Minutes of the Rector’s Meeting

The meeting participants observed a moment of silence for those who died in Perm State University on 20 September.

Visit of Sergey Ivanov, Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Graduate School of Management at St Petersburg University, and Alexander Beglov, Governor of St Petersburg, to St Petersburg University

On 16 September, Sergey Ivanov, Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for Environmental Protection, Ecology and Transport and Chairman of the Advisory Board for the Graduate School of Management at St Petersburg University, and Alexander Beglov, Governor of St Petersburg and a member of the Board of Trustees of St Petersburg University, visited the Mikhailovskaya Dacha Campus at the Graduate School of Management at St Petersburg University. The visit was related to introducing into operation new halls of residence for students of the Graduate School of Management.

During their visit, they inspected new halls of residence and living conditions for students. The halls of residence can accommodate 600 bachelor's students of the Graduate School of Management at St Petersburg University. The rooms are well equipped with the modern furniture and appliances. There are co-working spaces, i.e. multifunctional shared spaces. There is single room accommodation. There are apartments for people with reduced mobility. They are designed to meet all current requirements and standards.

The educational building can have blended rooms to ensure communication in face-to-face and distance modes based on the single interactive space. While showing what technical opportunities the educational building could offer, Nikolay Kropachev said: 'The blended formats enabled us to: expand the geography of our students; invite world-recognised researchers to deliver lectures in a distance mode; and make communication between colleagues worldwide more convenient.'

Sergey Ivanov, Alexander Beglov, and Nikolay Kropachev met students in the atrium of the educational building. Bachelor's students answered question on: how they study and live; how they participate in a number of student competitions; and how they see their career after they graduate the University. They also discussed issues relating to environment awareness; how we could make the Mikhailovskaya Dacha a 'green campus' (Graduate School of Management: 'Mikhailovskaya Dacha' is a world-class university campus in St Petersburg).

To ensure that the event would be covered in mass media, federal and regional mass media were invited. Among them were: Russia 24; Vesti; NTV; 5 Chanel; the Russian news agencies TASS and Russia Today; and others. On the day of the visit, there were broadcasts on: Mikhailovskaya Dacha as a world-level campus; the potential of how the territory could be further developed; and leadership position of the Graduate School of Management in Eastern Europe and Russia in the international rankings. The overall number of publications is 117, according to the service 'Mediology'.

The meeting participants also discussed issues asked by students in relation to moving in to the new halls of residence: why not all students had moved in to the halls of residence up to 15 September, as promised; and why only some students were allowed to move in. On 19 August, the Virtual Reception informed that the University was planning to receive a permission for putting the halls of residence into operation up to 15 September (Moving in to the halls of residence in the Mikhailovskaya Dacha Campus). As moving in to the halls of residence was not organised in a usual way (during the summer holiday), Konstantin Krotov, Head of the Graduate School of Management, proposed to allow 16 students who had lectures and seminars at the Mikhailovskaya Dacha Campus to move in first not to skip classes in accordance with the Order regulating moving in to the halls of residence (Order No 8752/1 'Moving in to the halls of residence located in the Mikhailovskaya Dacha). On 17 September, there was a meeting between these 16 students and officials who were responsible for ensuring maintenance of the halls of residence to get feedback on the living conditions in the halls of residence and fixing them. Only after, there was organised moving in for students from other regions in Russia and international students who were enrolled in the first years of bachelor's studies in Management, International Management, and Public Administration into the halls of residence located at 109 Sankt-Peterburgkoe Shosse, Petehof, St Petersburg (Why do the St Petersburg University students move in to the halls of residence later than they had been promised?). The meeting participants said that students have comfortable halls of residence within a walking distance from where they study (A Fresh Start: Building and construction: past and present).

The Shoenfeld's Centre for the Study of Autoimmune Diseases opened

On 14 September, St Petersburg University opened the Centre for the Study of Autoimmune Diseases and the Effects of the New Coronavirus Disease. This Centre is the first of its kind in Russia. The Centre is based in the Pirogiv Clinic of High Medical Technologies at St Petersburg University. It brings together researchers and doctors of the University: the Pirogov Clinic; the Faculty of Medicine; the Institute of Translational Biomedicine; the Laboratory of the Mosaic of Autoimmunity; and the Zabludowicz Center for Autoimmune Diseases at Tel-Aviv University and Ariel University. The opening of the Centre was supported by the President of Ariel University, Israel, and Professor Yehuda Shoenfeld, Head of the Laboratory of the Mosaic of Autoimmunity (St Petersburg University opens a centre for the study of long Covid).

