This week, I was surprised by the proposal—or rather, the decided but carefully articulated assignment—to appoint me as Vice Dean for Academic Affairs of the Faculty of Educational Technologies at my university, which comprises about six faculties in total. This is my first responsibility at the helm of an administrative process. Until now, my professional experience had been concentrated first in programming and later in the social sciences as a researcher—always, in the latter case, with an emphasis on studying the deep interrelation between science, technology, and politics. This new mission represents an abrupt shift in that trajectory, because while it involves a great deal of strategic work on the methodological front, it also carries a significant bureaucratic burden.
The Core Responsibilities of the Role
In essence, the Vice Dean for Academic Affairs is directly responsible for the academic process. I must ensure compliance with the degree curricula and subject syllabi, methodological training, educational work with students, and the undergraduate thesis defense process. It is a very large challenge in a rather tempestuous time, resulting from the impacts of a crisis that now exceeds six years and has intensified following the unprecedented escalation in U.S. economic aggression advanced by the Trump administration.
For example, since last March, students and a good part of the faculty have not been on campus because it is impossible to sustain the transportation service because of the oil blockade imposed by Washington. The teaching process has had to be conducted virtually, and the new academic year starting in September will begin under the same conditions, impacting the quality of an activity that is now highly vulnerable to the improper use of generative artificial intelligence.
I must now confront this entire accumulation of issues and challenges with this new appointment. But I like challenges, always driven by an unwavering attitude to give my best and adhere to the highest quality standards. I will keep you posted.
Source for the cover image, generated with GPT technology.
