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HEALING THE WOUNDS OF WAR
The Russian-Ukrainian War and its consequences are the reality that determines the movement of the university and our country today and for many years to come. The UCU community faces numerous challenges. Our task is to increase the university’s influence and contribute to healing the wounds of war and to victory.
UCU MEDICAL CLINIC
The UCU Medical Clinic has opened. It is a center that provides quality care for patients and a base to prepare future physical and occupational therapists and psychologists. These experts will be crucial to Ukraine in wartime and the post-war rebuilding.
The mission of UCU’s Medical Clinic is to build a new kind of relationship between doctor and patient and to form a culture in
which one cares for his or her health to prevent sickness rather than treating the consequences.
“Our goal is to offer a complete approach to making the nation
healthy. Among our tasks are providing medical first aid and teaching patients to react to changes in their bodies in a timely manner,” said Oksana Kovalska, head of the clinic.
HELP FOR VETERANS
To provide support to soldiers returning from war, UCU has established an Office for Affairs of Veterans and Their Families, headed by veteran Pavlo Koval.
The university offers a variety of possibilities for the education of veterans, support within those educational programs, and the development of policies for veterans’ assimilation into the community.
“It’s important for us to create a veterans’ community at the university, where they are understood and supported, where their needs are taken into account. This includes the creation of an inclusive space and access to the university’s various resources,” commented Pavlo Koval.
FORTRESSES OF RESILIENCE
UCU experts are involved in programs to support Ukrainians’ mental health. In order to share the experience of mental health care and help other schools develop an active system, the university hosted a meeting of rectors of Ukrainian universities
“SAFEGUARDING: The child’s safety in the church environment” is an international project involving the UCU Child Dignity Center team and colleagues from Croatia, the Czech Republic, Poland, Slovakia, and Hungary. They have created an educational course for adults who care for the safety of children in the Church, translated into five languages. The project also included an artistic display.
As a continuation of cooperation with the National Program of Mental Health and Psychosocial Support, UCU hosted a national forum “Collective Resilience, Healing, and Growth,” initiated by Ukrainian First Lady Olena Zelenska.
“The resilience of children and youth depends, first of all, on the resilience of their families, their parents’ support, and also the social environment. We expect that all Ukrainian schools and institutions of higher education will become fortresses of resilience,” said Oleh Romanchuk, Director of UCU’s Mental Health Institute.
Operating at UCU are the Horizon of Hope Mental Health Center and the Counseling Crisis Center, where members of the community can seek help.
Pavlo Koval, a war veteran, heads the Office for Affairs of Veterans and Their Families.
Veteran, UCU grad, and Doctor of Eastern Christian Studies Oleh Tsunovskyi, who was seriously wounded on the frontlines, took part in the national forum.
A NEW MAJOR IN ROBOTICS
NEWS
The team at UCU’s Library began introducing important changes to books on the history of Ukraine in the U.S. Library of Congress classification system. As a result, the history of Ukraine has been separated from the history of Russia and post-Soviet countries, and there has been a detailed development of distinct historical periods, in particular, the 20th and 21st centuries. A new section on the Russian-Ukrainian War has also been created.
UCU’s Machine Learning Laboratory has been admitted to the European Laboratory for Learning and Intelligent Systems (ELLIS) as an associate unit. This partnership opens great horizons for development and cooperation for the university and opportunities for young scholars to interact with the Ukrainian IT industry.
An international scholarly symposium “Challenges of Russia’s War against Ukraine and the Ethical Principles of Sustainable Peace” was held in Munich. Organized by UCU, the University of Notre Dame (U.S.), and Ludwig Maximilian University (Munich), the symposium discussed topics including the Russian aggression’s challenges to security and ethics, the role of the Church in forming values-based narratives, the meaning of just peace and how to achieve it.
UCU Applied Sciences Faculty launched a new major in robotics.
Courses within the major will allow students to master programming skills to create robots and robotized systems. The faculty worked on the creation and development of the program together with the National University Kyiv-Mohyla Academy.
The program’s students will have joint courses online and offline.
“Computer-engineering and robotics skills are the key to technological independence and a nation’s general level of development. This is particularly important in wartime, as there is a need to develop devices which will help Ukraine continue, win, and rebuild,” said Oleh Farenyuk, head of the program.
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NEW MAJOR PROGRAMS OF COOPERATION
9
PROJECTS in a research program for professors
9
GRANTS for the development of educational programs
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GRANTS for individual projects with online access to the Notre Dame Library
The themes of the joint scholarly research involve Russia’s invasion of Ukraine: war and resilience, the religious dimension of the war, moral and legal responsibility, the integration of human development, permanent renewal, and historical memory.
PROFESSORS’ ACHIEVEMENTS
His Beatitude Sviatoslav named Fr. Yuriy Shchurko to be head of the UGCC’s personnel structure, which helps the Head of the Church and the Synod of Bishops coordinate the formation of the personnel policy of the Church and its structures in Ukraine.
UCU Vice-Rector Oleh Turiy received an award from the German-based Peter Hünermann Fund of KAAD (Catholic Academic Foreign Service) for his many years of cooperation and academic and ecclesiastical activities in Ukraine.
