The story
The current administrative model of UFPA emerged from the need to centralize a higher education institution for the eastern Amazon, as there were previously some colleges in the city of Belém, organized as free colleges. The oldest of these is the Law School, established on March 31, 1902, followed by the establishment of the School of Pharmacy of Pará in 1903, the Free School of Dentistry in 1914, the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of Pará on January 9, 1919, the School of Engineering of Pará in 1931, the Faculty of Economic, Accounting and Actuarial Sciences in 1953, and the Faculty of Philosophy, Sciences, and Letters of Belém in 1954. These educational institutions were the forerunners of UFPA.
Establishment
The University of Pará was officially created on July 2, 1957, by decree no. 3,191, sanctioned by the then president Juscelino Kubitschek, after five years of legislative process. It brought together the seven federal, state, and private colleges existing in Belém: Law, Pharmacy, Dentistry, Medicine and Surgery, Civil Engineering, Economic, Accounting and Actuarial Sciences, and Philosophy, Sciences, and Letters.
More than 18 months after its creation, the University of Pará was solemnly installed in a session chaired by President Kubitschek at the Teatro da Paz, on January 31, 1959. Its installation was a merely symbolic act, as Decree no. 42,427 had already approved, on October 12, 1957, the first statute of the university, which defined the orientation of the institution's educational policy, and since November 28 of the same year, the first rector, Mário Braga Henriques (Nov. 1957 to Dec. 1960), was in office.
On December 19, 1960, José Rodrigues da Silveira Netto took office, holding the rectorate for eight and a half years (Dec. 1960 to July 1969).
The first statutory reform of the university took place in September 1963, when the new statute was published in the Official Gazette. Two months after the statutory reform, the university was restructured by Law no. 4,283, of November 18, 1963. During this period, new courses and new basic activities were implemented, with the aim of promoting regional development and also improving the institution's core activities.
UFPA during the dictatorial period
A new restructuring of the university was attempted in 1968, with a plan presented to the Federal Council of Education. From late 1968 to early 1969, a series of legal diplomas, notably Laws no. 5,539 and 5,540/68, established new criteria for the operation of Universities.
From July 1969 to June 1973, Aloysio Chaves served as the rector, during which Decree No. 65,880, dated December 16, 1969, approved the new restructuring plan of the Federal University of Pará. One of the essential elements of this plan was the creation of centers, with the extinction of existing faculties, and the definition of the departments' functions.
On September 2, 1970, the Federal Council of Education approved the General Regulations of the Federal University of Pará through Ordinance No. 1,307/70. A regimental revision was carried out in 1976/1977, aiming to comply with subsequent legal provisions, which led to a new regulation approved by the Federal Council of Education through Opinion No. 1,854/77 and published in the Official Gazette on July 18, 1978.
Read the full text
Clóvis Cunha da Gama Malcher took office in July 1973 (Jul. 1973 to Jun. 1977), followed by Aracy Amazonas Barretto (Jul. 1977 to Jun. 1981) and Daniel Coelho de Souza (Jul. 1981 to Jun. 1985).
UFPA during the democratic period
In the year 1985, the Rectorate's regulations were reformulated after the approval of Resolution No. 549 by the University Council on December 9, 1985, and have been in effect to the present date.
José Seixas Lourenço held the rectorship from July 1985 to June 1989, followed by Nilson Pinto de Oliveira from July 1989 to June 1993, Marcos Ximenes Ponte from July 1993 to June 1997, and Cristovam Wanderley Picanço Diniz from July 1997 to June 2001.
From Wikipedia’s article on Federal University of Pará, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.3