Outstanding Scholar: Jade Didier and Lyla Gent
Runners-up: Amelie Koníčková, Ananya Sateesha Shetty, Nina Fager

Student of the Year, SIRD: Gabriela Jacobs
Runner-up: Lyla Gent

Student of the Year SAHSS: Virginia Brunson
Runners-up: Oriana Cheney Corona, Tamar Tolordava

Student of the Year SBu: Alina Shepeliuk
Runner-up: David Němec

AAU Spirit Award: Poppy Mynard
Runner-up: Amelie Villagomez Arrona

Global Explorer Award: Rowan Simpson

Distinguished Artist Award: Clara MacPherson
Runner-up: Lev Wasiak

Rising Star Award: Sophie Mayfield
Runner-up: Niall McDermott

Student Council Member of the Year: Charlize Ocon
Runner-up: Margaret Leroux

Professor of the Year SIRD: Robert Warren
Runner-up: Ebru Akcasu

Professor of the Year SAHSS: Steve Borg
Runners-up: Angel Hoekstra, Anthony Marais

Professor of the Year SBu: Jeff Medeiros
Runner-up: Jan VaĆĄenda

Most Helpful Staff Member of the Year: Drake Dewey
Runner-up: Kateƙina Dudys

Best Course of the Year: Politics 1 – Ebru Akcasu
Runner-up: Political Geography – Robert Warren

Club of the Year: Lennon Wall
Runner-up: Football Club

Staff Department of the Year: Library
Runner-up: School of International Relations & Diplomacy

Event of the Year: Trivia Nights
Runner-up: AAU Gala 2025

Congratulations to all the winners and runners-up. Thank you for your contributions to the betterment of our community!

Photos of the ball are available on .

Organized by Senior Lecturer Alena FoustkovĂĄ who did a teaching exchange at IPVC, the workshop was designed to explore unexpected creative potential within a group where no special knowledge or experience with art was required. 

The origins of the Poem Factory Workshop are based in Portugal’s history with stamps which were designed for schooling during the 70s and 80s with a wide range of images and symbols across many subjects, and later they spread across more disciplines and in Portuguese life.

Groups of students were tasked to each write one word—either an animal, adjective, verb, colour, profession, or noun—hiding it from each other. Then, the words were revealed and ordered in any number of different combinations until the final poem was decided on and stamped.

The idea was to investigate how supposedly obsolete objects can be rescued and recovered from flea markets and vintage stores in present artistic practice. The method students followed during the Poem Factory Workshop comes from the idea of the Exquisite Corpse—a collaborative method to create spontaneous, often absurd art—within the Surrealist movement that often rejects the privilege of talent and genius.

In Foustková’s course Concept: Pursuing an Idea in the Art Process, she teaches various conceptual approaches, including examples of surrealism which was one of the art movements that developed from a greatly innovative and influential art movement in the early 20th century called DADA. It worked with the subconscious, chance, play, and also often practiced collective activity. 

Check out photos from the workshop on

Her new role at one of the country’s leading professional marketing organizations further strengthens the connection between AAU and the broader marketing community. It is expected to create new opportunities for collaboration benefiting both students and faculty.

This connection was also reflected in the professional seminar, Marketing Through the Lenses of Different Generations: Today and Tomorrow, which took place on April 17 from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. As a partner of the event, AAU was part of a program featuring both Czech- and English-language sessions focused on generational diversity in marketing and its impact on higher education.

Along with her work with the Czech Marketing Association, Ladislava KnihovĂĄ has also actively represented 51°”Íűinternationally, including through her participation in an academic conference in WrocƂaw, Poland, where she represented the university and thus contributed to AAU’s internationalization efforts.

AAU’s President Jiƙí Schwarz opened with a quote from the Czech Republic’s first president of Czechoslovakia, TomĂĄĆĄ Garrigue Masaryk, highlighting that the US was a model of democracy and freedom for the Czech Republic under communism. 51°”Íűitself was the first nonstate university in the Czech Republic, opening in 1990.

His Excellency US Ambassador Nicholas Merrick spoke about how the Declaration of Independence holds the core values of the US, quoting that our rights—human rights—are endowed by our creator. Whether you believe in god or not, our rights are not a gift from the government. It is the government’s job to protect them.

The first panel discussed the intellectual and historical roots of the Declaration of Independence and its influence on Europe and the Czech lands. The panel consisted of Roman Joch, Political Scientist and Director of the Civic Institute; Milada PoliĆĄenskĂĄ, Professor Emerita at AAU; Mats Braun, Director at the Institute of International Relations; and George Hays, Dean of the School of International Relations and Diplomacy at AAU.