The department for long Covid research at St Petersburg University is among the first long Covid interdisciplinary projects in Europe and Russia. The Centre will mainly focus on medical, biological, and clinical research to delve into etiology and pathogenesis and develop effective methods for treatment and prevention of long Covid conditions. Additionally, among the priority areas are: improving the quality of long-term medical supervision; planned treatment and rehabilitation of patients after infectious diseases, including Covid-19, and with immunopathological complications; and exchange of research and clinical experience between Russian and international colleagues.

The news on opening the Centre was covered by 16 information agencies, 83 Internet mass media, and 102 news aggregators. How mass media responded to opening the Centre evidences that the topic is highly up-to-date. We are going to witness how the Covid-patients need medical aid and will assess how the Centre will operate.

Meeting between Nikolay Kropachev, Rector of St Petersburg University, and Eugene Kaspersky, CEO of Kaspersky Lab

On 17 September, as part of the visit of the CEO of Kaspersky Lab Evgeny Kaspersky to St Petersburg University, there was a business meeting with the Rector of St Petersburg University Nikolay Kropachev. Additionally, he delivered an open lecture 'Cyberimmunity for the digital age' for students and specialists in information security.

Established in 1997, Kaspersky Lab is an international company in information security and digital privacy. The company's deep expertise and years of experience underpin the next-generation security solutions and services to keep businesses, critical infrastructure, government agencies and users safe. Kaspersky Lab technologies protect over 400 million users and 240,000 corporate clients worldwide (www.kaspersky.com).

At the meeting with the Rector, Eugene Kaspersky was demonstrated what competences and potential in mathematics and computer science the University had, both in terms of training highly qualified professionals and providing opportunities for research / research and development at the request of partners. As a result of the meeting, they agreed that there was a need to open joint academic programmes using the competencies of Kaspersky Lab in cybersecurity and building immune systems and organising internships for the University students at Kaspersky Lab. The meeting also discussed research cooperation with the company in the area St Petersburg University development, in particular the Neva Delta project.

The guest lecture by the General Director of Kaspersky Lab in 'Cyberimmunity for the digital age' was held in the Petrovsky Hall and broadcast on the Internet ('The future belongs to the development of immune operating systems'. Eugene Kaspersky tells students at St Petersburg University about cyber immune systems). Eugene Kaspersky presented the main tasks that Kaspersky Lab focused on; demonstrated what mass cybercrime and targeted attacks were; and discussed the current problems of attacks on industrial and critical infrastructure using the example of Kaspersky Lab data.

In the near future, the University is going to prepare and open a joint academic programme of St Petersburg University and Kaspersky Lab.

Japanese Garden opened at St Petersburg University

On 14 September, the St Petersburg University Botanical Garden (A Fresh Start: petrol and motor oil – for watering plants in the University Botanical Garden; A fresh start for the Garden once used as a junkyard: the director of the St Petersburg University Botanical Garden about the 1990s and 2000s) held a ceremony celebrating the opening of a Japanese Garden site. The event was part of the 18th festival ‘Japanese Autumn in St Petersburg’ organised by the Consulate General of Japan. The event was visited by Yasumasa Iijima, Consul General of Japan; Senior Vice-Rector Elena Chernova; Sergey Makarov, Chairman of the Committee for the State Preservation of Historical and Cultural Monuments of St Petersburg; and Alexei Belogurov, JTI Russia North-West region Corporate Affairs and Communications Director.

Artem Parshin, a graduate of the Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture at Edinburgh College of Art and landscape architect of the Moscow State University Botanical Garden, presented his concept of developing the St Petersburg University Botanical Garden.

