The Academic Senate of the Faculty of Science of Masaryk University (MU) today re-elected Tomáš Kašparovský as the Dean of the Faculty of Science MU. In his second term of office, Tomáš Kašparovský will lead the faculty for the next four years, starting from February 2022. He will be appointed to the office by the rector of MU, Martin Bareš.
Kašparovský defeated the second candidate, Karel Kubíček, who works at the Department of Condensed Matter Physics and the CEITEC Institute. "Twenty of the twenty-seven senators gave their vote to Tomáš Kašparovský”, said Zuzana Došlá, Chairperson of the Commission for discussing the proposal for the Dean's Appointment.
As regards the management of the faculty over his next term of office, Tomáš Kašparovský wants to promote, among other things, a hybrid form of education that will combine full-time study with teaching materials created during the implementation of distance learning during the covid-19 pandemic. “It turns out that, especially in theoretical subjects, this form of education could actually increase academic success. Long-distance forms of communication could prove especially useful for implementing teaching (e.g. seminars) with foreign partners or with partners from practice”, Tomáš Kašparovský explained.
The old/new Dean will also strive to obtain accreditation for a five-year Master’s Degree for future teachers at secondary schools, as well as furthering the process of internationalising the faculty through new study programs in English. He also wants to expand the range of courses on offer, especially as regards professionally oriented fields of study, and is considering increasing the number of students accepted each year.
In the field of research, he will strive for a new synergy between the faculty’s own activities and those of research centres (e.g. CEITEC, ICRC), allowing researchers to make maximum use of the instrumentation available and thereby further develop research at the faculty. “I consider it essential that teaching of students, at all levels of study, remains at the faculty, while the research centres focus primarily on experimental scientific work. I am also concentrating on the development of large research infrastructures within the faculty (e.g. RECETOX RI, CEPLANT, ELIXIR) and arranging suitable conditions for their use by the faculty”, said Tomáš Kašparovský.
In the area of personnel, Tomáš Kašparovský sees improvements in gender equality at the faculty as a priority. Part of this process will involve the removal of obstacles that have resulted in unequal representation of men and women in faculty governing bodies and improving the availability of childcare for faculty staff at both campuses.
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