Towards the Freedom-Seeking Mission of the Ukrainian University

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Date
2021
Authors
Kvit, Serhii
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Abstract
What do we know about the challenges faced by universities and intellectuals in the country with a long history of statelessness? In this essay, I address this question by looking at the development of the Ukrainian university. In the post-Soviet environment, institutions that are regarded as higher education entities very often have nothing to do with genuine university traditions. For example, the ability to issue higher education diplomas is not a sufficient condition for being an institution of higher education. However, that is not always obvious in the post-Soviet circumstances. Instead of adhering to global standards of organizational purpose, values and standards, some post-Soviet politicians and academics have a tendency to be proud of the international competitiveness and scientific achievements of the Soviet period, when the totalitarian state spent considerable resources on the needs of the military-industrial complex and communist propaganda. The university communities are thus tempted to stay in the shadow of the narratives created by the colonizer. In this essay, I will explore the implications of this from the viewpoint of decolonization, increased social significance, and, as a matter of fact, (re)establishment of the Ukrainian academia.
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Keywords
history of statelessness, education diplomas, Soviet university, communist subjects, Kyiv-Mohyla Academy, safeguard against corruption, article
Citation
Kvit S. Towards the Freedom-Seeking Mission of the Ukrainian University / Serhiy Kvit // Universities & Intellectuals. - 2021. - Vol. 1, no. 1. - P. 30-35. - https://cerc.edu.hku.hk/universities-and-intellectuals/1-1/towards-the-freedom-seeking-mission-of-the-ukrainian-university/