At the beginning, the Vice-Rector for Personnel Policy, Academic and Cultural Affairs Jiří Hanuš welcomed the crowded auditorium and expressed his appreciation for the work of the awardees through a quote by T. G. Masaryk: “A man who does his work without interest and only for bread is an unhappy and poisoned man. I love to hear someone speak with love and zest about their profession.”
The ideas of ´universitas´, the importance of education and educational institutions, and the tasks facing universities today were mentioned by MU Rector Martin Bareš in his speech. “The idea of universitas is closely linked to communities of scientists and scholars, which gradually became to some extent autonomous and self-governing, laying the foundations for later university autonomy and academic freedoms as we know them today,” Martin Bareš said. He also stressed the importance of critical thinking, the search for truth, the importance of the emancipation of the individual and - in the historical context - the role of universities in the development of European democratic societies. He described the ideas of universitas as a living force “…which plays - and should play - a similar role through contemporary universities”. He also warned against appeasement and populism, saying that “the values, principles and ideas associated with the concept of universitas can be and are the best defence and the best remedy against acute threats”.
President of the MU Academic Senate Petr Najvar mentioned his predecessors and focused on how their expertise was reflected in the position of Senate President. Reflecting on how he could contribute as a graduate teacher of primary school, he highlighted the qualities of a good teacher: active listening, understanding the topic and finding solutions. Like Rector Bareš, he concluded that it is knowledge that enables a person to orient themselves in the world, to perceive it in context and to think of consequences. “Even primary education has something to offer; it is about models of the world that are functional and understandable: not to hit the weaker, to admit a mistake, to lend a helping hand - this applies in the classroom, at university and in the community,” Petr Najvar summed up.
The award ceremony followed. The MU Rector's Award, which is awarded annually in several categories for extraordinary achievements in the field of science and research, sporting achievements, pedagogical activities, art and civic activities, was bestowed upon 25 personalities of the university. Five Silver Medals of MU were also awarded for strengthening the significance of MU at the national and global level, deepening the university's cooperation with domestic and foreign institutions and long-term significant support of the fields of study developed at MU.
MU Rector’s Award for Significant Creative Achievement
Robert Vácha, CEITEC MU
For two breakthrough studies Phospholipids are imported into mitochondria by VDAC, a dimeric beta barrel scramblase and Sequence and structural determinants of RNAPII CTD phase-separation and phosphorylation by CDK7. Both papers significantly improve our understanding of key biological processes in the biology and regulation of transcription.
MU Rector’s Award for a significant artistic achievement
Ondřej Zámečník, Faculty of Arts
For the musical composition entitled Hope in Children's Pictures from Terezín for wind quintet. The composition depicts children's pictures that contrast with the tragic fate of the children of Terezín. The piece was performed for the first time by the Belfiato Quintet at the Spanish Synagogue in Prague.
MU Rector’s Award for significant sporting performance
Andrea Klementová, Faculty of Sports Studies
During the last year she won 3 gold, 3 silver and 1 bronze medals in winter swimming at the European Championships held in Romania and 3 bronze medals at the World Championships held in Estonia. On 13 August 2024 she became the 13th Czech woman to swim the English Channel, at 13 hours and 58 minutes.
MU Rector’s Award for Outstanding Achievement in a Grant Competition
Petr Těšina, CEITEC MU
In 2023, Těšina was awarded an ERC Starting Grant, which significantly contributed to the establishment of the award-winning research group at CEITEC MU. Last year, he was the only applicant from the Czech Republic to succeed in another prestigious international grant competition, the EMBO Installation Grant.
MU Rector’s Award for Outstanding Research Achievements for Young Scientists Under 40
Life Sciences and Medicine: Zuzana Hofmanová, Faculty of Arts
At the Max Planck Institute, she leads her own research group within the prestigious ERC Synergy project HistoGenes and at MU she has established her own laboratory ArcheoGen. Nearing completion is a state-of-the-art laboratory for aDNA analysis which will be located in the newly built MUNI BioPharma Hub. According to WoS, she has authored two papers in Science, two studies in PNAS, two papers in Cell and two papers in Nature.
Social Sciences and Humanities: Monika Brusenbauch Meislová, Faculty of Social Studies
A leading figure in social science research on British politics and political discourse, she has systematically produced cutting-edge publications. In 2024 she was awarded the highly prestigious Jean Monnet Chair grant from the European Commission, and, the same year, she and her colleagues received a Jan Amos Komenský OP grant, which ranked first in its category.
