Today's society focuses on the economy, politics and international security

‘forgetting that education is at the heart of every issue and, unless human capital is

developed, economic capital cannot be developed’, were the words of Otto von

Feigenblatt, professor at Keiser University in Miami and founder of the Catholic

University of New Spain, during the lecture he gave on Monday at the Campus of the

Universidad Católica de Murcia, in which he spoke about educational leadership and

international development. At the event, the UCAM International Chair in

Educational Management and the appointment of Otto von Feigenblatt as its

extraordinary professor were announced. José Luis Mendoza García, UCAM Director

of Institutional Relations, presented him with the appointment, accompanied by

Gonzalo Wandosell, Dean of the Faculty of Economics and Business.

Feigenblatt stressed the need for young people to learn how to create opportunities:

‘There is a lot of talk about there not being any jobs, but opportunities are also

created’. He also highlighted the need to improve transversal skills. According to the

professor, the key lies in human relations, ‘focusing on the students and the

development of their skills to give them that potential, trying to help them achieve

their goals and dreams’. We need to allow young people to make mistakes now that

they are learning, he added, ‘so that they do not have that fear of entrepreneurship

in the future, as it is important for the economy, when it comes to creating jobs, for

example’.

Prior to his speech, he noted that the Spanish education system is of very good

quality, ‘despite its shortcomings in terms of problem-solving skills, creativity and

entrepreneurship’. He also highlighted the important role of dialogue in education:

‘We must integrate in our classes, in all types of courses, how to solve conflicts, how

to communicate’.

For José Luis Mendoza, UCAM and the new professor ‘are united by an

entrepreneurial, missionary and research-focused spirit’. On his part, Otto von

Feigenblatt assured that this Chair will help create new bridges between UCAM and

Latin America.