The 2021 Lecturer of the year and Employee of the year awards have been presented at Corvinus

Following our traditions, the Corvinus University of Budapest acknowledges its most excellent lecturers and employees on Teachers’ Day. The Lecturer of the year and the Employee of the year distinctions are awarded by the Senate of the University to employees with the most outstanding professional performance in education and auxiliary services. After candidates are suggested by professional managers, the Distinction Committee choses the awardees, with special regard to their results reflected in students’ feedback and to their contribution to materialising the strategic targets of the University.

 The award ceremony took place on 8 June, in an unusual, hybrid way: due to the loosening of pandemic-related restrictions, several of the awardees were able to be present and receive the awards in person at the Faculty Club of Corvinus, while the others could join the event online from their homes. The employees of the University were able to follow the award ceremony through Teams.

The rector, András Lánczi started by emphasising: the past academic year posed serious challenges to the University, as it did not only have to manage the difficulties of the transition, but had to handle the effects of a pandemic as well. He said that the management of the university assessed the results and the work of the awardees very thoroughly: contributing to the renewal of the University was actually a factor of consideration this year.

The rector of Corvinus said that the quality and the performance of a nation, a country can be very well assessed through its higher education, thus, the work of the educators weighs a lot. And, beside the academic achievements, there is also the performance of the employees who work in the field of auxiliary services that assist academia. He also highlighted that the transition of the university is not self-serving but is for the students.

“What does being a teacher mean?” – the rector asked; he has been dealing with this dilemma for fourty years, it has kept him in the profession. “Quem di odere, paedagogum faecere” – the latin phrase translates as: “Whoever the gods hate, they will make them into a teacher”. András Lánczi explained that being a teacher does indeed have a very difficult and rough side to it where one faces many decisions; and looking back, one can see clearly all the things they did right and what they did wrong. For a teacher, making a mistake has much more weight and it carries consequences for many other people.

Which is why striving for high quality performance is so important, and why that is one of the key aspects of the renewal. The rector of Corvinus closed his speech by stating that the performance of those recieving this year’s distinctions is in alignment with that, and that demonstrates to the leadership of the university that they agree with the goals set, they find joy and challenge in their duties and in teaching, and they do it all professionally.

 
This year’s awardees of the auxiliary services field were addressed by Chancellor Ákos Domahidi. In his speech, he quoted a German metaphore, according to which the University is like a person: the head is the educators and researchers, the body is the students, and the administrative services that assist educational and research activities are the soul.

The “head”, that is, the educators and researchers represent the basic activity of the University: the institutional values of knowledge transference. The “body”, which is the most spectacular and active part, is the students, who spread the word about the University. They do not see much of the work that goes on in the background, but the auxiliary services are busy working on making the everyday life of students more comfortable and enjoyable, complementing educational and research inputs. The “soul” is an invisible yet fundamental animating force that needs to be cared for and paid attention to.

Ákos Domahidi emphasised that this is why it is important to slow down for a moment each year and celebrate the employees who contributed to the operation and the renewal of the University in an outstanding way. The chancellor highlighted that working together with the service field is not merely about support and help, but also about cooperation, because shared successes can only be achieved this way.

Ákos Domahidi recalled that he had joined the renewing Corvinus Univesity less than a year ago. He said that he is fortunate to be working with colleagues who had stood up to these recent, testing times with inspiring professionalism and perseverence. At the end of his address, he quoted Henry Ford: “Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.” In closing, he asked colleagues not to lose sight of the shared goal throughout the renewal process, and keep focusing on it, through their work that is as invisible as the soul that animates us.

 
LECTURERS OF THE YEAR 2021

Milán Csaba Badics, assistant lecturer, employee of the Institute of Finance, Accounting and Business Law, for his outstandingly dedicated and fruitful work in talent promotion.

Milán has achieved fantastic results in the fields of talent promotion, especially in mentoring TDK papers. The numbers speak louder than words: In 2021, he contributed to 13 OTDK student awards: 4 placed first, 3 placed second, 2 placed third, and 4 were given a special award. Additionally, he manages and develops the Investments master’s subject excellently as a coordinator, and his student feedback results are also way beyond the average.

Dr. Ildikó Borbásné Szabó, associate professor, employee of the Institute of Information Technology, for the high quality education she provides and for her successful work in substantial educational methodology developments.

Ildikó participated in several projects aimed at the development of professional and educational methodologies. She established a partnership network of companies for the business informatics internship, and developed the procedure for completing complex examinations through student projects created as a response to business problems. The latter is key for the development of the entire course, and a prime example of the involvement of market partners in education.

Dr. Gábor János Dudás, assistant professor, employee of the Institute of Finance, Accounting and Business Law, for his work in the renewal of the legal education of business informatics students, and his successes achieved in online education.


Gábor has fundamentally renewed the legal education of business informatics students in the past year. He successfully integrated the subject of legal issues related to the digital world and data protection into the curriculum. He includes his practical experience – as a lawyer – in his educational work successfully, and has stood up to the requirements of online education.

