On 2 September the Saratov Academic Kiselev Youth Theatre hosted the awarding ceremony of the Rise Award for the members of the staff of Saratov universities. The ceremony has been held for the fourth time within the Let’s Go! Festival for freshmen.
The university academic staff members felt like popular stars in the evening. There was a red carpet before the theatre entrance. Before the event colleagues congratulated each other on the new academic year. There were no vacant seats in the hall, and the awardees waited impatiently to know the results.
The ceremony was opened Governor of the Saratov Region Valerii V. Radayev.
‘Thank you for your work and the knowledge you share with our children. Thank you that you can love, show the way, listen, and understand. For the fourth year we have gathered academic staff members of our leading universities, and every year we rise to a new height, you conquer new peaks in your profession, students – in their studies, and the region – in social and economic development. New schools, nursery schools, cultural and sports institutions have been built as well as roads are constructed in the region. We have opened a world-class airport. The Presdient Vladimir Putin visited it and marked its importance for the development of the country. And world-class specialists are needed in the region not to lower the sights. And only you can teach such specialists! Your experience and professionalism help ex-high school students become demanded doctors, agricultural specialists, researchers, engineers, and economists. You inspire them to gain victories. You discover how talented your students are. And then their success becomes your rise,’ addressed the Governor to the audience.
In total, 24 academic staff members from 8 Saratov universities were awarded. This year the following representatives of Saratov University became its winners – Professor, Chair of the Department of Education Methodology, Chair of one of the dissertation committees Ekaterina A. Aleksandrova; Professor, Director of the Institute of Continuing Professional Education, Chair of the Department of International Relations and Russian Foreign Policy Yurii G. Golub; Professor, Dean of the Faculty of Sociology, Chair of the Department of Youth Sociology Sergei G. Ivchenkov. The awards were given to them by Merited Teacher of the Russian Federation, Hero of Labour of the Russian Federation, a top-rank teacher of history and social studies of Lyceum of Mathematics and Computer Studies Lyudmila I. Kornilova.
Professor Yurii Golub shared his impressions.
‘The Rise Award shows that your work is acknowledged in the country and by the professional community. For the fourth time I have attended it, and I have always been surprised how many talented people live in our city who have dedicated themselves to teaching youth. Vyacheslav Volodin’s idea to organise a holiday for both freshmen and their university professors is high-demanded and important. We express our gratitude for it.’
The entertaining programme of the ceremony included dancing performances, and at its end the guests enjoyed the performance of Merited Artist of the Russian Federation Igor Nikolayev. He communicated with the award ceremony members and said that he had often visited Saratov in his childhood as his grandparents had lived here. For his bright performance the singer was applauded loudly.
After the concert the city administration and university academic staff members went to Theatre Square to officially start the Let’s Go! Festival for 1st-year students.