Among other events during the programme were:

stand with books and souvenirs from the St Petersburg University Publishing House
lecture 'Japanese culture and St Petersburg. 300 years' by Professor Aleksandr Filippov, Head of the Department of Japanology at St Petersburg University
masterclass by a member of Ikebana International Ekaterina Kuleshova ‘Ikebana – the Japanese art of flower arrangement’
masterclass on meditation ‘Physiology of zen’ by Rinad Minvaleev, Associate Professor in the Department of Physical Culture and Sport at St Petersburg University
presentation of the project ‘In Search of Lost Knowledge’ by Irina Arkhipova, the founder and director of the film studio of the historical movie ‘Pharaoh’ (Japanese Garden opened at St Petersburg University)

The choice of the topic and name of the recreation zone is not accidental. The study of the Japanese philology at St Petersburg became systematic in 1870 in Russia (Department of Japanology). Today, Japanology is among the most popular areas in Asian and African studies at St Petersburg University. Over recent years, there was a considerable increase in Japanese partners, joint research publications, and academic mobility at St Petersburg University (The partner-universities of St Petersburg University). In 2018, the University opened the Japanese Cabinet that was the first in Russia (St Petersburg University opens the first in Russia Japanese cabinet; Shinzō Abe, Prime Minister of Japan, confers the Order of the Rising Sun (Gold and Silver Star) on Nikolay Kropachev, Rector of St Petersburg University).

The flora collection of the Botanical Garden includes endemic species of the Far East: Japanese rhododendron and Sikhotinsky rhododendron brought to St Petersburg specially for the opening ceremony of the Japanese garden site. The opening of the Japanese Garden site took place on the eve of two important anniversaries in 2024: the 300th anniversary of St Petersburg University and the 160th anniversary of the Botanical Garden of St Petersburg University. By this time, it is planned to complete the work on the reconstruction and restoration of the Garden, which began in 2018. The Botanical Garden will include several thematic zones, each with its own collection of plants. Among them will be the collection of the Far East. The Japanese Garden site has become the first demonstration of the new look of the Botanical Garden of St Petersburg University.

Distribution of teaching assignments

The University continues to distribute teaching assignments in relation to the disciplines that will start in October and include them in the timetable of the academic programmes. The deadline for making the necessary changes to the timetable for the members of academic staff directly depends on the deadlines for submitting and fulfilling all necessary documents and entering the data into the relevant information systems. After completing all the necessary documents and entering the data into the SAP system, a corresponding teaching assignment is formed in the information system Assignment, and the full names of the members of the academic staff who implement specific disciplines are entered into the timetable.

The departments and divisions are constantly exchanging information. Updated 17 September, the number of the disciplines that have not been assigned reduced to 398. As a result, over 10,300 disciplines (97%) of all academic programmes have been assigned to academic staff for the autumn semester. All relevant departments and divisions are responsible for registering academic staff.

Current issues with organising the teaching and learning process

Over the past period, the Virtual Reception received 34 enquiries from students and academic staff including 11 enquiries on academic issues and methodological issues addressed to the Senior Vice-Rector for Academic Activities, with 30 enquiries registered at the catalogue of student enquiries.

The enquiries vary in topics: issuing a notice of non-complete higher education; paying a scholarship; format of the teaching and learning process; academic transfer from fee-paying basis to government-paying basis of study; results of work of the commission on academic transfer and readmissions; tuition fee; paying a scholarship in August; access to the MS Teams; receiving documents from the personal records of students; studying at St Petersburg University; moving in to the halls of residence by students in Management in the Mikhailovskaya Dacha Campus; assistance to students with disabilities; changing an area of study; credit transfer of the candidate exams; implementing the disciplines in the blended format; changes in the timetable of one of the group in philology; changing the format of study; and expelling on one's own free will. All enquiries are checked up and responded quickly.

According to the information submitted by the heads of the academic and research divisions, classes are delivered according to the timetable.

A lecturer did not attend a laboratory class in chemistry for students in medicine. There was a check-up with support of the Director of the Institute of Chemistry that revealed that the early-career lecturer was hired on 1 September 2021. Due to some technical problems, the lecturer did not receive information about the date of the class from the Academic Affairs Department. Irina Balova talked with the lecturer and the classes would be delivered.

Over the past week, there was a technical problem, i.e. there was no Internet connection in one of the computers in the room at 33-35, 10th Line, Vasilyevsky Island. The information was forwarded to the University Information Technology Service. Additionally, some of the groups had problems when connecting to the MS Teams. The problem was promptly solved by the University Information Technology Service. The University is working on making the timetable for the elective disciplines.

