Tamara Skyrda, Honorary Doctor of KNUTE
General Information
TAMARA
SKYRDA
Honorary Professor of KNUTE
(1996)
Rector of Kyiv Institute of Trade and Economics
(1966-1985)
Tamara Ivanivna was born on January 5, 1925 in the village
Mykhailivka (Kirovograd region), in the family of a railway worker.
As a child she experienced many difficulties in the time of the
Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. At the age of 16 she started
working for Mahnitorskyy steel mill, continuing her schooling. Then
Tamara Ivanivna studied in Kirovograd Pedagogical Institute and
graduated in 1950 with a degree of history teacher.
In 1950-1951 she studied at teacher training courses at the Kyiv
State University named after T. Shevchenko. In 1954 Tamara Ivanivna
defended a thesis for the degree of candidate of sciences
(Philisophy) on "Social and political and philosophical thought in
Ukraine in late XVI - at the beginning of the XVII
century".
In 1953-1957 she worked as a junior researcher, scientific
secretary of the Institute of Philosophy at the Academy of Sciences
of Ukraine. Her research during this period is devoted to
historical analysis of social and political thought in Ukraine in
the nineteenth century, the study of art, philosophy and political
views of the famous Ukrainian writer Ivan Franko.
In 1956, T.I. Skyrda was given the academic rank of senior
scientist in philosophy.
Large influence on shaping public positions, the disclosure of
organizational skills was realized at her position of a deputy head
of the Kyiv City Executive Committee, as well as at the post of a
deputy of city council in 1957-1966. She exerted great efforts to
develop education and culture in the capital of Ukraine, Kyiv,
stood for the principle position in the revival of the national
drama, spiritual and aesthetic education of youth.
In 1966, Tamara Ivanivna was appointed as the rector of Kyiv
Institute of Trade and Economics, which was established on the
basis of the Kyiv branch of Donetsk Institute of Soviet Trade
according to the government act on March 4, 1966. The name of
Tamara Ivanivna is tightly connected with the formation of this
establishment of higher education and with nearly 20-year period of
its development and functioning. Her main efforts were aimed at
building and technical equipment of training facilities,
residential, sports facilities, a set of faculty, research
development, establishing the active cultural and educational work
with students, creating favorable conditions for living in the
dormitories. In 1967-1968 she initiated the construction of
buildings at the new institute on the left bank of the Dnipro
river, in the outskirts of Kyiv in the forest area. In 1972, the
learning process begins in the new teaching and laboratory
building. The first dormitory is built for 400 students. At the new
place the institute is completely enacted in 1976. For its 10th
anniversary the institute opened the assembly hall for 800 seats,
the construction of which, like almost of all the buildings, was
carried out with the active participation of teachers, students,
staff, who worked in their spare time for "national
construction".
Tamara Ivanivna remembers: "The educational establishment was set
up on the basis of the branch of Donetsk Institute of Soviet Trade,
where 30 teachers worked; only 6 were on payroll, all other worked
on fixed-term basis. There were no room, any training and
laboratory facilities. All this was to create, to make the learning
process at the level of time demands. We have received the
permission to design and construct the buildings in two stages with
estimated cost of 5 million rubles. Kyiv City Executive Committee
has allocated 20 apartments; we invited experienced teachers,
doctors and candidates of sciences from Donetsk, Lviv, Kharkiv,
Moscow, who became the faculty core. We have been allowed to set
the Graduate School; we have been also given the permission to
create the Academic Council of the defense of dissertations for
candidate degree.
The institute gained its strength and popularity, the competition entrants were the highest among the other universities in Ukraine.
In connection with the need to overcome, to improve economic knowledge of employees in catering and trade we have expanded the courses in economics and trade accounting, introduced new special courses "The use of mathematical methods in economic calculations, "Demand and trading conditions" in the new subject "Accounting and financial activities analysis", as well as the courses "General Course of trade organization and technology" and "Trade organization of consumer and industrial goods".
Much attention was paid to humanitarization and humanization of
training, where the main role, as the organizer and a professor of
philosophy, was played by Tamara Ivanivna Skyrda.
Cultural and mass work among students has been started. Active part
was taken by the members of the Great Patriotic War, who brought a
special spirit of responsibility for the assigned work, initiative,
organization.
On the demand of trade field in 1968 the faculty professional
development of executives and specialists began its work at the
Institute.
The branches of the Institute were set in Vinnytsia, Odessa and
Chernovtsi. Later, the Odessa branch was closed down, and Vinnytsia
and Chernivtsy branches were transformed into
faculties.
The Institute made a scientific study to improve the organizational
structure of state trade of Ukraine, development of strategy
changes in the wholesale chain and introducing new forms of
governance, namely, the establishment of wholesale and retail
firms, trade associations on furniture, clothing, shoes, sporting
goods. Much has been made for the development and introduction of
modern methods of transporting goods in the retail network in Kyiv
with the use of packaging equipment. Significant part of work was
done to solve the problems of transportation and storage of fruits
and vegetables, protein efficiency of raw materials and so
on.
Under Tamara Ivanivna's supervision the Institute deployed
international relations, signed long-term cooperation agreements
with related schools of Leipzig (Germany), Bratislava
(Czechoslovakia).
Substantial contribution to the advancement of science was made by
Tamara Ivanivna personally as scholar-teacher. She made research on
issues of ethics, aesthetics and psychology of trading as the
components of improving the culture of commercial services, as a
factor in increasing social prestige of the trade. A number of
published scientific papers, including tutorial "Aesthetic in
trade" (1972), the monograph "Psychology in the trade" (1977) were
devoted to this problem.
In 1972, Tamara Ivanivna was awarded the academic rank of
professor.
She has a daughter Skyrda Ludmyla - a recognized Ukrainian
poet.
For the achievements in the development of education and science,
active social activities Tamara Ivanivna has received many state
awards, including Order "Red Banner of Labor" (1971), two Orders of
"the Badge of Honor" (1960-1966), 6 medals. In 1979 she was given
the honorary title "Honored Worker of Higher School of the
Ukrainian SSR.


