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The aim of this preventive measure is to sanitize the University's facilities, especially those for common use. |
On monday, march 16, the Chilean President Sebastián Piñera declared that Chile is in phase 4 regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, due to a significant increase in the number of cases in the country. So far (march 23) there are 746 cases in Chile, and worldwide this virus has surpassed 16,000 deaths and more than 360,000 infections. In response to the situation, the Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) decided on march 16 to suspend all administrative and academic activities, which allowed to take additional measures with the aim of reducing the risk of infection, such as sanitizing all university facilities. This preventive measure was led by the Office for Risk Prevention and the Emergency Committee of UFRO. For the disinfection a quaternary ammonium compound, as it is also used in hospitals and different industries and which eliminates all types of fungi, bacteria and viruses, was used. The sanitization was done in all of the University's facilities, especially in the spaces of common use, such as stairways and corridors, as well as in the vehicles that are being used. The only exception are those laboratories that work with microorganisms, in order to avoid putting at risk the research tests that are carried out there. “This process achieves to eliminate bacteria, fungi and viruses after five minutes of applying the disinfectant agent. The time the compound remains on the surfaces will depend on the manner in which the areas are re-entered. That is why we must avoid re-entering the sanitized areas unless it is strictly necessary, but ideally, the University should not be entered in the next 10 to 15 days," said George La Clerq, a risk prevention engineer of the university. The security guards, whose work spaces have also been sanitized, must wear a special suit, a face mask, gloves and use alcohol gel. In addition, any person that enters the Aula Magna to participate in meetings related to the contingency must comply with the same requirements mentioned above, and disinfect their shoes. It is worth mentioning that quaternary ammonium is also used to disinfect the spaces of the University where the meetings in relation to the contingency are held, 1 hour before and 1 hour after each meeting. “Together with the UFRO Office for Risk Prevention and the Emergency Committee, which is led by the Vice-rector for Administration and Finances, we are evaluating whether to carry out an additional disinfection in the next few weeks or a couple of days before returning to normality. The decision will be taken depending on the development of this contingency", concluded La Clerq.
Written by: UFRO Communications Office
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Press release from the Rector’s Office: Suspension of on-site administrative and academic activities
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Preventive suspension of on-site administrative and academic activities because of COVID-19 pandemic |
Dear University Community, Considering the evolution of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic to phase 4 in Chile, the Universidad de La Frontera decided to suspend all on-site administrative and academic activities as a preventive measure, except essential or critical tasks for the appropriate maintenance of the university. This measure will be effective from Tuesday, march 17 to march 31, both dates included.
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This event for science dissemination took place in cooperation with the regional Intendancy of the Araucanía Region and the Universities Católica de Temuco, Autónoma de Chile and Universidad de La Frontera. |
Neuroscience, Bioart and public participation were the main topics of this year’s version of the Congress of the Future Araucanía 2020 (“Congreso Futuro Araucanía 2020”), which brought outstanding national and international experts together in Temuco, Chile. The congress was led by the Committee for Challenges of the Future, Science, Technology and Innovation of the Senate and the Foundation Encounters for Future and organized in our region by the regional Intendancy of the Araucanía Region and the Universities Universidad Católica de Temuco, Universidad Autónoma de Chile and Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO). The event for debate and an exchange of ideas regarding the necessity of more and improved science and technology took place at the Municipal Theatre in Temuco, allowing the civil society to think about the impact current scientific, social and cultural progress has on our daily life. “Science and Arts”, “Neurobiology and Mental Health”, and “Democracy and Participation” were the main topics addressed in three different panels, which were led by an international expert, academic staff members and researchers of the three universities that participated in the organization of the congress in the Araucanía Region. “Public participation and neuroscience are two very important topics in our region and the country. And the fact to have someone from outside sharing his opinion and knowledge on the social changes we are living, is very enriching for all of us, because it helps us to learn from and deal with the changes as a society in the future,” Dr. Renato Hunter, the Vice-rector for Research and Graduate Studies at UFRO, pointed out. “We are very happy about the partnership between these three universities and the Intendancy. The interest and number of participants was very high and we think that the addressed issues are contemporary and of high importance, contributing to the discussion and allowing to deal with interesting topics for our regional development”, said Paola Olave, the director of the UFRO Office for Outreach and Community Engagement. EXPERTS Since its first version, the Congress of the Future brought outstanding national and international thinkers, scientists and researchers together and invited the civil society to think about the future of our civilization and the impact current scientific, social and cultural progress has on our daily life. This year, three speakers participated in the congress in the Araucanía Region: John Cryan, PhD. in pharmacology, professor and chair of the Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience at University College Cork, Ireland; Joaquín Fargas, an industrial engineer, art director of the Bioart Laboratory and professor of technological art at Maimónides University in Buenos Aires, Argentina; and Ximena Hartsock, a graduate in Middle Eastern and Islamic studies, and president and co-founder of Phone2Action. The Universidad de La Frontera participated with experts in each of the three panels: Patricia Muñoz, the director of the UFRO undergraduate program in Electronic Engineering, who has a Master’s Degree in Sciences and Engineering with specialization in Electrical Engineering; Dr. Cristian Paz, a researcher of the Department of Basic Sciences and an academic staff member of the Doctoral Program in Science with specialization in Applied Cellular and Molecular Biology; and Dr. Mauricio García, an academic staff member of the Department of Social Science and of the Master’s Program in Regional, Local and Human Development of IDER-UFRO. “It is very interesting for me to address and discuss the relation between intestinal flora and neural realities, in other words: behavior, moods, etc. It would be great if this kind of events could be organized more often in order to reach the entire community, since this is not only a scientific discussion, but also a way of dissemination”, Dr. Cristian Paz pointed out.
