than a hundred employees of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute serve on them. Their work covers all areas of the university's activities: educational, scientific, expert and financial.
Members of committees participated in:
- Work of university advisory bodies:
- - budget commission,
- university strategic development committee,
- - coordinating commission for the foreign citizens recruitment,
- Academic Council, and others;
Public discussion of governing document concerning higher education and science issues:
- of the university ("PhD Viva Voce Practices");
- of the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine (draft of the order "Some issues of state (regional) demand formation and placement, combination of specialties (subject specialties), specialisations", Selection Board Procedures for representatives and experts to the implementation of the European Union’s Horizon Europe Framework Programme for Research and Innovation monitoring committees);
- of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine ("Regulations on the procedure for implementing innovative activities in the field of education", "On amendments to the Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine dated March 23, 2016 No. 261", draft Procedure for providing financial support for the creation of high-tech industries with the participation of higher education institutions and scientific institutions on the terms of co-financing);
- of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (draft of the Recovery Plan of Ukraine (chapter "Education and Science"), a response to the deputy's appeal regarding proposals for amendments in the legislative direction, which will make it possible to reduce the energy and heating costs for settlements, single-family homes and blocks of flats, as well as regarding alternative energy sources);
- of the President of Ukraine (draft of the Decree of the President of Ukraine "On Amendments to some Decrees of the President of Ukraine regarding the annual grants of the President of Ukraine to young scientists and doctors of science").
In addition, members of the standing committees of the Academic Council of the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute participated in the work of committees of the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine. In particular, during the preparation of some drafts of regulatory and legal documents (the draft of the Law of Ukraine "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine Regarding the Use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by Law Enforcement Bodies and Combating Their Illegal Use" (reg. No. 8185) and others).
It is clear that they were not immune to important intra-university events:
- evaluation of sociological surveys on academic integrity;
- open discussion "Honesty: values in daily actions";
- - orientation meeting with post graduate students regarding training and defence of theses, and others.
Moreover, members of committees participated in meetings with experts within the accreditation process of educational programs of all levels of higher education;
On the operating results of the committees:
- - proposals for 13 governing documents were formulated, most of which were taken into account in their final versions;
- 24 scientists of the university were recommended to the expert commissions of the Ministry of Education and Science and the Scientific Council of the National Research Foundation of Ukraine;
- 14 scientists of the university were supported to participate in competitive selections for receiving state and departmental scholarships, awards, etc.;
- 8 governing documents of the university were updated, in particular:
- The procedure for establishing the facts of violation of academic integrity at the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute;
- Regulations on the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute awards for the best publications in 2022;
- Regulations on Open Science at the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute;
- a number of measures were taken to support young scientists (48 scientists were supported);
- an expert assessment of research works carried out at the university, including the works of 7 doctoral students, was conducted;
- university academic personnel audit was carried out;
- university scientific activities in several directions was normalised;
- 217 employees of the university were awarded with university, departmental and state awards;
- 11 one-time Dissertation Advisory Committee were created for PhD Viva Voce;
- 21 employees who are not among the doctors of sciences of the university have been given the right to supervise postgraduate students;
- 22 scientists were awarded the title of professor and 49 – associate professor:
- - 25 scientific monographs were recommended for publication;
- 31 textbook were assigned;
- - 39 issues of the university's scientific publications were recommended for publication;
- - outstanding scientists, employees and students who died in the war with russia were commemorated.
As for the plans for the next year, as noted by Mykhailo Ilchenko, intensification of the standing committee’s operation in the social and educational, and international directions is the first among them, as well as the involvement of a larger number of students and postgraduate students in the work of the committees.