THE POLISH envoy to the Philippines visited the University last Jan. 12 to kickstart educational linkages between UST and Polish universities.
Ambassador Adam Jelonek said his objective was to find connections in Asia for education and research.
“We have a program in the European Commission where we send college students in Europe to countries in Asia like Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia for at least a year,” Jelonek told the Varsitarian. “Thus, we now plan to include the Philippines as a new destination for our students not only to experience the educational system, but also the culture of the country.”
It won’t be difficult to establish a partnership between Polish and Philippine universities because such arrangements had been tested in other countries, he said.
Before meeting Fr. Rolando de La Rosa, O.P., Rector of UST, Jelonek sat down at the UST Museum of Arts and Sciences office with director Fr. Isidro Abaño, O.P. and College of Commerce and Business Administration Dean Ma. Soccoro Calara to discuss possible exchange programs.
“This would help us strengthen the University,” Calara said. “It would start with the exchange of faculty members.”
Calara said the partnership could start with Jagiellonian University in Krakow, where Jelonek teaches. Jelonek has an MBA from Warsaw University, Poland’s oldest university.
The Faculty of Medicine and Surgery can also have partnerships with Polish medical schools, she said.
The Polish ambassador also discussed how to strengthen the two countries’ cultural ties. Jelonek said the Polish government plans to have a piano concert with the best Polish pianists in Kuala Lumpur in May, and another concert in UST after the exhibition in Malaysia.
As representative of Poland’s head of state, Jelonek also serves as ambassador to Malaysia, Brunei, and Palau.
The visit of Jelonek to the University was made possible by the initiative of Consul Fernandino Lising of the Consulate General of the Republic of Poland. Lising serves as the right hand of Jelonek in the Philippines, and also teaches entrepreneurship in UST.
Jelonek got a tour in the UST Museum, where he saw the special chair used byw Blessed Pope John Paul II of Poland, who visited UST in 1995.
“There can be a possibility to exchange impressive artifacts from our university museum (Jagiellonian University in Krakow) with UST Museum,” Jelonek said. With reports from Rodolfo Serafin Jerome T. Lozada