Area of Economics and Informatics: Vít Musil, Faculty of Informatics
At the Faculty of Informatics, Musil has worked on topics in game theory and optimization. He is currently a team leader in the RationAI and Formela labs, where he leads student work especially in the areas of optimization and machine learning with applications in medicine, and benefits from the interconnection of these areas. He regularly publishes at leading conferences on artificial intelligence and machine learning and in prestigious journals in these areas.
MU Rector’s Award for Long-term Excellence in Research
Natural Sciences and Medicine: Klára Hilscherová, Faculty of Science
Hilscherová is a world-renowned expert in the field of research into the mechanisms of biological effects of chemicals, natural toxins and their mixtures. Her research on toxic substances affecting hormone regulation, i.e. endocrine disruptors, is highly recognized. She is also the author of innovative biodetection tools based on in vitro cell models.
Social Sciences and Humanities: Tomáš Katrňák, Faculty of Social Studies
Katrňák has long focused on social stratification and educational issues and has continuously published his results in prestigious social science journals. In 2024 he published, with Irish colleagues, the text Structural opportunities or assortative mating? Decomposing trends and country differences in educational sorting outcomes in marriages (co-authored with Julia Leesch and Jan Skopek) in the prestigious social science journal European Societies.
Area of Economics and Informatics: Pavel Čeleda, Faculty of Informatics
His key areas of research include network traffic analysis, anomaly detection and the development of methods for cyber threat prevention, as well as innovations in cyber security education and training. At the core of his research work are projects in which he works closely with major partners in academia (e.g. CESNET, CTU), industry (e.g. Flowmon Networks, UNIS) and government (e.g. NCIS, U.S. Army, Czech Armed Forces). A significant outcome of his research is the Cyber Polygon Platform (KYPO CRP).
MU Rector’s Award for Innovation in Teaching
Teaching field
Kateřina Chudová, Language Education Centre, Faculty of Law
Chudová has won the award for her innovations in the International Legal English course, her willingness to try new and untried things, and her relentless drive to make things better, more beneficial, and more useful to her students.
Ladislava Zbiejczuk Suchá, Faculty of Arts
She has received the award for her significant contribution to the design, accreditation and implementation of the Bachelor's programme Design of Information Services at the Faculty of Arts of MU.
Teaching support field: Ludmila Horáková et al., Faculty of Arts
In the long term, she focuses on innovation and improving the quality of teaching through the development, management and user support of the e-learning environment Moodle (ELF) and other systems. The main focus of the work of the e-learning office is the systematic development of tools for distance and hybrid learning in line with modern teaching trends.
MU Rector’s Award for Outstanding Students of MU Master's Degree Programmes
Jakub Novák, Faculty of Law, study programme: law and legal science
Marek Kadlčík, Faculty of Informatics, study programme: artificial intelligence and data processing
Matěj Brožek, Faculty of Education, study programme: technical and information education with a focus on education
MU Rector’s Award for Outstanding Students of MU Doctoral Programmes
Kristýna Pekárková, Faculty of Informatics, study programme Computer Science
Klára Klinkovská, Faculty of Science, study programme Ecological and Evolutionary Biology
Volodymyr Porokh, Faculty of Medicine, study programme: biomedical sciences
MU Rector’s Award for Outstanding Dissertation Thesis
Jiří Holoubek, Faculty of Science, study programme: microbiology
For his PhD thesis Tick-borne encephalitis: new insights into virus biology and therapy.
Tereza Prokopová, Faculty of Medicine, study programme: anaesthesiology, intensive medicine and algeziology
She is the recipient of the Jiří Mach Award for the best publication by a healthcare professional under 35 years of age published in 2022 for her article Palliative care practice and moral distress during COVID-19 pandemic (PEOpLE-C19 study): a national, cross-sectional study in intensive care units in the Czech Republic, awarded by the portal AKUTNĚ.CZ. This paper also won the CSARIM, Keszler Prize for the best published paper on the subject in a journal with IF.
MU Rector’s Award for Active Development of Civil Society
Kristián Kalianko, Faculty of Medicine
From 2022 to 2024, he served as Vice President of the Medical Student Association, coordinating with student organizations and faculty and participating in its strategic development. He was involved in the organization of a number of student events, including Appendix, the St. Nicholas for Children's Hospital charity project and the traditional Medics' Ball.