Written by: UFRO Communications Office
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The enrollment process lasted three days and took place at the Olympic Stadium of the Universidad de La Frontera, where more than two thousand new students enrolled, filling 100% of the university’s vacancies during the first stage of the process. |
The Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO) finished its enrollment process for new students in 2020, which was marked by the great efficiency and velocity of all staff members, with 100% of its vacancies for the selected candidates in regular admission filled. The enrollment process lasted three days and took place at the Olympic Stadium of the UFRO, where more than two thousand new students enrolled, which were preselected in the admission 2020 process, filling 100% of the university’s vacancies during the first stage of the process, without having to call candidates of the waiting lists. “In general, this university has had a very successful enrollment process, thanks to the support of all units that participated in it. One of the keys is our quality which is associated with the six years of accreditation we achieved. We have a great reputation among the national and international community and that plays in our favor. These young people and their families trust our university and therefore decided that they want to study here,” said Pamela Ibarra, the Vice-rector for Undergraduate Affairs. Another fundamental fact regarding this successful result was the deployment of capacities and great coordination of the different units that participated in the process: registration teams, cashiers, staff members of the Offices for Program Promotion, Student Development, Comprehensive Training, IT, Institutional Analysis, Finances, Communications, the programs PACE and I Want To Be A Teacher, general services staff and the staff of the Aula Magna and the Olympic Stadium, who provided the required spaces for a perfect process implementation. Over the following days, the management tasks will be related to the registration retraction process, while the new students who applied for state benefits and socioeconomic accreditation can continue the process at the Aula Magna of UFRO.
Written by: UFRO Communications Office
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Dr. Carolina Navarrete was awarded with the Scholarship “Chile Crea” of the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage, which will allow her to realize a research stay at Wellesley College in Massachusetts, USA. |
The academic staff member of the Department of Languages, Literature and Communication of the Universidad de La Frontera (UFRO), Dr. Carolina Navarrete, has been awarded with the Scholarship Chile Crea, thanks to her research project called “Promotion of women’s readings and writings, with an emphasis on human rights, social justice and memory”, which is financed by the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage through the Undersecretary for Culture and Arts of the Chilean Government. This scholarship provides a research stay at the Spanish Department of Wellesley College, which is a private women’s college in the state of Massachusetts in the USA, where Dr. Navarrete is going to work together with the prestigious US-Chilean writer and academic staff member Dr. Marjorie Agosín, who is a human rights activist that has been awarded with the Human Rights Leadership Award by the United Nations and with the Gabriela Mistral Award by the Chilean Government. She is the author of more than eighty books that have been published by the world’s leading publishing houses. Her work includes narratives, poetry, theatre and memories. The research stay of Dr. Navarrete is also part of the Fondecyt Project she is leading, called “Stitching loose pieces of oneself together: towards poetics of details in the writings of the I of contemporary female authors (1990-2018)” (Fondecyt Project No. 11190799). This opportunity of professional development at Wellesley College will allow Dr. Navarrete during the month of September of this year to study in depth the work of an internationally awarded author for her literary work in defense of the human rights of groups of women that have been refugees and excluded by the political, economic and social systems. Dr. Navarrete appreciates the opportunity this scholarship offers and pointed out: “I am very grateful for this opportunity, since it allows me to specialize in the field of research I have been developing over the years, such as the study of women’s writings. I am interested in revealing the role of female writers, especially because of the little knowledge that exists about the work produced by women in the Chilean educational context. In this context, this scholarship stands for a concrete opportunity to motivate people to get to know and to read the work of this prolific writer, and of other female writers who are writing about contemporary and relevant issues in today’s world.” Wellesley College is a private women’s college in the USA that started in 1875. It was founded by Henry Fowle Durant and his wife Pauline Fowle Durant and its mission is to “provide an excellent liberal arts education for women who will make a difference in the world”. Written by: Faculty of Education, Social Science and Humanities |
