The Everlasting Legacy of the Transition Period University President

 Eduardo Morales described his experience at the head of Universidad de Santiago de Chile for two consecutive terms (1990-1998) as an “interesting challenge". The University President during the Transition period who made public the report issued by the University Reconciliation Commission in July 1991 and who drove big transformations that allowed our institution to be recognized as a complex and complete university, never talked about the evident achievements of his work.

The development plan driven by this visionary President is demonstrated by the big change that our state and public University had during his tenure, passing from a traditional model to a model ahead at that time.

The boost that he gave to research work, inter-institutional and international relations and his proximity to the requirements of a country that was starting to reassemble itself after a 17-year dictatorship, are reflected in the creation of centers and institutes and the opening of programs like Journalism, Psychology, Architecture, Medicine, Nursing, Obstetrics, English-Japanese/English-Portuguese Translation and the Bachelor’s program in Sciences and Humanities, as well as several PhD and Master’s programs. He also started the research associates program, a project that allowed our University to give a qualitative leap in academic productivity indicators.

All the former was part of the unusual dynamics that characterized Universidad de Santiago during his eight years leading the institution. Nothing was left to chance and different areas were covered: the Sello Editorial university press, the Society of Technological Development and the University Enterprise Foundation started their activities then.
 
He showed his humanist spirit in every action, as well as his strict professional training as an engineer from Universidad Católica, and his vision of future. Before he left us, he always showed his interest in replicating the big contributions of world trends in higher education in our country, in adapting and strengthening teacher training, and particularly, in interesting engineering students in social sciences in order to give them a comprehensive education as professionals so that they could have a good performance before technical audiences and interact with other professionals from different fields of knowledge.

In July 2012, when he was named Professor Emeritus of our corporation, his main concern was to transform our University in a world-class institution. At the same time, he turned his critical eye to the political arena and pointed out that the student movement should constitute a challenge and an opportunity for the State to reach a national agreement in pursuit of an inclusive and quality education.


Eduardo Morales Santos, the first University President democratically elected after the dictatorship, was a generous friend, an advocate of public education and a man of his word. This hard-working, lectured, democratic and modest man left us on August 19th, causing a deep regret in our University community. Here we can see his work, his legacy and the example he gave us a great humanist.

 

Juan Manuel Zolezzi Cid
President of Universidad de Santiago de Chile

 

Translated by Marcela Contreras