Reported by: Bao Xuan
Photographed by: Bao Xuan
Translated by: Xin Xiaoyue
Edited by: Garrick Jones
On December 16th, the 2016 Excellent Alliance of Universities Presidents Forum - the 7th Presidents Association was held in Dalian University of Technology. President of Harbin Institute of Technology Zhou Yu gave a speech with the theme of “Developing advantages, outstanding features, inheriting culture, encouraging innovations and building a century strong university with ‘Chinese characteristics, world class and HIT standards.’ ”
President Zhou Yu set forth his opinions from 4 aspects which are “the basic characteristics of first-class universities, the historical revolution of Chinese universities, the tradition and culture of HIT, the distinctive development and revolutionary innovation”. Taking the example of world-class universities’ development, he analyzed the how significant the world-class faculty and students are to the construction of world-class universities. He thinks that large scale and complete disciplines are not the essential conditions, but distinctive features and outstanding advantages are. According to Chinese Chairman Xi Jinping’s important statements on the national university ideologies and politics conference-“China has unique history, distinctive culture and special national conditions, all of which determine that China has to take its own development path on university education and lay a solid foundation for the universities with Chinese socialism. Universities are established for offering people a moral education. Only those which can successfully train top talents can become world-class universities.” President Zhou Yu believes that Chinese modern universities have the missions of training all-round developed talents, supporting innovation driving strategies, leading progress in human civilization, promoting regional economic development, making industrial improvements, stimulating the formation of innovative culture and satisfying national needs of strategetic development construction. He underlined HIT talents training features-“strengthening foundation, enhancing practice, being strict with the process and seeking for innovations” and some scientific research characteristics in engineering, astronautics and local areas. He pointed out that universities are not about the size, but the study; not about whether they have complete subjects, but the essence, top qualities and the uniqueness, building universities is also building characteristics, if someone wants to take root to build universities in China, characteristics should be the first sector to seek development and excellence. President Zhou Yu said that goals determine direction, characteristics show advantages and innovations bring up the future, in the pace of accelerated construction of a century strong university of “Chinese characteristics, world class and HIT standards.”, HIT will continue to develop the tradition, outstand characteristics and seek reform and innovations, try to grasp opportunities trough advantages and seek supports through contributions in order to make greater contributions to the national development and social progress.
President of Beijing Institute of Technology Hu Haiyan, president of Chongqing University Zhou Xuhong, president of Dalian University of Technology Guo Dongming, president of Southeast University Zhang Guangjun, president of South China University of Technology Wang Yingjun, president of Tianjin University Zhong Denghua, president of Tongji University Zhong Zhihua, president of Northwestern Polytechnical University Wang Jinsong and other presidents in the association attended the conference, president of Hunan University Duan Xianzhong was invited to the conference.
At the conference
President Zhou Yu is giving a speech
Group photo of the presidents in alliance