Over the past week, there were no meetings between student councils and heads of some of the academic and research divisions.

There was a meeting between the student council and the Dean of the Faculty of Sociology. There was a proposal to make changes in the timetable. This information and proposals were forwarded to the Academic Affairs Department by Nikolai Skvortsov.

Answering the question about when the elective disciplines would be included in the timetable, Dean Skvortsov said that the timetable was in the making and would be available to students after 25 September. According to Clause 2.1¹.5 of the Academic Regulations, first-year students must submit their applications on choosing the elective disciplines for the first two semesters within two weeks from the beginning of the first period of study (or from distributing them into profiles). Within two weeks from the beginning of the period of study when the elective disciplines are implemented students can submit their personal applications on changing the elective disciplines they have chosen before. The deadline for submitting the applications on choosing and changing the elective disciplines is 15 September 2021. The Academic Affairs Department is currently issuing orders to assign the elective disciplines to change the timetable.

Dean Skvortsov introduced to the student council a letter on how the catering would be organised from the Head of the University's Office for Dining and Food Services Svetlana Shingireeva, dated 15 September 2021.

During the meeting of the Director of the Institute of Earth Sciences with the representatives of the student council, questions were asked about the format of the teaching and learning process and the timetable for the autumn semester, in particular, the dates of resitting exams and tests. The students were informed that from the beginning of the 2021/22 academic year at St Petersburg University, all types of seminars in individual academic groups should be conducted in a classroom format, and classes in mixed groups and lectures should be conducted by using information and communication technologies. The transition to the format of classes using information and telecommunication technologies is possible for academic groups during the quarantine period, i.e. in the event of a COVID-19 case.

There was a meeting of the Dean of the Faculty of Philology with the chairperson of the Student Council, with the issue of organising the teaching and learning process in the period from 9 to 15 September discussed. The Academic Affairs Department receives enquiries from students to change the format of the teaching and learning process. All enquiries are discussed in due course and manner.

During the meeting of the Dean of the Faculty of Asian and African Studies with the representatives of the student council, the situation with the organisation of the teaching and learning process in the autumn semester and the importance of tracking changes in the electronic timetable were explained. Issues relating to the importance of getting vaccinated against the coronavirus infection and other issues were discussed. The relevant explanations were provided.

There was a meeting between the Dean of the School of International Relations and active representatives of the student council. Students were worried that the classes in the Swedish language had been postponed as the Faculty of Foreign Languages had no lecturer in the Swedish language. This issue is being discussed by the School of International Relations and the Faculty of Philology and is going to be settled by 1 October.

There was a meeting between the Dean of the Faculty of Applied Mathematics and Control Processes with the representatives of the student council, with the issues relating to making the timetable and resitting exams explained. The student council was recommended to inform students that they must follow the mask regime at the University's buildings and should get vaccinated.

There was a meeting between the administration of the Faculty of Arts and representatives of the student council. The students asked about how catering would be organised. Svetlana Shingireeva, Head of the University's Office for Dining and Food Services at St Petersburg University, explained that vending machines for the sale of snacks, hot drinks and water are installed in the building where the classes are held. The University is currently attracting the catering operators.

Organising work of the Institute for Cognitive Studies and the Institute of Pedagogy

All necessary measures have been taken so far to organise the work of the recently established the Institute of Pedagogy and the Institute for Cognitive Studies (St Petersburg University to prepare academic staff to work with talented children; Minutes of the Rector's meeting No 438 dated 10 August 2020; Proposals for organising the structural unit 'Institute for Cognitive Studies'; Results of the meeting of the Academic Council of St Petersburg University held on 31 August 2020).

In 2020, Professor Tatiana Chernigovskaya, Director of the Institute for Cognitive Studies, suggested establishing the Institute for Cognitive Studies that had been part of the Faculty of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Following the proposals suggested by the directors of the institutes, there was adopted a decision on organising administration support for the two institutes by the same services, departments of the Rector's administration (Minutes of the Rector's meeting dated 6 November 2020). Both institutes focus on creating individual academic trajectories and developing online courses on the educational platforms Open Education and Coursera following the current trends of interdisciplinary and practice-oriented education.

