On Thursday, November 28, the first doctoral thesis defense took place within the framework of the inter-institutional Doctorate in Higher University Education (DESU), which is taught jointly by the School of Education of the Universidad Austral, the National University of Río Negro and the Inter-American Open University.

The new doctor, David Alexander Calderón Arregui, from Ecuador, defended his thesis entitled: "Leadership styles of managers and organizational climate at the University of the Armed Forces ESPE (UFA-ESPE), Ecuador."

The thesis tribunal was chaired by Prof. Dr. Guillermo Luquez, Director of the Master's Degree in Management of Educational Institutions at the UA, with the other members being Prof. Dr. Juan Assirio, director of the LOGE, Prof. Dr. Alfredo Gorrochotegui (Venezuela-Chile-Spain) and the thesis director is Prof. Dr. Adriana Marrero, UdelaR, Uruguay.

The Director of DESU, Dr. Julio Durand, highlighted the important academic and institutional significance of the defense: “It is fitting to celebrate the achievement of the new doctor. Together with his advisor, he has persevered in his research to make his contribution to the fascinating disciplinary field of 'the university as an object of study,' as it is known in Argentina.”

The defense drew a significant number of professors, thesis advisors, and doctoral students. The excellent presentation and the dialogue with the examining committee members enriched the audience. In addition to thanking the UAI postgraduate team and the academic coordinator, Mag. M. Ximena García Tellería, Dr. Durand emphasized that “a number of defenses are coming up in the next few months, during which the impact that the DESU can have on public higher education policies and university management will begin to materialize, as the institutions envisioned when launching this inter-institutional doctoral program.”