“I want to place great emphasis on our efforts to promote the University of West Bohemia’s position alongside the most important universities in the Czech Republic and to make it successful, known and respected internationally,” said Rector Miroslav Lávička. “I also want to increase the number of students, naturally while maintaining our fundamental emphasis on the quality of education. As a multidisciplinary university, we should make even more use of the heterogeneity of our faculties in terms of study programmes as well as science and research activities. In science and research, we must significantly boost the UWB’s activity in international projects such as Horizon Europe, as well as intensify applied research and the transfer of knowledge and technology,” he said.
Miroslav Lávička believes that the UWB must emphasise the internationalisation of its teaching and research environment. It should also strengthen its role in the Karlovy Vary region, where two of its faculties are active, and together with the office of the Hetman ensure stable funding for university education from the Ministry of Education. In terms of the university’s third role, Miroslav Lávička sees the UWB as an institution that is ready to help and provide to society new ideas and solutions and raise topics that are socially important.
Miroslav Lávička will fulfil his vision in collaboration with other members of the UWB’s management. These are:
doc. Ing. Jiří Hammerbauer, Ph.D., Vice Rector for Creative Activities and Doctoral Study and Statutory Deputy Rector, former Dean and current Vice Dean for Science at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering;
prof. Ing. Josef Basl, CSc., Vice Rector for Strategy and Development, lecturer at the Department of Industrial Engineering and Management at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and former Vice Rector for Development and External Relations in 2012–2015;
doc. Mgr. Jiří Kohout, Ph.D., Vice Rector for the Educational Planning and Student Affairs, current Vice Dean for Strategy of Creative Activities at the Faculty of Education;
prof. PhDr. Jan Váně, Ph.D., Vice Rector for External Relations and Communication, head of the Department of Sociology at the Faculty of Arts;
Ing. Petr Beneš, Bursar, employee of the Centre for Informatization and Computer Technology at the UWB and former Bursar in 2015–2019.
Mgr. Lucie Václavová Čulíková, Ph.D. will continue as UWB Chancellor.
Miroslav Lávička, former Dean of the Faculty of Applied Sciences (FAS) of the UWB, was elected on 21 December by the Academic Senate of the UWB in the second election round. He was appointed by President of the Republic Miloš Zeman on 15 February. The inauguration ceremony will take place on 5 April at the Měšťanská beseda in the centre of Pilsen. Miroslav Lávička succeeds Miroslav Holeček who was in charge of the UWB from March 2015.
