Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility Kazimierz Gawęcki | Poznań University of Live Sciences

Kazimierz Gawęcki

Prof. dr Kazimierz Gawęcki, dr h.c.
Rector of the Higher School of Agriculture in Poznań
(1954-1959)

 

BIOGRAPHY

SCIENTIFIC ACTIVITY

Kazimierz Gawęcki (1915-2003) started agricultural studies at the University of Poznań in 1933. During his studies he completed his traineeship and military service. He specialised in agricultural chemistry, preparing his diploma dissertation under the supervision of Prof. dr. Feliks Terlikowski. He took part in fighting in WWII during the September campaign of 1939, following which he spent over a year as a German POW. From 1941 he worked for three years in the Lublin Regional Agricultural Chamber at Biłograj as an animal breeding inspector, after which he took the position of a senior assistant and deputy director of the animal nutrition department in the Puławy Institute evacuated to Skierniewice. In 1945 he returned to Poznań, where after being delegated by the dean of the Faculty of Agronomy, he protected the research facilities of the Faculty. After Poznań was liberated he started working at the University of Poznań. He was employed at the Department of General Animal Breeding headed by Prof. dr. Zygmunt Moczarski. In 1947 he organised an independent Laboratory of Animal Nutrition of the Department of General Animal Breeding. In 1948 he received the degree of doctor at the Faculty of Agronomy of the Wrocław University and University of Technology in Wrocław for his dissertation “Studies on early winter fattening of adult geese in view of sexual dimorphism” prepared under the supervision of Prof. T. Konopiński. In 1950 he was nominated assistant professor and head of the Department of General Animal Breeding. In 1951 he was appointed by the Ministry of Higher Schools and Science a co-organiser of the Faculty of Animal Science at the University of Poznań, of which he was later a vice-dean. In 1954 he was appointed associate professor and in 1967 he was appointed full professor. He retired in 1985, but he continued to supervise work on certain research projects realised at the Department. He was the scientific supervisor of fourteen doctoral dissertations and supervised eight post-doctoral dissertations.

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

Research works conducted at the Department headed by Professor Gawęcki concerned first of all problems connected with forage science, particularly the effect of different factors on the nutritive value of feeds and their nutritive efficiency (by-products of agri-food industry, protein feeds produced in Poland, preserved feeds, etc.). He devoted his insightful studies to antibiotics and other growth stimulants for animals and complete premixes used in commercial concentrate mixes.

SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENTS

Scientific achievements of Professor Gawęcki comprised approx. 150 original studies as well as numerous articles and expert opinions. Professor Gawęcki was also a co-author of the first textbook on “Feeding of domestic animals” published after WWII and a course book on “Animal nutrition and fodder science”.

ORGANISATIONAL ACTIVITY

Major functions at the University:

  • 1953 dean of the Faculty of Animal Science of the University of Poznań
  • 1954 Rector of the Higher School of Agriculture in Poznań
  • 1952—1984 head of the Department of Animal Nutrition and Feed Management.

Major functions outside the University:

  • Chairman and member of many scientific councils
  • 1957—1963 chairman of the Division of Agronomic Studies of the National Council for Higher Education
  • 1969—1971 chairman of the Committee for Animal Sciences.

DECORATIONS

The long-term scientific, teaching and organisational activity of Professor Kazimierz Gawęcki was appreciated and acknowledged by the honorary doctoral degree granted twice, by the Agricultural University of Poznań and the Agricultural University of Wrocław.
Professor Gawęcki died on 20 January 2003 in Poznań.

Source:
The Jubilee Book of the August Cieszkowski Agricultural University of Poznań. Poznań 2006.