The auditorium of the Faculty of Pharmacy has hosted the awards ceremony for the patronage entities of the University of Castilla-La Mancha, totaling 511 in four areas: Non-Profit Organizations, University-Company Classrooms, University-Company Chairs, and Public Institutions.
A «magnificent» event, in the words of the rector, Julián Grade, who thanked the work done by the entire organizing team of the event, led by Vice-Rector Ángela González. «There are spaces that feel like home, and the sponsorship and patronage program is a home created by the vice-rector, so everyone feels comfortable.»
He also recognized and thanked «all the institutions and companies that have trusted UCLM,» referring to this patronage program, which has multiplied «as a result of the increased trust society has placed in UCLM.» An institution that champions its pillars of teaching, research, and transfer, «with the aim of improving people’s lives through knowledge,» noted Julián Garde, encouraging other companies and institutions to join this initiative, «because it is good for the region.»
Finally, the rector spoke about the future, stating that «we must think about the future, and we do not succeed by resisting change.» At this point, he mentioned that the academic institution is working and progressing in that direction, citing the recently signed patronage program with Globalcaja for an amount of three million euros for the development of seventeen projects in education, employability, entrepreneurship, sports promotion, and research and transfer.
PATRONAGE PROGRAM
The Vice-Rector for Innovation, Coordination, and Institutional Development, Ángela González, detailed the UCLM patronage program and the path taken, which, as she stated, «required opening up to the socioeconomic environment, building trust, intensifying our relationships with former students, providing information on possible tools, and structuring the organization to streamline procedures.»
Intensifying communication about the chairs and classrooms program, she continued, led to a significant increase in patronage revenues (over 350% in the last 4 years) and, «even more importantly, it led us to strengthen our relationships with our economic-business environment,» she noted. This trust in companies was contributed to by «the figure of the rector, along with the good academic and research results achieved by the university community.»
Ángela González also highlighted the patronage efforts of citizens, for which a micropatronage portal was set up to facilitate donations, even if they were micro-contributions.
For all these reasons, she emphasized the purpose of this event, which is to thank the patrons of the academic institution, «whom we see as the people or entities that support us, who have allowed us to improve, fulfill our mission. Your collaboration has broken down our walls, removed barriers, and made us a more open university in service to society,» she concluded.
The event also saw the participation of the first vice president of the Autonomous Government, José Luis Martínez Guijarro; the Equality Councilor Sara Simón; the President of the Albacete Provincial Council, Santiago Cabañero; the Government Delegate in Albacete, Pedro Antonio Ruiz Santos; and the councilors for Economic Promotion and Proximity, Lucrecia Rodríguez de Vera and Carlos Calero, among others.
REGIONAL GOVERNMENT, PROVINCIAL COUNCIL, AND CITY COUNCIL
Martínez Guijarro highlighted that the regional government has doubled funding to UCLM, going from 120 million in 2015 to 224 million euros allocated for this year, consolidating the region as one of the four autonomous communities with the highest investment per student in public universities, exceeding 9,300 euros per student.
This increase in funding has led to the freezing of university fees since the 2021-2022 academic year and the expansion, in collaboration with the University Rectorate, of the range of studies on each campus, adding 15 degrees, 26 master’s degrees, and two doctorates.
Currently, the Castilla-La Mancha Government collaborates with UCLM on six chairs (Open Government, Cybersecurity, Climate Change and Sustainability in the Primary Sector, Circular Economy, Gastronomy, and Gender Equality), which promote knowledge transfer, specialized training, and the dissemination of topics of interest to the region.
For Santi Cabañero, this support for UCLM is more than just an economic investment: it is an investment in the human capital of Albacete, in the creativity, innovation, and potential of its people. «Because if we want our land to prosper, we need to retain and nurture that talent, trust those who have the knowledge, tools, and desire to make a better province,» he has repeatedly expressed.
The councilors for Economic Promotion and Proximity, Lucrecia Rodríguez de Vera and Carlos Calero, congratulated Rector Julián Garde for this event, which was attended by researchers, university representatives, and the collaborating entities that the University wanted to acknowledge.
Rodríguez de Vera emphasized «the importance of public-private collaboration, so that companies and associations get involved in all tasks of social interest, such as the teaching and research function of the University.»