Istanbul Kültür University (IKU) Head of the Board of Trustees Dr. Bahar Akıngüç Günver published a message regarding the IKU agenda which has changed with the New Coronavirus Disease. 

My Dear Kültür Family,

The second wave of the pandemic brought along a sensitive process for us as the Kültür Family. In the last week of November, we observed a sudden increase in the number of our colleagues who are directly affected by COVID 19. The results were alarming for all of us. During this struggle of my colleagues with their families, I tried to stay in touch with them as much as possible. The situation of all my friends was carefully monitored by our Head of Health, Culture and Sports Department Dr. Dilek Baykal and her team. I would like to take this occasion to thank Dr. Baykal and her team.

I got the good news from our colleagues last week. Learning that each of them regained their former health was one of the best developments we have experienced in this difficult period. I am sending my get well soon wishes to all our family.

My Dear Kültür Family,

Although we are all more conscious compared to the first phase we face the pandemic, we have been extremely tired. After the new wave, the increase in the number of cases, and our individual experiences, trying to maintain a positive perspective is neither possible nor realistic now. Forward-looking assumptions and busy plans began to turn into an element of pressure for everyone. At this stage, the way to manage the period we are in with the smoothest transition for ourselves and our environment is through conscious awareness, acceptance and staying calm. The best move we can make for ourselves and our environment is to be calm and in control. We will continue to think without being overwhelmed under responsibility and to produce as much as we can. We will make an effort to accept that all the fears and anxieties we have experienced during this process are extremely human and to handle the process with understanding and compassion.

My Dear Kültür Family,

Our working order will not continue on the campus till January 4, 2020. We have a critical memory and experience regarding working from home. We have come a long way in distance education with CATS V3. We achieved the "sustainability in education service" goal that we determined in the first phase of the crisis.

Our routine meetings with our Deans and Head of Departments continue during the remote working period. Last week, our meeting agenda with our Deans was quite busy. In the 2020-2021 academic year shaped by distance education; we talked about methods and ideas to ensure academic quality. In this meeting, we discussed re-transforming our perspective on concepts. We held a productive meeting on adapting instead of controlling, focusing on keeping learning loss to a minimum, developing a culture of working together instead of hierarchy, focusing on human expectations and needs instead of performance anxiety. Some key questions that we had to think about also emerged: "Meeting or taking action in the distance education and working process?", "How should the exams be prepared more creatively and in line with the conditions of today?", "How can we bring our teaching processes to the level that it will keep the student's interest and knowledge alive?” etc. We have worked on different questions  and will continue to work. We will get over this crisis stronger with our educator identity. This should be more than a wish, a goal for all of us. That’s why, we should search for good examples that will minimize the learning loss and keep the teaching excitement alive.

My Dear Kültür Family, 

We are in such a period where psychological health and safety are also important for institutions as well as physical. In this process, the expertise, experience and coordination of our academic and administrative staff are very important to maintain our resilience. I know that our administrative staff, as well as our academicians, work devotedly in order to provide and provide uninterrupted education service, which is the reason for the existence of Kültür. The share of logistics and support services in the operation process of the education service is indisputable. I especially ask the academic and administrative staff to stay in touch during this period. We should not consider the fact that nothing will be the same as before as a pressure, but as an element of change. The most important thing is to be agile, constructive and humane in communication. In the words of our Honorary President Master of Civil Engineering Fahamettin Akıngüç, we are doing a job that is surrounded by humans.  As well as its meaning,  its responsibility is also a huge job. We take the strength to carry this mission from our core values. Kültür values ​​that we have internalized are not only evident in our constitution, but also in the words of the anthem prepared by the MFÖ Group for Kültür College in the 1970s. On this occasion, I would like to share with you the Kültür Anthem, the gift of our Honorary President, which I listened to again last week and gave me hope in these difficult times.

I believe that we will have many nice shares with friendship and health.

Hope to see you

Dr. Bahar Akıngüç Günver
IKU Head of the Board of Trustees