UCU doctoral student Dmytro Kushnir received a government award “For Work and Achievement” from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
DISSERTATIONS DEFENDED
Oleksandr Avramchuk, manager of the Department of Clinical Psychology of the Health Sciences Faculty, defended his dissertation towards receiving a Doctorate in Psychology.
Yuliya Vintoniv, professor of the Theology-Philosophy Faculty, received a PhD in Theology.
Doctoral students of the Humanities Faculty
Orysya Vira and Tetyana Banakh defended their dissertations towards receiving PhDs in History.
PROFESSOR OF THE YEAR
Honorees for the “Professor of the Year 2024” prize were Bohdan Chuma, assistant professor in the History Department of UCU’s Humanities Faculty and Natalia
Terlych, professor in UCU’s Applied Sciences Faculty. Orysya Vira, a professor in UCU’s History Department, received an award with distinction.
Blind scholar Tetyana Banakh, thanks to persistent work, defended a dissertation to receive a PhD. With Prof. Yaroslav Hrytsak as her advisor, she worked on a difficult but relevant theme, “Polish-Ukrainian historical reconciliation (1989-2013).”
“I felt the support of my environment, which was evident in both large and small matters,” Banakh explained.
“Throughout all the years of my studies at UCU, I was helped with access to literature and with the scanning of various sources.”
ON THE FRONT LINES
For a third year, the Ukrainian people’s struggle continues for independence, liberty, and human dignity. What do our heroes look like? The university continues to record stories of the war and tell them to the world.
Serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of September 2024
22 students
15 staff
70 graduates
38 staff members and 118 students await family members to return from war
38 persons have become veterans of the war
Hryhoriy Prystay, UCU graduate, founder of the St. Anthony Iconography Workshop, and father of three children, joined Ukraine’s defenders in January of 2023.
“The war has taught me to live without expectations. When you have some expectations and they don’t work out, you start to toss up your hands and it’s hard for you. But, you know, if something doesn’t work out today, that’s ok. Tomorrow is another day. And all that’s left for you is to be as effective today as you can be.”
Head of the UCU Rector’s Office and now a soldier, Ostap Machynskyi signs a flag for the university during an expedition to Eastern Ukraine for the project “Little stories of a Big War.”
Mykhaylo Bonys, a graduate of the UCU Faculty of Theology and Philosophy and of the UCU Business School, is the father of two children. He is involved with aerial reconnaissance, heading a division that is chronically underfinanced.
“God will not give you a cross that you can’t bear. The Lord gives strength. He is near and appears in various ways. If we trust God, He will help.”
LIGHT OF JUSTICE
The honorees of the 2024 Light of Justice award, for dedication and heroism, and for the defense and rescue of the lives of others, were Alina Mykhaylova, founder and head of the medical service of the Ulf Battalion of DaVinci’s Wolves, and Kateryna Prokopenko, head of the Association of Families of the Defenders of Azovstal.
Lesya Shemberko, a graduate of the UCU Social Pedagogy Program, is the first woman commander of an assault platoon in Ukraine’s Army. She chose to join the army, studying to become an officer. Before the full-scale invasion, she fought on the frontlines as commander of a mountain assault brigade. In February 2022, she rebuffed the occupiers in the steppes of Kherson and Zaporizhzhia She is the mother of a young son.
“I don’t want the history of Ukraine written without me. I want to be part of the mechanism that creates history.”
Roman Oliynyk, UCU student, is the senior lieutenant of one of Kyiv’s defense brigades. He has been in the army since the first days of the fullscale invasion. He prepared for war because he understood that sooner or later Russia would attack Ukraine.
“I am convinced that we all need to prepare for war and help the soldiers. If you are fortunate enough not to be involved in direct military actions, you still need to be prepared, for sometime, perhaps, you will need to take arms in hand to defend our country from the enemy.”
UCU graduate Sister Lukiya Murashko, who serves in the Basilian convent in Zaporizhzhia, was one of the honorees of the Lumen Christi 2023-2024 award from the Catholic Extension Society.
The Sisters of the Order of St. Basil the Great received an award for those who radiate the light of Christ in the communities where they serve. “We are your hands to spread good. Thanks to you, we can continue our mission,” said Sister Murashko during the awards ceremony in the U.S.
Father Rostyslav Vysochan is a graduate of the TheologyPhilosophy Faculty and Holy Spirit Seminary in Lviv. Since 2014, he has served as a military chaplain and regularly travels on rotation to the frontlines.
“Our motto as chaplains is to be beside Ukrainian soldiers, to support them. ‘To be beside’ does not mean to follow them step by step but to be near them when they need it.”
UCU BACHELOR’S STUDENTS 2024
339/ women
1237
STUDENTS
ENTRANTS FOR BACHELOR’S DEGREES
131/ men
LABORATORY OF VOLUNTEERING –FIVE YEARS
The Laboratory of Volunteering has operated at the university for five years. Its goal is to inspire students to serve through civic participation, leadership, and volunteering.
