Reviewing history in order to raise one?s awareness

Lecturers and employees at the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS) participated in a meeting from the 26th to the 28th May, in a milieu that encouraged listening, reflections and dialogue on the identity and the mission of this Institution.
There were some conferences on higher education in the 21st century, on Marist education and the Catholic university. Discussion groups were also organised as well as an exchange with the Rector.
A debate focussed on the works considered by the Director, Joaquim Clotet, as an occasion to deepen our knowledge of PUCRS.

During the opening, the Brother Rector emphasised that their activity would include three points:
describing the people who work in the Institution,
knowing their work environment better and
committing oneself to the Marist values of the University.

For the Vice-Rector and the co-ordinator of the project, Brother Evilázio Teixeira, this moment of reflection was an occasion to review the history of the origins of the University; to glimpse the University as a source of innovative solutions and to invent a form of teaching for being at the level of new generations.

These challenges were launched by the lecturers José Gomes Da Silva, from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, and Pedro Demo, from the University of Brasilia. Manoel Alves, from the Catholic University of Brasilia and Father Érico Hammes, from the PUCRS, treated Marist education and the direction of Catholic universities.
In the exchange with the Rector, the participants exposed some points of view which were debated by the Rector, the Vice-Rector and their assistants.
The group reports were presented and discussed in order to improve the daily activities of the PUCRS.

Since 2001, the first year of these meetings, 1,480 lecturers and members of the administration have participated in them. This year, there were 155 persons. IN August and October, we will continue these reflection days at Porto Alegre.