MU Rector’s Award for Volunteering - Student Category
Zuzana Lehel, Faculty of Medicine
During her studies, she is actively involved in volunteer activities mainly as a coordinator of the SPOLU project; she organizes activities for children at the psychiatric ward of the Brno University Hospital, but also ensures the participation of other student volunteers. She often goes to children's camps for children with autism in the role of a medic and, for two years now, she has been helping as a medic at all MJUNI activities. As part of the MUNI HELPS project, she has worked several times as a medic to children's camps for underprivileged children.
Marek Šváb, Faculty of Economics and Administration
Šváb has worked for a long time and with dedication in the organization Mission of Hope. He is actively involved in a financial literacy project for children in orphanages, where he helps them understand the basic principles of money management, the labour market and key financial concepts. In addition, he coordinates recruitment for the bone marrow donor registry at MU faculties.
Rector’s Award for Volunteering - Employees
Zuzana Dvořáková, Faculty of Education
Since 2022, Dvořáková has been cooperating with MUNI HELPS, co-organizing the Summer School of Tutoring. In addition to communicating with parents of children, she cares for the volunteer community. Thanks to her initiative, for the second year, a group tutoring program called Klubík, aimed at children and families from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, takes place regularly once a week.
OTHER AWARDS:
Silver Medal of MU:
Ondřej Dostál
Former long-time director of the Mendel Museum and the Boskovice Museum. He contributed to the return of Gregor Johann Mendel's historically important manuscript Experiments with Plant Hybrids to the Mendel Museum, where he developed cooperation with scientists from Germany, Italy, Sweden and the United States. He was behind the creation of the Mendel Summer Festival in Brno and the Museum of the Old Brno Abbey. He held the position of chairman of the Association of Museums and Galleries in the Czech Republic. The Silver Medal of MU is awarded for long-term outstanding activities at the head of the Mendel Museum and deepening cooperation with domestic and foreign institutions.
Tomáš Dvořák
He writes poetry, music and theatre improvisation under the pseudonym Tom Cortés. He is a copywriter in a digital agency and the only editor in the project dnesnaukrajine.cz. Since the first days of the war in Ukraine, he has been one of the valuable sources of information and still reports daily on the Today in Ukraine website on events related to this war conflict. It relies on Open Source Intelligence (OSINT), primarily drawing developing news from dozens of social media accounts linked to key institutions, media, agencies, bloggers and volunteers. The Silver Medal of MU is awarded for outstanding contributions to the defense of democratic values and human rights.
Jiří Málek
For many years he has been involved in the organization of research in the Czech Republic within the Council for Research, Development and Innovation in the Commission for the Evaluation of Research Organizations and Completed Programmes and the Grant Agency of the Czech Republic. He works as a reviewer for a number of international peer-reviewed journals. In 2006-2010 and 2018-2021, he was Rector of the University of Pardubice; he also served as Vice-Chairman of the Czech Rectors' Conference and worked to develop cooperation with MU and with domestic institutions. The MU Silver Medal is awarded for deepening the cooperation of domestic institutions with MU and for his significant contribution to the development of science and higher education.
Petr Pelčák
The name of the prominent architect and university lecturer is indelibly linked to Masaryk University by the designs of three faculties: the reconstruction of the Faculty of Informatics and the Faculty of Arts and the new building of the Faculty of Pharmacy. Across Brno, he is behind several key commercial development projects, such as the Trinity office centre, the Vaňkovka Gallery, the construction of a multi-purpose complex at Trnitá and the revitalization of the park at Denisovy sady. He is also the author of a number of publications dealing with the theory or history of architecture. The Silver Medal of MU is awarded for significant contribution to the development and significance of MU at the national and global level.
Hana Reichová
Reichová has significantly influenced language education and the development of language skills in non-philological fields at universities in the Czech Republic. She has devoted her career to professional medical terminology and to building a sophisticated system of professional language education at MU. The university's language support tool is the MU Language Centre (CJV MU), with which Reichová's career is intrinsically linked; she managed CJV for more than two decades and ended her career last year as Deputy Director for Quality. The Silver Medal of MU is awarded for her long-term contribution to the development of language education at MU.