Case studies of US diplomats and figures of Czech history, presented by PoliĆĄenskĂĄ, gave insight into the relationship between the US and Czech Republic, including Rowena Morse Mann and her connection to Charlotte and Alice Masarykova as well as the last diplomatic envoy before Nazi occupation, Wilburn John Carr.   

The director of the Institute of International Relations summarized the importance of the US in the creation of the “Liberal World Order” after WWII which focused on liberal economics, commitment to multilateralism, and commitment to human rights. Hays brought a down-to-earth perspective of the signatories:  

Moderator and President of Strategeo Institute, Jan Macháček, presented about the Czech tendency to romanticize the US, its culture, and its values. There are a lot of connections between the two countries—the First Lady of the first Czechoslovakia Republic was America after all. American music, particularly jazz and rock and roll, symbolized freedom and liberty during communist times.

The final panel debated current developments in American politics, economic trends, and global security challenges. Key in the discussion was the US as a global power and how it has, and continues, to use that power economically, politically, and financially.

The panelists held a diversity of speakers including: Jan Ơvejnar, Economist, co-founder of CERGE-EI, and Director of CGEG at Columbia University; Kateƙina Weissová, Director at the Center for Transatlantic Relations, CEVRO University; Ondƙej Jonáơ, Banker and Investor; Ondƙej Hejma, Musician and Commentator.

WeissovĂĄ discussed the gap between the US and European perception of reality in terms of security, energy, and economy. She views that Europe has lost the confidence to influence the global stage. Ć vejnar also highlighted a gap between the regions, but in education and innovation. 

Despite problems the world faces and disagreements some of the panelists even had, all can agree that this historic milestone has defined the past 250 years, and it continues to do so. The values it holds of freedom, liberty, and equality are foundational, solid, and something to inspire to.

Photos from the event can be viewed . The Panel Debate, opened by President Jiƙí Schwarz & U.S. Ambassador Nicholas Merrick, can be viewed .

The series opened at AAU with Leah Tomkins, a scholar-practitioner whose work bridges academia and leadership practice, in conversation with Tomáơ Sedláček, former economic advisor to the President of the Czech Republic and a renowned author on the philosophy of economics. The discussion continued at the Václav Havel Library, where Tomkins was joined by Zuzana Ƙíhová, who moderated a second session focused on the broader implications of Kafka’s thought.

In her lecture, Tomkins challenged conventional interpretations of Franz Kafka, presenting him not only as a literary figure but as a thinker deeply engaged with questions of power, leadership, and authority. Drawing on her research, including work with original Kafka manuscripts at Oxford’s Bodleian Library, she explored how Kafka’s experiences in early 20th-century Prague informed his understanding of power dynamics.

A linguist by background, Tomkins approaches leadership through the humanities, arguing that many contemporary leadership challenges are rooted in language, narrative, and interpretation. Her book, Franz Kafka and the Truths of Leadership (2024), reflects this interdisciplinary approach, combining close textual analysis with practical insights for leadership in complex, modern environments.

Tomkins argued that leadership should not be understood solely as a position within a hierarchy, but as the ability to influence, shape meaning, and inspire others.

She further reflected on the relevance of Kafka’s work in today’s “post-truth” environment, emphasizing that the stories leaders tell, the narratives audiences absorb, and the interpretations individuals construct all play a defining role in how reality is understood. In this context, Kafka offers a powerful lens through which to examine authority, responsibility, and the limits of control.

Across both sessions, the discussions connected literary insight with contemporary economic, political, and organizational questions. The exchange between Tomkins and Sedláček at 51°”Íűintroduced perspectives grounded in economic thought and public policy, while the moderated discussion at the VĂĄclav Havel Library expanded the conversation into broader cultural and philosophical contexts.

The series offered students and faculty a valuable opportunity to engage with leadership through a humanities lens, reinforcing the value of interdisciplinary thinking in understanding complex global challenges.

Events such as this reflect AAU’s role in fostering dialogue that connects global scholarship with contemporary leadership challenges.

Photos from part one of the lecture and discussion series can be viewed , and photos from part two can be viewed .

Giarelli is the author of The Lands Between: A Central European Journey* about the cultures that took shape across the former Habsburg lands, and it ends with a chapter on Lviv. He specializes in literature scholarship and journalism, bringing unique insight on Ukraine-related reporting that has appeared in U.S., Czech, Slovak, and Moldovan media.