Dr. József Erdei, associate professor, director of the Corvinus Language Exam Centre, for his outstanding professional and pedagogical work in teaching advanced English for International Relations.

The outstanding professional and pedagogical work of József has also been reflected in the excellent student feedback that he has been receiving year after year. Beside the exciting, internationally relevant topics that broaden one’s thinking, students highlight the excellent methodology and friendly atmosphere of his lectures. József’s lectures have become memorable and a lasting experience for many students. The University has acknowledged his results in 2008 with a University Distinction Certificate, and in 2015 with a Pro Universitate Medallion.

Dr. Balázs Tibor Felsmann, assistant professor, the employee of the Institute of Management, for his continuous activity in educational innovation, and his developments in the methodologies applied in the transition to online education of large audiences.

Balázs was the first to apply lecturing methods that successfully gained and maintained the attention of large audiences (hundreds of people), as well as their appreciation. A year ago, news of the exceptionally high student rating he received for Strategical and business planning spread around the whole University, and served as meaningful inspiration for his colleagues in tougher periods. He contributes to educational development with an exemplary level of activity and one innovative idea after the other. For example, he was in charge of developing a brand new, “elite training” type English language specialisation in the business administration and management bachelor’s course.

Dr. Janka Filyó, assistant professor, employee of the Institute of Finance, Accounting and Business Law, for her dedicated work of organisation, innovation and pedagogy in online education.

Students would do anything to get into Janka’s seminars. She has been receiving exceedingly high ratings in student feedback. In 2016, she was a Lecturer of the year. She had a billion ideas for remote education that she was happy to share with her colleagues. She strived to fulfill students’ needs in every way and to keep the usual high quality of education even during the pandemic. She is able to keep up with extremely high workloads, stretches her capacities to take on tasks in educational organisation. She is constantly driven for innovation, recommends novel solutions, then consistently implements and materialises her suggestions. She keeps good relations with the relevant students’ and professional organisations.

Dr. Loretta Huszák, assistant professor, employee of the Institute for the Development of Enterprises, for organising the Danube Cup competition for university startups, and thus contributing to the results achieved in the internationalisation of the University.

Loretta has taken part in the organisation of the Danube Cup competition since 2019. Having opened the joint competition of the Corvinus University of Budapest and the Budapest University of Technology (launched in 2015) to the international scene, 7 leading economics-oriented universities of 4 countries competed for the Danube Cup this year. She is awarded the distinction for her work in organising IdeasGoLive by Danube Cup, held within the framework of Startup Safari Budapest festival.

Márton Tamás Katona, assistant lecturer, employee of the Institute of Economic and Public Policy, for his excellent work as an educator, the high workloads he manages, and his community development initiatives.

Márton has been performing with excellence at the Department of Comparative and Institutional Economics, his student feedback ratings – which are based on the feedback of over 150 students in each semester – are way beyond the average, in fact, they are often the highest. He is a creative and innovative educator, the he manages substantial workloads and gives lectures to large audiences. Márton has recently launched a new subject, and also takes part in the teaching of Institutional economics. He coordinates the work of the teaching assistants of the institute, and his excellent and successful work as an educator is reflected in the fact that nearly all of the teaching assistants are his former students.

Dr. Zoltán Kelemen, assistant professor, employee of the Institute of International, Political and Regional Studies, for his excellent talent in pedagogy, the outstandingly supportive attitude that he serves students with, and the excellent feedback he received from the students of the international studies bachelor’s and master’s courses.

Zoltán’s history with Corvinus runs way back in time: he completed his bachelor’s and master’s studies at the university, as well as his doctoral programme later on. He has been working at the International Relations Department of the Institute of International, Political and Regional Studies since 2016, where he is involved in the teaching of both the compulsory and optional subjects of the Hungarian and English taught International relations course. He is an excellent employee, always there for both colleagues and students. The high quality of his work is also reflected in his outstanding student feedback results.

Dr. Judit Lilla Keresztúri, assistant professor, employee of the Institute of Finance, Accounting and Business Law, for her outstanding performance in education, educational development and community development, and her extremely successful work as the head of a specialisation.

Lilla is one of the most popular educators of the department, she has had outstanding student feedback results for several years. She spearheads developments in educational methodology, has created the Financial information technology systems in business subject, and has put together her own material for teaching R programming. As a head of the specialisation, she has contributed a lot to building the community of the Finance master’s course. She is the founder and main organiser of the Finance Master’s Club.

Dr. György Walter, university professor, employee of the Institute of Finance, Accounting and Business Law, for his outstanding educational activities both in Hungarian and in English, for the integration of new digitalisation techniques into the curriculum, and his constant innovations both in content and methodology.

In recent years, György has implemented substantial developments both in terms of content and methodology when he and his team renewed the Corporate Finance subject. Today, a new set of sample problems, a new seminar guide, Moodle tests, explanatory videos and other digital tools are available to assist teaching. He has also renewed the Investment and Financing Decisions subject, where interactive methodological techniques: practical problem-solving, team work, games and simulations have become even more central. His English taught subjects are also extremely popular among students, his student feedback score has been outstanding for several years.