The Institute for Cognitive Studies originated from the research laboratory. Thus, the Institute will focus on research (St Petersburg University professor Tatiana Chernigovskaya: ‘We must give the strong graduates the possibility to continue their education in Russia’; The Institute for Cognitive Studies at St Petersburg University). Each student will have research practice and carry out his/her own experimental research by using equipment and resources of the University.

The Institute of Pedagogy was established in 2018 to meet the demands of the labour market to prepare a new generation of academic staff. It will offer programmes of retraining and advanced learning and conduct research in pedagogy (The Institute of Pedagogy at St Petersburg University; 'Communicating with gifted children brings joy'). Among the key areas of the Institutes are master's programmes, doctoral programmes, retraining programmes, and advanced learning programmes.

Both institutes are united into a single financial unit. From 1 September 2021, there is a separate personal account to ensure separate accounting and financing. The structure of the currently formed budget of the institutes is 70% of educational activities (including 47% – subsidies for the implementation of state assignments, 23% – funds from income-generating activities for the provision of fee-paying educational services) and 30% – from research activities.

The institutes were supposed to be located at 11, 6th Line, Vasilyevsky Island.

Yet, after the institutes were established, the academic staff of the institutes were separated. The Institute of Pedagogy was located in the building at 7-9-11 litera B Universitetskaya Embankment (the Palace of Peter II), where it occupied an area of 27 sq. m, and the Institute for Cognitive Studies was located at 58-60 litera A Galernaya Street, occupying an area of 139 sq. m. Being located separately posed a barrier for joint work.

The Rector therefore decided to locate both institutes in one building, with the rooms specially allocated for delivering classes. The institutes should be located at 11, 6th Line, Vasilyevsky Island. The Centre for E-Learning Development and the Centre for Algorithmic Biotechnology had therefore to move to 41a Sredny Prospect, Vasilyevsky Island, where there had been performed urgent repair works.

Today, the institutes are located at 11, 6th Line, Vasilyevsky Island, in 15 rooms of 384 sq. m.

At the Rector's meeting, Professor Tatiana Chernigovskaya, Director of the Institute for Cognitive Studies, and Professor Elena Kazakova, Director of the Institute of Pedagogy, expressed their gratitude for providing favourable working conditions. Professor Kazakova said about the work of the Pedagogical Clinics (Practice following the model of clinics at St Petersburg University) for students in any academic programmes at the University who want to gain competences in pedagogy.

Engaging the public to control the financial and business activities of St Petersburg University

In 2016, in order to improve the efficiency of the business management system, St Petersburg University was the first among universities to develop and introduce a research system of openness in the planning, execution and acceptance of works and services. The meeting analysed the participation of members of the public in monitoring the financial and economic activities of St Petersburg University in 2021, updated 1 September.

Information about the planned events and their results is published on the University website. Everyone can take part in discussion, control and acceptance of works (services). In the section 'Public discussion' of the University website, everyone is invited to take part in the discussion of topics that are important for the University. Based on the results of the discussion, when making decisions, the opinions and proposals of all University students and staff are taken into account.

In the section 'Public control' of the University website, the public is informed about all issued orders for the acceptance of the quality of work (services). The committees for the acceptance of works include representatives of the public (trade union committees of employees and students, the Student Council of St Petersburg University, users of the premises being repaired). For that end, information letters are sent to trade union committees and the Student Council with an invitation to participate in monitoring the progress and acceptance of a specific type of work, indicating the contacts of the chairperson of the committee. Representatives of the public are informed about the date, time and place of acceptance of works before the date of acceptance of completed works and are invited to participate on a regular basis.

Nevertheless, students and academic staff do not always respond to the invitation and participate in the acceptance of works. This situation mainly concerns design works, where specialists with the appropriate qualifications are needed, and in works related to the repair of specific equipment. Academic staff, students, and employees take part in the acceptance of works of objects that they use.

The decision of the acceptance committee is issued as an acceptance certificate, which is signed by the members of the committee, including representatives of the public.

