The seminar aims to cultivate competent personnel capable of implementing a comprehensive development and modernization strategy. Governmental universities are the cornerstone of the state in scientific research and community service. The university's policy is clear in developing its own resources. "Newcomers, new programs, special units, and asset utilization" are the four main resources for the university.
Prof. Dr. Essam Farhat, the president of the University of Minia, delivered the inaugural seminar qualifying members of the faculty aspiring to run for the position of faculty dean. The seminar is organized by the University's Faculty Development Center from June 22 to 24 with the aim of providing participants with the necessary knowledge and skills to assume the role. It aims to equip candidates with strategic planning, crisis management, problem analysis and diagnosis, effective leadership skills, decision-making, financial, administrative and legal aspects of universities, functional behavior, and the standards and requirements of fourth-generation universities.
The seminar was attended by Dr. Ahmed Showky Zahran, the director of the Development Projects Management Unit and the Center for Quality Assurance and University Accreditation, and Dr. Abdel Salam Anwar Mohamed, the Executive Director of the Faculty Development Center.
At the outset, the university president emphasized that the seminar aims to create a leadership cadre capable of implementing a comprehensive development and modernization strategy, contributing to defining the role of university leadership in the era of fourth-generation universities, exchanging views and ideas, and staying abreast of the latest leadership methods to tackle future challenges, lead change, praising the pivotal role played by the Faculty Development Center as a tool for development that provides knowledge content and training that enhances the capacity building of university leadership.
Prof. Dr. Essam Farhat pointed out that the university is working on parallel lines to develop human and physical resources, establishing an institutional work roadmap with evaluation standards and performance monitoring to enhance the efficiency of infrastructure and public positioning, transitioning to a sustainable smart green university, including smart classrooms and interactive education, to serve as a springboard for its golden age. He emphasized the importance of synergizing efforts among different faculties to enhance the university's competitiveness among private and public universities, highlighting that governmental universities are a fundamental pillar for scientific research and community service upon which the state relies, in addition to providing higher education for the middle class. He also noted that the constitution guarantees the independence of universities in both educational and administrative aspects, granting them the freedom to set their educational curricula and manage their internal affairs.
He added that there should be no confusion between strategic and technical management, explaining that strategic management focuses on setting general goals for the institution, managing resources, executing tasks, improving performance, and guiding long-term direction, while technical management deals with executing these goals through operations and activities. During the meeting, the university president outlined the most important sources of internal resources for the university, considering it one of the most important files that the university prioritizes for development, affirming that the university is following a defined approach to increase the number of incoming students by providing an attractive environment for them, expressing his aspirations to increase the numbers in the coming period. Additionally, expanding the opening of distinguished and interdisciplinary programs in faculties to achieve integration and bridge the gap between diverse specializations, providing students with new skills and experiences, developing financial performance and future plans for centers and units with a special focus to maximize the benefit from material and human resources, aiming to identify diverse and sustainable income sources to enhance the units' capacity for expansion and development. Finally, utilizing the university's assets through optimal planning, expanding the scope of community services and partnerships to achieve additional financial returns.