Those interested in Ukrainian higher education and science history probably know that the earliest Ukrainian aspirations for an university are related to establishment of St. Volodymyr Kyiv University (now named after Taras Shevchenko). The first head of the university was Mykhailo Maksymovych – one of the earliest and most prominent Ukrainian folklorists and ethnographers, the forerunner of the modern Ukrainian studies.
M. Maksymovych intended to make the university a center for proper Ukrainian (then – “Littlerussian”) studies. For this purpose, he negotiated with Nicholas Gogol (Mykola Hohol), who had to become one of the leading professors and who was also a prominent folklorist and ethnographer (by the way, is still not properly studied). I must also mention Mykola Kostomarov and other prominent professors and researchers. Needless to say that among university teachers had to be Taras Shevchenko as well.
Unfortunately, St. Volodymyr University did not become what M. Maksymovych used to dream, but to some extent it still fulfilled its mission. From its walls many outstanding Ukrainian prominent personalities came out. A number of research schools in the Ukrainian studies was born here. The University was gave birth to the first Ukrainian studies institute in Ukraine.
Mykhilo Hrushevsky, as Taras Kalyandruk reminds us, actively promoted an idea of a special Ukrainian university at the end of nineteenth century, when development of Ukrainian movement was already at its new stage. Yes, the idea gained wide publicity and was warmly supported, but was not implemented either in Kiev or in Lviv.
Just after independence, Ukrainian Centralna Rada (Ukrainian Central Council), headed by M. Hrushevsky managed to realize the idea of an Ukrainian university. Embodied in the life of the minister of education of UNR (Ukrainian People Republic) Professor Ivan Ohienko (later Metropolitan Illarion of Ukrainian Autocephalous church), opening the first Ukrainian National University (as it was officially called) in Kamianetsk-Podilskyi.
The first rector (president) of the university was Professor Vyacheslav Petr, a Czech by origin, prior – a many years director of the Fifth Kyiv Pechersk Gymnasium (by way, a graduate of this gymnasium was Lesya Ukrainka’s husband, an acting Minister of Justice of the UNR and the greatest ethnomusicologist Professor Klyment Kvitka). Later on, Bolsheviks executed V. Petr as an Ukrainian bourgeois nationalist and transfermed the University into Institute of People Education, later – a Pedagogical Institute. Now it is Kamenets Podilkyi National University named after Professor Ivan Ohienko.
The defeat of the UNR, of Hetman Skoropadsky government and Semen Petlyura’s Directory pushed many of Ukrainian professors and academics in exile. So, a large group of them organized and founded the Ukrainian Free University (UFU). For two decade it was based in Prague – the home town of Professor Petr. The arrival of the Soviet army in Czechoslovakia and the Communist government forced UFU to move to Munich in Germany. UFU is funded by based in the US UFU Foundation and by subsidies from the German government.
From 1945 until now UFU in Munich has Master’s and PhD accreditation from the Bavarian government. At the time I was UFU doctoral student in the field of constitutional and administrative laws, and collaborated with UFU as editor and publisher (see: Chubaty Mykola. Review the history of Ukrainian law / Ed. Assoc. Prof. V. Ivanenko. – Kyiv – Munich, 1994. – 224 p. In Ukrainian).
My co-operation with UFU was interrupted after my relocation to the United States. I hope my co-operation with UFU will have a different status on the Ukrainian University level…
So, we can talk about more than a century and a half continuity of Ukrainian University idea. And I want the project to be implemented fully, as we have conceived, and established forever. This requires quite a bit: association around the Ukrainian University of best Ukrainian professors and scholars, as well as commitment, promotion and support by Ukrainians worldwide.
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The idea of establishing the Ukrainian University did not come spontaneously and not on the eve of its registration.
Years and years ago, I began discussing this plan with my senior colleagues Professors Gregory Kostiuk, Wasyl Marcus, Petro Odarchenko and other well-known scholars and leaders in the Ukrainian American community.
We agreed on the fact that the American continent must have an institution similar to Ukrainian Free University in Munich. However, it should be a new type of facility that would meet modern requirements and and at the same time counted on Western and Ukrainian education and science standards.
“You are still young. Who else, if not you, can implement this?” – I was told by a prominent literary critic, member UVAN (Ukrainian Free Academy of Sciences) Professor Petro Odarchenko.
The most detailed conversations about this idea I had with a corresponding member of UVAN, a well known Ukrainian writer and researcher, a former director of Voice of America Ukrainian Service Mykola Francuzenko. We discussed not just an idea, but everything else – possible structure, curriculum, funding… These conversations apparently became the most powerful inspiration and stimulus for me to address the issues of implementing this idea.
UKRAINIAN UNIVERSITY SHELL BE!
Few years ago, I first brought the idea of establishing Ukrainian University for public discussion and made a proposal to consolidate Ukrainian scientific potential outside Ukraine. Discussions in social communities suddenly touched sensitive issues of science and higher education situation in Ukraine.
I realized that the scope of Ukrainian University interests may not be limited to the Ukrainian Diaspora: it should cover Ukraine as well and become a link between the Ukrainian society and the Diaspora, between Ukraine and the world, and thus become the cornerstone of the unity of the world Ukrainian community (the idea was generated by my friend Nicholas Ponomarenko).
Obviously, there had to happen other events and changes that have made me ready to start Ukrainian University project. And one of such events became the founding of the Leadership International Foundation.
In short, the time has come, and we took to start: November 24, 2015 Ukrainian University got registered as a nonprofit organization. Since then, having an official status, we started promoting Ukrainian University project in Ukrainian communities. Within year 2016 most parts of this project description were published in Ukrainian. Ukrainian language version of Ukrainian University web site now is up and running.
Now, we are on a start point of launching an English language description of Ukrainian University project and an English language version of its web site. By doing this, we reach more people and organizations and look forward to your active support of Ukrainian University initiatives and active participation in its projects. Your advices, comments, suggestions shell be thoroughly explored and taken into account in our work.
Some previous posts about the idea of a Ukrainian University provoked some negatives by skeptics (well, how without this?!). I am aware that there will be those who will try to put a stick in Ukrainian University wheels and there will be numerous attempts to discredit the idea as well as specific projects of Ukrainian University. We will keep our eye on that negativism and will count on skeptics’ thoughts when they have sense, but definitely, we will ignore actions of Ukrainophobes and Ukrainohaters.
“We have to do what we must do!” – this thought, expressed in his poem by Ukrainian poet Pavlo Tychyna, will inspire us to good works for Ukraine, World Ukrainian community, Ukrainian affairs.
Prof. Dr. Volodymyr Ivanenko,
Co-founder and President.