“A year of stability and strategic transformation” — this was the title given by Igor Sikorsky KPI Rector Anatoliy Melnichenko to his report at the Igor Sikorsky KPI Staff Conference. The conference was held on January 26, 2026, in the University Academic Council Hall.
In fact, this title defined the main theme of this meeting of representatives of the university's thousands-strong staff. Two issues were on the conference agenda: 1) reports by the rector, the chair of the trade union committee, and the chair of the university's student trade union committee on the work and implementation of the Collective Agreement from April 2025 to January 2026; 2) miscellaneous. It should be noted that last year's conference, held in April, approved the Collective Agreement not for one year, but for 2025-2030, so this year the draft of such an agreement for the next period was not considered. The meeting was chaired by First Vice Rector Mykhailo Bezuglyi.
The conference was a logical conclusion and summary of the reporting campaign of the heads of faculties and institutes to their staff. During its preparation, a joint commission for verifying the implementation of the provisions of the Collective Agreement, which included representatives of the administration and the university's trade union committee, worked diligently.
The meeting of the university trade union activists began with a tribute to the memory of Kyiv Polytechnic University students who gave their lives in the fight for Ukraine's independence and territorial integrity during the past year and at the beginning of this year.
The delegates then reviewed the implementation of the Collective Agreement for the period from April 2025 to January 2026, listened to and discussed reports by KPI Rector Anatoliy Melnychenko and the chairmen of the trade union committees of university employees and students, Yuriy Veremychuk and Igor Stepanuk. The conference unanimously approved the rector's activities over the past year and the work of the university's trade union committees during this period. Under “Other Business,” the delegates considered and adopted a decision to approve the new compositions of several working bodies of the Conference for the period between it and the next Conference of the Labor Collective: the working commission for verifying the implementation of the Collective Agreement, the commission on labor disputes, and the Council of the Labor Collective on social, legal, and housing issues. In addition, scientists who have made a significant contribution to the development of our university were elected to the Academic Council from various categories of employees.
So, the first to take the podium was Anatoliy Melnichenko, Rector of Igor Sikorsky KPI. "This conference is being held during an extremely difficult period for the country in the higher education system. Last year was a year of challenges unprecedented in the history of our independent state. These challenges—security, socio-economic, demographic, institutional—require not only high adaptability from the university, but also strategic maturity, responsible management, and most importantly, team unity," said the rector at the beginning of his speech, which became its essence. and thus became the leitmotif of the rector's entire speech. "In these conditions, the role of the university as a center of knowledge, critical thinking, and human capital formation takes on special significance. At the same time, it is thanks to the leadership, professionalism, endurance, and dedication of each member of our community that the university maintains stability, ensures the continuity of the social process, promotes scientific research, and fulfills its social missions." He also stressed that all of the above is not only the basis for an objective assessment of the scale of Kyiv Polytechnic's activities, but also the foundation for planning its further work in the coming years. The rector also provided a comprehensive analysis of the university's activities over the past year in all areas specified in its charter, focusing separately on the implementation of each section of the collective agreement and describing the measures taken to this end.
"Today, KPI demonstrates how classical education can be harmoniously combined with modern technologies, international cooperation, and advanced scientific education. We have all the prerequisites to take our rightful place in the higher education system not only in Ukraine but also beyond its borders. All this is thanks to our joint efforts," emphasized Anatoliy Melnychenko. At the same time, he briefly outlined the challenges that the university will have to overcome in the coming year, in particular those related to the demographic decline in our country, which is leading to a decrease in the number of students, and some others that will ultimately determine our strategy, and expressed confidence that the team will cope with all of them.
"I would like to thank our entire community for another year of dedicated work for the benefit of Ukraine. There are still many challenges ahead, but based on our shared values and experience, we are moving forward. I believe in each of you and in our common victory. Together, we will definitely overcome all difficulties!" – the rector concluded his report with these words.
The reports on the results of work over the past year and on the implementation of the Collective Agreement for the period from April 2025 to January 2026 by the head of the University Trade Union Committee Yurii Veremiiuk and the head of the University Student Trade Union Committee Ihor Stepanuk concerned not only internal university trade union activities, but also the participation of the trade union activists of Igor Sikorsky KPI in the city and national trade union movement and volunteer activities to support the Armed Forces of Ukraine. But, of course, the leaders of the university trade unions focused primarily on issues directly related to the lives of Kyiv Polytechnic students and solving the problems of the thousands of members of the university community. Nevertheless, readers can find the full texts of both reports in our newspaper, so we will not dwell on them in detail.
After the speeches by the rector and the heads of the trade unions, several questions and proposals were raised from the audience concerning the organization of the university's future work and the system for electing delegates from among higher education students to the university's elected bodies. The proposals were taken for further consideration.