Wednesday,
3rd of September
After Lisbon and Sheffield is now the
time to celebrate the Crossways Induction
Days on the Eastern side of Europe. This year host is the Adam Mickiewicz University located in
Poznan, Poland: the University has joined the programme only in 2012 and it is
now ready to welcome Professors and administrators representing the ten
universities of the Consortium and
students from the current and past selections. Most of the participants arrived
on the 3rd of September to attend the three days meeting and were
welcomed by a warm and sunny weather in one of the biggest University cities in
Poland with over 140.000 students every year. The designed accommodation for
all the members was at the student residence Dom Studencki Jowita, located close to the modern train station -
built in the occasion of the UEFA European championship in 2012, where Poznan
was one of the host cities - and only 15 minutes walking from the city center and
the main university buildings.
As usual, the agenda is full and
there is barely the time to leave the baggage at the residence, first stop is
at 17:00 at the Collegium Novum for
the first Academic Council. Late arrivals could join the other delegates for
dinner and were happily introduced to the delicacies of the Polish cuisine and
to the enchanting atmosphere of Poznan Old Market square by night.
Thursday,
4th of September
The meeting celebrates its official beginning
with the arrival of the last delegates and students to the Collegium Novum where the Head of the Department of Romance Studies
and local coordinator of the Crossways Master, Professor Miroslaw Loba,
welcomes the participants, followed by the speech of the General Coordinator of
the Master, Professor Jonathan Pollock. After his general introduction of the
programme and a brief presentation of the agenda on the upcoming days, it is
time for the single Universities to present their facilities, courses and
programmes. Seven of the ten Universities of the Consortium had sent a
representative to narrate their features and remarks: Poznan, Bergamo, Guelph,
Lisbon, Perpignan, Santiago de Compostela, Sheffield and Saint Andrews.
The morning ended with a delicious
lunch to help the contributors gaining strength for the important event scheduled
in the afternoon: the first Crossways
Graduation Ceremony in the Lubranski Hall of the Collegium Minus, one of the historical
buildings of the University. The Ceremony
was hosted by the AMU deputy president Professor Jacek Witkoś, by the Head of the Department of Romance
Studies, Professor Miroslaw Loba and by the General Coordinator of the Master,
Professor Jonathan Pollock. The students of the round 2012-2014 were present to
collect their Diploma of termination of studies.
During the second part of the afternoon,
the Professors gathered for the Academic Council meeting with the aim to
discuss the current issues and to organize the reunions for the next academic year. At the same
the students and alumni started their meeting, chaired by Chiara Dalla Libera
(current administrator at the Universidade Nova de Lisboa and previous
Crossways student). During the consultation, the students elected their new
representative: Romina Cácia. Both the academic and the student meeting were
attended by Natnaree Kanjanawattana (2013-2015 student
representative) who reported to the council the current issues faced by the
students, their suggestions and feedback. She then joined the student meeting
to explain the duties of her role and to share her experience both as a student
and as a representative to the new students.
The first day
ended with a delightful Gala Dinner at the Concordia
Design Restaurant, where all the delegates had another great opportunity to
taste the delicacies of the Polish food in a unique environment.
Friday,
5th of September
The morning of the third day started
with the continuation of the Council meeting where the Professors had
additional time to go through the last pending issues of the Master. During the
second part of the morning, the students had finally the time to clear their
doubts and ask to the Professors specific questions about their study paths,
deadlines, standards of evaluation, requirements for the dissertation and for the
dissertation report and more explanations about the internship and the language
training.
The open session
scheduled for the first part of the afternoon aimed to encourage the students
in approaching the coordinators of the different Universities and to give them
the possibility to ask more ad hoc questions. After the open session - free
from the academic duties – the group could finally take a guided tour of the
city of Poznan: until then, they only had the time to walk from the residence
to the meetings and back. Following their guide, they had the chance to know
more about the history and to visit the charming monuments of their hosting
city, such as the cathedral, the Old Market square and the Imperial castle.
The three days meeting finished again
with everyone sitting at the table in front enjoying delicious food and
discussing future projects and expectations. During the dinner, the dining
companions had the privilege to assist to a private piano concert given by the
second year Crossways student, César Castañeda Valencia.
Author: Chiara
Dalla Libera
