President of the UPR defends the appointment of Ilka Rios although he even attributed “punishable conduct” to her

Amid persistent criticism, the president of the University of Puerto Rico (UPR), Luis Ferrao, defended this Monday the appointment of Ilka Rios Reyes as the current rector of the Medical Sciences Campus (RCM), despite the fact that, less than a year ago, she acknowledged, in a letter, that the academic abused her power and engaged in conduct punishable under university regulations.

Specifically, he referred, then, to the fact that Rios Reyes ordered the “alteration of grades” of a student at the School of Medicine who had failed three core courses during her second year of studies.

“Once the investigation was completed and the report was submitted by the investigating officer, it emerged from said management that Conclusive evidence was found to prove that Dr. Rios Reyes engaged in conduct punishable under the General Regulations of the University of Puerto Rico in the handling of the case of the aforementioned student,” reads the letter signed by Ferrao on November 8, 2022.

“The evidence raised by the investigation indicates that Dr. Rios Reyes acted in an ultraviral manner and without administrative jurisdiction, by ordering the alteration of grades in the student’s official record., which violates the public faith of the student evaluation records,” he added in the letter addressed to the then interim rector of the RCM, Carlos Ortiz.

Despite the conclusions of the investigation that he ordered, Ferrao He reported, in the letter, the filing of the case file at the Presidency level. Instead, he referred the matter to the interim rector of the RCM, alleging that, since Rios Reyes was no longer rector – as she was dismissed – it was not her responsibility to initiate any disciplinary process, but rather that duty fell on the campus rector’s office.

Months later and even with the multiple accusations, the aforementioned investigation, a civil lawsuit, a referral to the Office of Government Ethics (OEG) and a report from the search and consultation committee of the Academic Senate of the RCM that did not favor her, Ferrao recommended The Governing Board of the UPR appointed Rios Reyes again as principal rector.

“I made my recommendation to the Governing Board after evaluating the academic preparation and professional experience,” Ferrao stressed this Monday in written expressions.

When questioned by The new day Regarding the content of the November 2022 letter, Ferrao defended himself, pointing out that, precisely this Monday, he learned about an external legal analysis that the RCM requested as a result of the referral he made and that concluded that no elements were identified that held a disciplinary procedure from the premises.

When requesting the report, the press spokesperson for the Office of the President, Iliana Rivera, indicated that the document was not available in the Central Administration, despite the fact that the president cited it in the statement sent to this medium.

In response to Ferrao’s arguments, Ortiz, the former interim rector, stated that, from the RCM, he requested a legal evaluation to clarify whether “disciplinary actions should be taken” at the campus level, and emphasized that the conclusion was no, due to that, as rector – the position she held at the time of the events -, Rios Reyes responded to the president of the institution.

“The responsibility here, all the time, was with the president, and he was the person who was responsible for making a decision. Unfortunately, Dr. Ferrao is not being transparent with the institution that he must defend,” Ortiz stressed.

“The main responsibility that managers have is to defend the interests and mission of the institution. It seems to me that the position that the president has assumed in recent days, and given the evidence that is supported, does not seem to respond directly to the responsibilities that should be part of a president,” said the former interim rector.

Rios Reyes assumed the position of rector on Friday, and in an interview with this medium, she minimized the multiple criticisms of her appointment and the resignations of officials in key administrative positions, while ensuring that she is open to working in collaboration with the university community.