During the interview, Giarelli discussed the suppression of Ukrainian literature, Russian propaganda, mistrust of news, and misinformation.

In a global context, Russian literature has really overshadowed the whole global impression of what Eastern European literature is, according to the interviewer Peeter Helme. Giarelli commented that while choosing course work for a European Literature class, there is a question of whether to include Russian literature because it is not European, but also major figures of literature make it easy to end up with only Western European representation.

Helme mentioned what philosopher Johann Gottfried von Herder said: that there are no small literatures, and, despite what Russian propaganda says, Ukrainian literature is older though less known.

Read the full interview on .

Among AAU’s initiatives and events related to Ukraine this academic year was the with Vasyl Zvarych, the Ambassador of Ukraine to the Czech Republic, Karel Ƙehka, Chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces and more, as well as the President of AAU’s trip to Ukraine which was part of a delegation from the Institute for the Study of Totalitarian Regimes that presented the book at Ivan Franko University and the Ukrainian Catholic University.

*The Lands Between: A Central European Journey is available on with a 20% discount for AAU students, faculty, and administration, using the promo code LANDS20.

The AAU Career Expo is the largest networking event held each semester, connecting students with prospective employers from a wide range of industries and professional fields—many of which employ AAU alumni. Companies in attendance included:

This event is especially important because one of AAU’s graduation requirements is the completion of an internship related to your field of study. Students enjoy the opportunity to ask questions and meet representatives from companies, governmental institutions, and career-focused initiatives.

Many companies in attendance also participated in the Fall 2025 Career Expo, giving lectures and workshops. The spring edition was a smaller, more focused event—allowing students to engage in more personal conversations, build meaningful connections, and get career advice.

Learn more about career opportunities or contact AAU’s Career Counselor.

As a Student Ambassador, you become an integral part of the AAU admissions and recruitment team, guiding prospective students from the time of their application through to their arrival in Prague. Five students will be selected for this role per academic year.

Student mentors offer invaluable assistance to new students, easing their transition into university life and helping them overcome academic and social challenges during their first year.  As a student mentor, you will be part of the Student Affairs team. Five students will be selected for this role per academic year.

Both mentor and ambassador roles offer a unique opportunity to contribute to the AAU community while gaining valuable experience and support with tuition.

Read all the details on the Application process here and apply by April 28, 2026 at the latest.

For the selection process, the Dean’s Office will be consulted. Top candidates will be invited for a short interview.

Applications for the Student Mentor Program should be submitted to Marketa Fillingerova at marketa.fillingerova@aauni.edu. Those for the Student Ambassador Program should be submitted to Noelle O’Braitis at n.obraitis@aauni.edu.

Who has made an impact? Who goes above and beyond? Cast your vote and make your voice count for those who deserve it!

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Voting closes on April 15, 2026 at 11:59 am—don’t miss your chance!

Good luck to all the nominees and thank you for helping celebrate the exceptional members of our community.

The study found high rates of computational reproducibility and substantial robustness among recent articles from leading economics and political science journals that require data and code sharing. It offers encouraging evidence about the field’s credibility and highlights the positive impact of open data policies. This is good news for science. For years, there has been concernthat many published studies may be flawed, exaggerated, or impossible to replicate, a problem widely known as the ‘replication crisis.’

Researchers from across the career spectrum, from graduate students to senior professors, and from institutions large and small, all contributed. This achievement highlights AAU’s exceptional faculty and commitment to academic excellence and research.

The research was a large-scale “reproduction” study, meaning independent researchers took the original data and codes from 110 recently published articles in top economics and political science journals to see whether they could reproduce the published results using the papers’ shared data and code.

The researchers also ran “robustness checks” by testing the data using alternative analytical methods to see if the original conclusions would still hold up under scrutiny.

The study found that over 85% of the published claims were computationally reproducible using the original data and codes. Furthermore, 72% of the originally significant findings remained statistically significant and pointed in the same direction, even when researchers changed the testing methods.

The median size of the effects found in the reproduced studies was almost identical (99%) to what the original publications reported. However, there were also points to learn from: some studies had coding errors and there was evidence of publication bias with some results just barely crossing the threshold of statistical significance.

For years, researchers and those in academia feared that many studies were not replicable and, therefore, not accurate or meaningful in their contributions. This mega-study suggests that many findings in this selective sample are reproducible and often robust to reasonable reanalysis.

Find the full research on the reproducibility and robustness of economics and political science .