The Graduate School of Universitas Negeri Yogyakarta (UNY) marked a special academic milestone with the successful doctoral open defense of two students from the Doctoral Program in Educational Research and Evaluation, Dr. Eko Wahyunanto Prihono, M.Pd. and Dr. Fitria Lapele, M.Pd. The two, who are husband and wife as well as lecturers at Universitas Islam Negeri (UIN) A.M. Sangadji Ambon, both defended their dissertations on the same day at the Sugeng Mardiyono Building, 3rd Floor Auditorium.

Dr. Fitria Lapele was the first to present her dissertation from 07.30 to 09.00 a.m. WIB, entitled “Development of an Evaluation Model for the English for Specific Purposes Program in Higher Education.” Her research was supervised by Promotor Prof. Dr. Aman, M.Pd. and Co-Promotor Prof. Nur Hidayanto Pancoro Setyo Putro, Ph.D. The board of examiners consisted of Prof. Dr. Siswantoyo, M.Kes., AIFO. (Chair), Dr. Sukarno, M.Hum. (Secretary), Dr. Hj. Siti Jumaeda, M.Pd.I. from UIN A.M. Sangadji Ambon, and Prof. Dr. Margana, M.Hum., M.A.

In the afternoon session, from 13.00 to 15.00 WIB, Dr. Eko Wahyunanto Prihono presented his dissertation entitled “Evaluation of Education Quality: An Analytical Model for Determining the Quality of Construct Measurement, Principal Components, and Clustering Based on School/Madrasah Accreditation Results in Maluku Province.” The defense was chaired by Prof. Dr. Siswantoyo, M.Kes., AIFO. (Chair) and Prof. Dr. Edi Istiyono, M.Si. (Secretary), with Promotor Prof. Dr. Sudji Munadi, M.Pd. and Co-Promotor Dr. Haryanto, M.Pd., M.T. The external examiners were Dr. Abidin Wakano, M.Ag. from UIN A.M. Sangadji Ambon and Prof. Dr. Emy Budiastuti, M.Pd. Both dissertations demonstrated significant scholarly contributions to the field of educational research and evaluation, as well as to the development of learning programs in schools and higher education institutions.

The joint open defense of these two dedicated academics—both active lecturers and doctoral students at the Graduate School of UNY—stands as a symbol of commitment to advancing knowledge and higher education. The Graduate School of UNY extends its highest appreciation for their achievement and hopes that their scholarly contributions will have a positive impact on education, particularly in the areas of evaluation and program development. Congratulations to Dr. Eko Wahyunanto Prihono and Dr. Fitria Lapele on earning their doctoral degrees. May their knowledge continue to grow and bring meaningful benefits to society and educational institutions across Indonesia.