A historic transition resonated across Hekima University College (HUC) as Principal Rev. Marcel Uwineza, SJ, unveiled the institutional motto for the 2026–2027 academic year: HUC@43: “Expanding Horizons, Empowering Futures.” Building on the previous year’s vision of “Dreaming Deep, Flying High,” Dr. Uwineza called on the university community to transition from imagination to courageous leadership, outlining major digital expansions, infrastructure projects, and ethical frameworks designed to guide the Jesuit institution into its 43rd year.
A central milestone announced for the academic year is the official accreditation of HUC’s Open, Distance, and e-Learning (ODeL) system. The platform breaks physical campus boundaries, offering flexible academic programs to working professionals, lay leaders, and religious scholars across Kenya, Africa, and globally.
“The coming year must demonstrate that accessibility and excellence belong together. Our hope is not simply to put courses online, but to build a distinctive Hekima digital learning community: rigorous in scholarship, deeply human in formation, globally connected, and rooted in the Ignatian tradition,” Dr. Uwineza emphasized adding that expanding access must go hand-in-hand with academic rigor. To support ODeL, the principal said HUC will strengthen its digital pedagogy, faculty formation, online library access, and technological infrastructure over the coming months.
Addressing the societal shifts driven by rapid technological change, he highlighted the critical role of ethics in higher education. Citing Pope Leo XIV’s 2026 Encyclical Magnifica Humanitas, he reminded scholars that human conscience and freedom must govern technical innovation through Ethical Guidance: Technology must remain in service to human dignity and the common good; Depth Over Superficiality: Echoing former Jesuit Superior General Fr. Adolfo Nicolás, SJ, Fr. Uwineza warned against the “globalization of superficiality,” urging the university to cultivate critical discernment in an era of automated answers; and Anchored Roots: “When the roots are deep, we need not fear the winds,” he noted, reaffirming HUC’s foundation in intellectual rigor, faith, and Ignatian discernment.
He revealed that alongside digital innovation, HUC is executing broad physical and institutional growth plans. Key priorities for the 2026–2027 academic year include Scholarships by expanding financial aid packages to ensure talent, rather than economic background, determines access; Infrastructure Upgrades through investing in modern lecture halls, faculty offices, student residences, athletic facilities, and a central auditorium; and finally, Faculty & Research by increasing funding for research projects, academic publications, and faculty development.
Concluding his address, Dr. Uwineza urged students, alumni, faculty, and global partners to lead with courage: “Our greatest contribution may still lie ahead, if we have the faith to discern it and the courage to build it together.”