The laboratory works with more than 30 organizations that provide young people the opportunity to serve. More than 1500 students have been involved in various forms of volunteering. More than 250 young people have coordinated projects in four areas: service to vulnerable groups, ecological volunteering, helping the army, and culturaleducational initiatives.
of bachelor’s and master’s programs received some type of scholarships/tuition and reductions/ loans provided by the university
“Ukraine’s soldiers are giving you the opportunity to acquire a good education in one of the country’s best universities. Be appreciative of this opportunity, and show respect for Ukraine’s defenders by being the best students of all. With the challenges that await us, a person with a clear head and skilled hands will be worth his or her weight in gold.”
SERHIY PRYTULA, volunteer, founder of a charitable foundation, and UCU graduate, spoke about philanthropy to students on Giving Tuesday.
STRONGER TOGETHER
Parents of students came together to become better acquainted, communicate, and work on common ideas.
Ivanka Mohylyak, head of the Dean’s Office of Student Life, explained: “Students’ parents are part of our university family. They were actively included in the process of group work, and they generated and discussed ideas.”
Oleksandr and Sofiya Yevdokimov, parents of an UCU student and a graduate, said: “The university is part of the life of our children, and parents should take an active part in it.”
EDUCATION IN DIPLOMACY
Students of UCU and the NU Kyiv-Mohyla Academy received three awards at the Model UN in New York.
In addition to the three Model UN awards, the Ukrainian students, together with participants from the Model UN Club at MacEwan University, received an award from the Canadian Bureau for International Education for a joint project on the internationalization of education.
UCU RECTOR’S SOCCER LEAGUE
A cherished tradition of our university is competitive soccer tournaments to determine a university champion.
Through its participation in international competitions, Ukraine is included in the discussion of global questions. And for Ukrainian Catholic University, this is also a way to build a wide circle of global partners and a global UCU.
“I’m proud of our team. I’m grateful for their phenomenal efforts and for the fact that Ukraine is finally showing concern, active work, and involvement. This is how to build solidarity, partnership, and mutual relations among countries,” said Halyna Protsyk, assistant to UCU’s Vice-Rector for External Relations and the team’s coach.
SERVING THE UKRAINIAN PEOPLE
UCU Rector Taras Dobko met with His Holiness Pope Francis.
With the blessing of the Father and Head of the UGCC His Beatitude Sviatoslav, UCU’s rector had his first official visit to the Vatican.
During a private audience, Taras Dobko thanked the Holy Father for prayers and support for Ukraine and emphasized: “Our Church and we at UCU are called to give people and nations hope, to develop a theology of hope in the conditions of war and its consequences.”
“Your witness to hope in the terrible situation of war is particularly important for my ministry,” maintained Pope Francis, and he thanked the university community for serving the Ukrainian people, especially the younger generation.
TOGETHER WITH UKRAINE
The Archbishop of Constantinople, Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, received a delegation from UCU that included the Kyivan Christianity program.
The patriarch expressed his unconditional support for Ukraine and condemned Russia’s unjust war against Ukraine. He extended
his greetings to the entire UCU community, noting that he was impressed by the university’s many activities.
MORE THAN
70 INTERNATIONAL PROFESSORS throughout the 2023-2024 academic year taught courses on the UCU campus. Another 50 international professors were involved in teaching online.
COIL
COURSES in the
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4 FOREIGN PROFESSORS FOREIGN STUDENTS
Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) continues to be used successfully to introduce Ukrainian materials and experiences into the educational courses of partner universities. COIL format
UCU Ukraine
UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY
Development Department
Striyska str., 29a
Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Center, Room 525 Lviv, 79011
Tel: +38 (032) 240-99-40
e-mail: development@ucu.edu.ua
USA
UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY FOUNDATION
2247 W. Chicago Avenue Chicago, IL 60622
Phone: 773-235-8462
Fax: 773-235-8464
e-mail: hello@ucufoundation.org www.ucufoundation.org
A sculpture exhibit was installed and blessed in Holy Wisdom of God Square.
Canada
UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION
Suite B-02, 770 Brown’s Line, Toronto, ON M8W 3W2
Phone: 416-239-2496
e-mail: ucef@ucef.ca www.ucef.ca
The six sculptures symbolize six gestures that the priest makes while praying the prayer for the blessing of the Holy Gifts during the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom: Jesus “took bread into His holy, most pure and immaculate hands, gave thanks, blessed, sanctified and broke it; He gave it to His holy disciples and apostles, saying…”
Idea for the project: Metropolitan Borys (Gudziak)
Sculptor: Volodymyr Semkiv
Landscape architect: Mark Eischeid
UCF Great Britain
UKRAINIAN CATHOLIC FOUNDATION LONDON
e-mail: ucf.london.ucu@gmail.com
Website: https://www.justgiving. com/ukrainiancatholicfoundation
CHILDREN OF PROFESSORS AND STAFF OF THE UNIVERSITY NEAR THE UNIVERSITY CHURCH OF THE HOLY WISDOM OF GOD WITH THE UKRAINIAN FLAG.
SOLDIERS FROM THE UCU COMMUNITY STATIONED ON THE FRONTLINES SIGNED THIS FLAG WITH WISHES FOR VICTORY AND A JUST PEACE!