Call to Confirm the Results of Rector Election: Statement from Brusov State University

Brusov State University has issued a statement, which we present below.

“During the meeting of the Board of Trustees of Brusov State University held on December 9, 2022, through secret voting, the candidate proposed by all subdivisions of the university, Karine Harutyunyan, received 12 votes in favor from the board members, while the self-nominated David Gyurjinyan received 8 votes in favor. All members of the counting commission signed the protocol, which states that Karine Harutyunyan has been elected as the rector of Brusov State University.

The results of the voting have been unanimously confirmed by the Board of Trustees. The meeting of the Board of Trustees convened for the rector election was chaired by the Deputy Prime Minister of Armenia and the Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Hambardzum Matevosyan. Typically, decisions and protocols accepted by the Board of Trustees are signed by the Chairman within one or two days after they are prepared by the secretary of the board. This practice has been applied by all previous chairpersons of the Board of Trustees.

The protocol and decision dated December 9, 2022, were submitted to Hambardzum Matevosyan’s assistant for signature on the first working day following the meeting, in accordance with the accepted practice. However, for unclear and unknown reasons, Hambardzum Matevosyan refuses to sign the protocol and decision. Brusov University has also sent the protocol and decision to Hambardzum Matevosyan via postal correspondence, and so far, no response has been received.

On December 22 of this year, Brusov University officially addressed the Prime Minister of Armenia and the Minister of Education, Science, Culture and Sport of Armenia, requesting to confirm the results of the election of Karine Harutyunyan as rector of Brusov University. The correspondence included the protocol of the counting commission, the list of board members present at the meeting, the meeting protocol signed by the secretary of the board, as well as the audio-visual recording of the meeting.

In summary, we conclude that the main aim of the aforementioned is the unnecessary delay in the confirmation of the rector election results, as the term of office of the rector will expire on February 11, 2023. We call on the responsible parties to confirm the results of the rector election, as otherwise, a management crisis may arise at Brusov University, which will affect thousands of students and staff.”