Stanley Allen Ward Jr, master lecturer, for his dedicated and committed work in the development of students’ English language communication skills.

Due to his unique field of education (Intercultural Communications, Business Negotiations, Business English, Business Communications, and International Debate), there is a huge demand within the organisation for his subjects and his work. He stretches his capacities to manage the high workload, and the quality of his work is reflected in his student feedback scores.

  

EMPLOYEES OF THE YEAR 2021

Szilvia Árva-Tóth, for her exemplary commitment, outstanding knowledge, and dedicated work for the community of the Unversity and for the Corporate and Institutional Relations team.

Szilvia has been a highly esteemed employee of Corporate and Institutional Relations with over ten years of work experience, and beside her financial duties, she also serves as an office manager. She carries out her exemplary work independently, with precision, responsibly and fast. She has built and maintains the financial internal controlling and reporting system of Corporate and Institutional Relations, and the contract registry and invoice contolling systems that support and supervise sales. She provides active support to the management in following the business plan and tracking budget items, and keeps working for the cohesion of the community and the strengthening of the team spirit with unrelenting enthusiasm.

Attila Czintula, for his precise, reliable and conscientious work in the operation of the Székesfehérvár campus and during its development works and investment projects.

Attila has been participating proactively in the operation and the infrastructural development works of the buildings and property since the founding of the Székesfehérvár campus, as a facility operations coordinator. He has undertaken major tasks in the planning and implementation of the Campus B building: in the architectural, interior architectural, planning and supervisory duties during the implementation phase, the test operation and the current warranty period. He takes an active part in the preparation and facilitation of the events held on campus. He always supports educators’ work with a helpful attitude, and is eager to make students’ university and dormitory life even more comfortable by taking into account the feedback of students and those who live in university housing.

Andrea Faragó, for her dedicated and extremely efficient work in supporting the services of the University Library.

Andrea has been working in the library for 20 years. For the last 10 years, as the head of the secretariat, she not only single-handedly managed all of the tasks related to the practical operation of the library, but her fast, precise and reliable decision preparatory work has also been indispensable among the constantly changing rules and tight deadlines. She is a real “jolly joker”: in addition to her frequent suggestions aimed at simplifying processes, she also handles tasks such as the management of bibliometrics data and the sorting of publication data plates. Her commitment has previously been rewarded by the University through a Distinction Certificate.

Krisztina Gedó, for her successful work in establishing and maintaining the efficient operation of the Institute of Communication and Sociology, and for her community building efforts.

At the Institute of Communication and Sociology, founded in January 2020 as part of the organisational restructuring of Corvinus, she has carried out successful and exemplary work as the head of the secretariat in establishing the operation of the institute. She has created a new operational order and smooth processes for the secretariat. Her 15 years of experience at Corvinus serve as a stable basis and source of knowledge for the freshly created community of the institute; her enthusiasm, proactivity and thoroughness are exemplary. She had received the Employee of the year awarded once before, in 2012.

Eszter Kovács, for her consistently high quality, oustanding work in the tender project management of the University.

Eszter has been working at the university for over 10 years. Her excellent and thorough work has contributed to the establishment of the Directorate for Research Development. She utilises her several years of experience in the work of the Tender project management department as a project manager. She contributes efficiently to the processes of the university with her outstanding precision and her documentation system.

Gábor Kövesdi, for his conssientious work of outstanding quality that he has carried out at the Corvinus Language Exam Centre for ten years.

Gábor is a sound technician of the Corvinus Language Exam Centre. He has been doing his work professionally, reliably, with exemplary conscience and commitment for exactly a decade. There is no room for mistake in his field of work, and he works accordingly. The successful introduction of our online language exam, one of the first to be accredited in 2020, would not have been possible without Gábor’s sacrifice and professional knowledge.

Nóra Palkovits, for her creative and high quality professional work in the renewal of the psychological and mental health services of the Student Support Services.

Nóra is a counseling psychologist, a former employee of the Student Counseling Centre. She has been the head of the psychological and mental health support unit of the Student Support Services since January 2020. She carried the professional values accumulated during university counseling forward into the new organisational structure with great enthusiasm and expertise, and was also able to respond to the challenges caused by the COVID pandemic creatively and efficiently. Under her leadership, an online methodology for student counseling has been developed; over the course of the academic year, 300 Hungarian and international students received one-on-one psychological counseling. The awareness raising and prevention work was supported by self-help materials made available online, a workbook, podcasts and professional articles.

Dr. Anna Várszegi, for her outstanding work in carrying out the economic legal tasks of the University.

Anna has been working as a head lawyer at the Economic and Labour Law Services. She handles contracts that require extensive legal knowledge with an excellent sense of law, she writes up her legal opinions with extraordinary thoroughness and precision, supporting managerial decisions.