Author: SG CSUCA

58th General Assembly of SICEVAES

The fifty-eighth general assembly of the Central American System for Evaluation and Harmonization of Higher Education -SICEVAES- was held on April 28, 29 and 30, at the University of San Carlos of Guatemala -USAC-.

SICEVAES is the system that promotes a culture of quality, evaluation, and accountability to society in the universities that make up CSUCA, using evaluation and accreditation as a management strategy for change, modernization, and improvement of universities.

To kick off the event, Brenda Marroquín, Director General of Teaching at USAC, stated, “Today we celebrate not only the opportunity to meet, but also the opportunity to host such an important event, a gesture we value and embrace. SICEVAES represents the commitment to promoting quality as a social engine; in our countries, this allows us to guarantee better development opportunities.”.

Meanwhile, Carlos Alvarado, Secretary General of CSUCA, emphasized, “Currently, the integration of artificial intelligence into social, economic, and cultural processes is rapidly transforming how we conceive of knowledge, learning, and teaching. Therefore, as university authorities, we find ourselves needing to promote complex thinking that allows us to understand and act in a world characterized by constant technological evolution. This implies that we must rethink our pedagogical approaches, our curriculum, and our evaluation systems to train highly qualified professionals committed to the challenges of society.”.

For his part, Willson Mejía, President of SICEVAES, stated, “This system is the only opportunity we have to achieve quality education. Quality should not just remain rhetoric, but become an achievable goal. At SICEVAES, we have several advanced projects underway, and there is a technical team ready to make it happen.”.

And on behalf of the University of San Carlos of Guatemala, Luis Fernando Cordón Lucero, Secretary General, extended a warm welcome: “On behalf of the University of San Carlos of Guatemala, I extend a warm welcome to the City of Santiago de los Caballeros, the venue for the 58th General Assembly of SICEVAES. I am convinced that these days of academic work will be filled with collaborative efforts and fruitful results.”.

The general assembly included the presentation of keynote lectures, including “Complex Thinking in the Age of AI” by the University of San Carlos of Guatemala and ”Challenges for UMIP Teachers and the Implementation of the Socio-Formative Educational Model: Reflections from the Academic Vice-Rector's Office“ by Professor Roberto Aparicio.

Likewise, the presentation of the vice-rectorates of each university, considering the trends perceived from their institutions, in terms of innovation, academic management, strategies and teaching-learning methods, in order to find opportunities for joint collaboration.

It is worth noting that this assembly presents an opportune space for collaborative work generated through the Permanent Commissions by strategic objective of Program 3 of the Fifth Plan for the Integration of Higher Education in Central America and the Dominican Republic -PIRESC V-, presentation of reports on progress and identification and planning of concrete activities to be carried out in 2025 by subcommittee.

IX SIREICU General Assembly

On April 8 and 9, the Ninth General Assembly of the Regional System of University Information and Communication -SIREICU- took place, an activity carried out in virtual mode, based at the Technological University of Panama.

The purpose of this meeting was to develop the call for the first delivery of the “SIREICU Awards”, as well as the work of each of the commissions of the system, which respond to Program 7 “Information, Communication and University Dissemination” of the Fifth Plan for the Integration of Higher Education of Central America and the Dominican Republic -PIRESC V-, and the development of the work of the presidency of the system by Roberto Tejada representing the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo -UASD-.

To begin the activity, Roberto Tejada, president of the system, stated, “I am here at this assembly with my team, with whom we bring proposals for the improvement and proper functioning of our system. We hope that in this assembly we can define and materialize the initiatives we bring today.”.

Kathya Baruco, representing the Technological University of Panama, mentioned the work of SIREICU in recent years: “For this university, it is an honor to host this assembly, a system whose efforts over the years have yielded results through different communication formats to publicize the work of our universities.”.

For his part, Carlos Alvarado, general secretary of CSUCA, called for the benefit of technological tools for university outreach, raising awareness about the importance of creativity from the different areas of communication: “Colleagues, technology offers you powerful tools, but the value lies in your creativity, your ethics and your commitment to truth, inclusion and excellence.”.

It is worth noting that this working meeting was very fruitful and as part of the progress of the presidency of the system in charge of Roberto Tejada of the Autonomous University of Santo Domingo -UASD-, the new web portal for the Comunica Network, new graphic line of the Comunica Network, digital bulletin of SIREICU, proposal for the first delivery of the SIREICU Awards were presented and approved.

The next general assembly will take place on September 25 and 26 of this year, culminating on the last day with the first presentation of the SIREICU Awards, for which a call for entries will soon be opened so that communicators belonging to the universities that make up CSUCA can participate in five categories, these being journalism, public relations, graphic communication, digital communication and advertising and promotion.

63 Asamblea Sistema Regional Centroamericano y del Caribe de Investigación y Posgrado -SIRCIP-

Los días 01. 02 y 03 de abril han dado lugar al desarrollo de la 63 Asamblea del Sistema Regional Centroamericano y del Caribe de investigación y Posgrado -SIRCIP-, actividad que se ha desarrollado de manera híbrida, con presencialidad en la Universidad Nacional de Costa Rica -UNA-.

El SIRCIP es un órgano de la Confederación Universitaria Centroamericana que fortalece, orienta, apoya, coordina, armoniza e integra la investigación y los estudios de posgrado, con enfoque regional en las universidades que integran el CSUCA, buscando así, el desarrollo humano sostenible de la región.

Para iniciar la asamblea, Radhamés Silverio González, Presidente SIRCIP propuso “Considero oportuno traer a esta asamblea una propuesta que complementa nuestra visión de reconocimiento al estímulo, a la investigación, lo que permitirá visibilizar nuestras actividades académicas, siendo la creación del premio de investigación SIRCIP, someto la propuesta a esta asamblea, porque como SIRCIP vamos por más”.

Por su parte, Carlos Alvarado, Secretario General de CSUCA mencionó la importancia que tiene el tema de la ciencia abierta para el desarrollo de las acciones del sistema “Es necesario fomentar mecanismos que faciliten el acceso abierto que permitan la difusión del conocimiento científico que garanticen la calidad y relevancia de las investigaciones que se generan desde nuestras universidades, de manera pública, que permita generar sinergias para el trabajo y desarrollo de nuestras sociedades”.

Y Francisco González, Rector de la UNA habló sobre los pilares que requieren las universidades para generar investigación “La investigación debe siempre procurar influencia y pertinencia en la política pública, esto solo es posible si tenemos investigadores e investigadoras del más alto nivel, el presupuesto e inversión sostenida, sin estos 3 principios no puede suceder nada más. El potencial humano lo tenemos, pero requerimos formación, equipamiento y estabilidad para que las y los investigadores puedan desarrollar su potencial”.

La 63 asamblea ha tenido como principal objetivo la capacitación mediante conferencias magistrales enfocadas a la construcción de políticas universitarias en publicaciones académicas, las nuevas tendencias de investigación generadas en las universidades públicas. Así como, el trabajo colectivo mediante el Consejo Regional de Investigación -CORI-, el Consejo Regional de Posgrado -COREP- y la Comisión Técnica de Investigación y Posgrado.

Es preciso destacar que en el mes de octubre el SIRCIP desarrollará la VII Bienal de Investigación y Posgrado, la cual se encuentra a cargo de la Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.