Information on the results of public control over the progress of repair work and services rendered is discussed at the Rector's meetings and published in the section 'Rector's meetings' of the University website. Thus, the participation of representatives of the public following the results of the work performed (services provided) in 2020 was discussed at the Rector's meeting held on 8 February 2021. Issues related to the organisation of purchases and their results were discussed at the Rector's meeting held on 16 August.

Updated 1 September, over 75 types of work are being or have been carried out, including:

Types of work	Number of agreements	Engaging of the public
1. Provision of services for the maintenance of engineering and technical systems	12	Participation on a regular basis in the acceptance (verification) of works, services
2. Provision of services for the maintenance of premises and territory (cleaning)	18	Participation on a regular basis in the acceptance (verification) of works, services
3. Execution of emergency work	13	Invitations are sent, but public engagement in acceptance is not always accepted
4. Work on the development of design estimates	14	Invitations are sent; apart from the intended users (customers), representatives of the public do not always take part; specialists should work
5. Execution of current repair work	14	Invitations are sent, public engagement in acceptance is accepted
6. Execution of work on major repairs	4	Invitations are sent, public engagement in acceptance is accepted

Implementing educational activities by the legal entities that are part of the research and educational complex of the University

In accordance with the amendments to Federal Law № 259-FZ 'On Lomonosov Moscow State University and St Petersburg University’ dated 10 November 2009 and to certain provisions of Federal Law № 273-FZ 'On Education in the Russian Federation' dated 29 December 2012 (Federal Law № 332-FZ dated 2 July 2021), St Petersburg University can establish legal entities as part of its research and educational complex (Minutes of the Rector's meeting dated 5 July 2021). It was assumed that the legal entities that were part of the University would have the same advantages, rights, and benefits that the University had (including the right to study according to its own standards, the right to issue its own state diplomas, the right to conduct defence according to its own rules).

To clarify these rights, the Deputy Rector for Legal Affairs addressed the Federal Service for Supervision in Education and Science on the implementation of educational activities of legal entities that were part of the research and educational complex 'St Petersburg University'. A response was received from the Department of State Policy in Higher Education of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (see the letter of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education).

It states that according to Federal Law № 259-FZ and the University Charter, legal entities that are part of the research and educational complex of the University cannot implement academic programmes of higher education based on independently established educational standards of the University and issue educational documents and (or) qualifications with the official symbols of the Russian Federation which are certified by the seal of the University.

The issue is therefore being discussed: to initiate the process to introduce relevant changes to the Charter of St Petersburg University or to the legislation of the Russian Federation.

Disorderly behaviour in the University Campus at night from 18 to 19 September

On the night of 18-19 September, on the territory of the halls of residence in the Petrodvortsovy District of St Petersburg, a group of students for a long time had been violating: the requirements of the administrative legislation of the Russian Federation; and the internal regulations of the University. These include: the norms on maintaining silence at night (administrative responsibility for violating peace and quiet citizens at night, on weekends and holidays is established by Article 8 of Law of St Petersburg № 273-70 'On Administrative Offenses in St Petersburg' dated 12 May 2010); no drinking alcohol on the territory of an educational organisation (liability is established by Article 20.20 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of the Russian Federation); and requirements to prevent the spread of coronavirus disease. Information inviting them to take part in these illegal actions was sent by some students on social networks.

The Student Council of St Petersburg University posted an appeal to the students of the University on the social network "VKontakte" not to commit illegal actions on the territory of the University.

Unfortunately, some students of the University still considered it possible to participate in these illegal actions. How these students behaved was so unacceptable that it created inconvenience for other students living in the halls of residence.

In order to stop these unlawful actions, the employees of the University Security Department suggested that students who committed these unlawful actions stop violating the law and disperse. This request was ignored, and the reaction was expressed in a rude form. The Deputy Chairperson of the University Student Council addressed the University Security Department that called the Russian Guard. The Russian Guard officers called the police and additional detachments of the Russian Guard. Yet even the National Guard officers did not stop the illegal actions. Only detaining persons who expressed disobedience to the lawful demands of law enforcement officers led to the cessation of the illegal actions of students and other persons. Police officers detained ten people, among them there were seven students living in the halls of residence and the other three were not students.

Students who are guilty of violating the laws and by-laws of the University will be subject to disciplinary measures up to expulsion from the University.