Fr. Borys Gudziak Ph.D., rector of the Ukrainian Catholic University (UCU), was named a Knight of the Order of Academic Palms by the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research at a press-conference held at UCU on 13 June 2008. The award was presented to him on behalf of the ministry by the French ambassador to Ukraine, Jean-Paul Veziant, as part of Lviv’s Ecumenical Social Week.
At the award ceremony, Veziant praised Fr. Gudziak: “You are a man of action and an unparalleled organizer. I witnessed the fruits of your labor every time I entered the UCU building, which is the most modern university building I have seen in Ukraine. I was also impressed by the theological center project, a new educational, cultural and spiritual complex in Lviv. One can hardly mention all your good initiatives.”
The French ambassador also noted UCU’s outstanding academic work and significant role in higher education in Ukraine.
The UCU is one of the Central-Eastern European Catholic Universitites that partner with with the Nanovic Institute to to promote the exchange of ideas and experiences on the challenges that face modern Catholic Universities: curriculum, spirituality, leadership and research.