Category News

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.

63rd Assembly of the Central American and Caribbean Regional System of Research and Postgraduate Studies -SIRCIP-

The days 01, 02 and 03 of April have given rise to the development of the 63rd Assembly of the Central American and Caribbean Regional System of Research and Postgraduate Studies -SIRCIP-, an activity that has been carried out in a hybrid way, with face-to-face at the National University of Costa Rica -UNA-.

SIRCIP is an organ of the Central American University Confederation that strengthens, guides, supports, coordinates, harmonizes and integrates research and postgraduate studies, with a regional focus in the universities that make up CSUCA, thus seeking the sustainable human development of the region.

To begin the assembly, Radhamés Silverio González, President of SIRCIP, proposed, “I consider it appropriate to bring to this assembly a proposal that complements our vision of recognizing the incentive for research, which will allow us to make our academic activities more visible, namely the creation of the SIRCIP research award. I submit this proposal to this assembly because, as SIRCIP, we are aiming for more.”.

For his part, Carlos Alvarado, Secretary General of CSUCA, mentioned the importance of open science for the development of the system's actions: "It is necessary to promote mechanisms that facilitate open access, allowing the dissemination of scientific knowledge and guaranteeing the quality and relevance of the research generated by our universities, publicly, which will generate synergies for the work and development of our societies.".

And Francisco González, Rector of the UNA, spoke about the pillars that universities need to generate research: “Research must always strive to influence and be relevant to public policy. This is only possible if we have top-level researchers, a budget, and sustained investment. Without these three principles, nothing else can happen. We have the human potential, but we need training, equipment, and stability so that researchers can develop their potential.”.

The 63rd assembly's main objective was training through keynote lectures focused on developing university policies for academic publications and exploring new research trends in public universities. It also emphasized collaborative work through the Regional Research Council (CORI), the Regional Postgraduate Council (COREP), and the Technical Commission for Research and Postgraduate Studies.

It is important to highlight that in October SIRCIP will hold the VII Biennial of Research and Postgraduate Studies, which is organized by the University of San Carlos of Guatemala.

First Extraordinary Session of CONREVE

On Wednesday, March 19, the first Extraordinary Session of the year 2025 of the Regional Council of Student Life -CONREVE-, an organ of the Regional System of Student Life -SIREVE-, was held in virtual mode.

Activity whose purpose was to present and approve the proposed modifications to the regulations of the Central American University Sports Games -JUDUCA-.

To begin the session, Jorge Cortez, President of CONREVE, welcomed everyone and emphasized, “Thank you to all those present. This meeting is very important for our organization, as we will be taking an important initiative to modify the regulations of the Central American University Games -JUDUCA- and thus achieve their excellent development.”.

Meanwhile, Carlos Alvarado, Secretary General of CSUCA, mentioned, “I wish to highlight the collaborative work through CONREVE with commitment and responsibility. The JUDUCA games aim to carry out promotional, mass participation, and competitive sports activities to integrate our universities. It is important to make changes to the regulations for continuous improvement and the successful development of sports activities.”.

The Central American University Sports Games -JUDUCA-, are a multi-sport competition organized by the Central American University Confederation, which aims to promote sports in the region's public universities and is held every two years.

These games originated in May 2006 at the University of El Salvador -UES-, and this year the IX edition will take place at the National Autonomous University of Honduras -UNAH-, where more than 3,500 athletes from public universities in Central America, Panama, the Dominican Republic and for the first time from Cuba will gather, competing in 10 sports disciplines to be crowned as the best in the region.

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