This morning, the Social Council of the Miguel Hernández University of Elche (UMH) presented the awards for the 10th edition of the UMH Institutional Chairs Awards in the Assembly Hall of the Rectorate and Social Council building on the Elche campus.

These awards aim to recognize the achievements of individuals and organizations that have distinguished themselves within the eleven institutional chairs currently held by the University. Among those attending the ceremony were the President of the UMH Social Council, Joaquín Pérez; the Rector, Juan José Ruiz; the Director General of Universities, José Antonio Pérez; and the Deputy Mayor of Elche, Francisco José Soler. The recipient of this tenth edition of the award, representing the Misteri d’Elx Chair, was the Basilica of Santa María de Elche, the venue for the Misteri d’Elx, a play performed for over five centuries. This church transforms into a theater when the Misteri is performed, filling the air with festive celebration. Various studies reveal that the Basilica’s architecture was conceived precisely for the performances of the Misteri d’Elx: with large balconies to accommodate the public and wide staircases to allow access to the different balconies and corridors, and even to the terraces and the dome where the magic of the Festa unfolds through the stage machinery.

Meanwhile, the Pedro Ibarra Chair has awarded Vicent Soler i Selva for his involvement and collaboration with the website; while the Miguel Hernández Chair at the UMH (Miguel Hernández University of Elche) has awarded the Jarcha Musical Group, founded in 1972, which has released albums dedicated to the poet Miguel Hernández. Their musical style is based on three fundamental pillars: the search for, preservation, and dissemination of traditional songs, primarily from Andalusia; the creation of original songs, most often with broad social commentary; and the music for a series of poems by more or less established authors that served as a good channel of expression, among which we can highlight poets such as Miguel Hernández, Blas de Otero, Rafael Alberti, Antonio Machado, and Federico García Lorca, among others.

Likewise, the painter Fernando Sánchez y Juan has received the Dama d’Elx Chair award for his extensive body of work related to the Iberian bust; and the Anneta Nicoli Chair has awarded the prize to the multidisciplinary artist Miguel Ángel Vicente Claguer, whose work addresses issues of equality and the defense of human rights. The Legal Clinic Chair has awarded the Somos Ucrania Association of Elche, which, despite its youth, has helped and continues to help Ukrainians affected by the war between Russia and Ukraine. The ‘Gudie Lawaetz’ Chair of Cinematography and Documentary has recognized Cine La Esperanza in Sant Vicent del Raspeig, inaugurated in July 1926, for its work in maintaining cinemas and its commitment to film culture. Furthermore, the Chair of Rock, Modern Music, and New Trends has awarded Pito Karcoma and Jorge Villa, founders of the fanzine La Karretilla, which later merged to form Máskletà; the San Crispín Chair has honored Rafael Bernabeu Moya, co-founder and Honorary President of the company J’hayber, for his outstanding career as an entrepreneur; and the Palmeral d’Elx Chair has recognized José Manuel Llorens Climent, who, among other accolades, is noted for his work studying the palm grove as an agricultural entity of great importance to Southeastern Spain and for holding the Chair’s directorship for eight years. Finally, the UMH Chair in Rwanda has posthumously awarded Francisco Colomina, one of the driving forces behind the implementation of the ICU at Nemba Hospital in Africa and for his contribution to the Program for the training of healthcare personnel in the ICUs of Nemba and Ruhengheri hospitals.