Today we celebrate the 24th anniversary of a landmark, 24 years of the Romanian-American University (RAU) existence. Twenty-four years have passed since the Court of Law of 1st Sector, Bucharest, issued its Ruling no. 295/17.04.1991 “as per art 32 of the Decree no. 31/1954 and art 84 and the following of the Law 21/1924” and granted legal personality to the Romanian-American University (accredited by law in 2002, and receiving the qualification “High confidence rating” from ARACIS in 2010). It is well-known that the end of 1991 witnessed the enactment and vote of the Constitution of Romania, by means of each private education was legally recognized as part of the national system of education, and under these new provisions, at the initiative of Professor ION SMEDESCU – Founding-President and Rector of the Romanian-American University between 1991 and 2008 – on December 11, 1991, the “Romanian-American Foundation for Promoting Education and Culture” (FRAPEC, whose purpose was “the promotion and dissemination of Romanian cultural and civic education values in America and of American values in Romania”) was established (the formal recognition of FRAPEC came by the Ruling no.34/22.01.1992 of the Court of Law of 1st Sector, Bucharest).
First and foremost, congratulations to our RAU Academic Family, who celebrates the journey the Romanian-American University has taken to get here, and expresses our dreams for the future. We feel deeply honored and privileged to be able to share with all HMM Readers the joy and pleasure of this very special moment in our lives. It is truly inspiring to see so many RAU Friends proudly enjoying this RAU celebration.
Secondly, as a fact which speaks for itself of RAU proper evolution, allow us to remind you that the Romanian-American University’s Senate Hall hosted just a month ago the works of Association of Faculties of Economics in Romania (AFER) General Assembly. On that occasion, it was highlighted that: the Romanian-American University proved once again to be an excellent choice for the works of AFER productive and participative meeting; RAU Rector Ovidiu FOLCUŢ was the traditional great master of ceremonies, ensuring the right tone according to the objective of the important academic event; Professor Ovidiu FOLCUŢ, internationally recognized for “the diligent dedications that he always brings forth for Romanian-American University”, was one of the coordinators of the Anniversary Volume launched by AFER: “Pages from the Romanian Economic Higher Education History, 1843-2013”.
Thirdly, it is worth remembering that within the calendar of events dedicated to the RAU’s 20th Anniversary, on April 12, 2011, an impressive launch of a „Marketing” (english version) book took place, book written by a group of authors under the coordination of Professor ION SMEDESCU. „Respect”, communication”, and „accountability” were the key words on this special occasion. The late RAU Founder and Rector, Professor ION SMEDESCU did set himself as a standard becoming voluntarily accepted by his colleagues, bringing all of them renewed trust, hope and inspiration, year by year. Professor ION SMEDESCU did so much for the ROMANIAN-AMERICAN UNIVERSITY and its students, showing an extraordinary intellect, a strong commitment and dedication to providing a quality education, sharing a true love of learning and for the University and bringing a real sense of belonging to all those privileged for participating in the academic life.
On this special occasion of celebrating the 24th Anniversary of the ROMANIAN-AMERICAN UNIVERSITY, it is our honor and pleasure to warmly congratulate all of you, RAU Colleagues, RAU Students’ Family and RAU Friends.