Nanjing University’s Alumni from home and abroad gathered to celebrate the university’s 115th anniversary at EnlingTheater on Xianlin Campus on May 20, 2017.
The ceremony was chaired by Yang Zhong, executive vice chancellor of Nanjing University.
On the spot (Photo: She Zhijun)
Chen Jun, president of the university and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, awarded “Nanjing University Technology Awards,” in recognizing their scientific and research achievements, to four research teams, namely, Professor Zhang Xuxiang’s team at School of the Environment, Professor Zhang Rong’s team at School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Professor Li Aimin’s team at School of the Environment, and Professor Gao Xiang’s team at Model Animal Research Center.
Prize-giving (Photo: She Zhijun)
President Chen Jun then gave a speech titled “Don’t forget the original intention but to strengthen moral education and cultivate people.”
The anniversary every year, he said, is an important moment to review our tradition and draw on past experiences, and moreover, it is a starting point to pool wisdom and efforts to conduct reform and innovations.
Chen quoted General Secretary Xi Jinping as noting that “the foundation of colleges and universities lies in strengthening moral education and cultivating people and a university can become first-class in the world only through cultivating first-class talents.”
These words,said Chen, summarize the essence of first-class universities, point out the path to return to the goal of university education, and serve as new requirements for talent cultivation at colleges and universities.
President Chen Jun gives a speech. (Photo: She Zhijun)
When implementing the “Double First-Class (First-Class Disciplines and Universities)” construction programs, pointed out the president, Nanjing University should study Xi’s words, understand the meaning of “strengthening moral education and cultivating people,” and carry it out in practice.
He urged the audience to bear four things in mind:
First, do not forget the mission of the university but return to such an original and fundamental function of the university as cultivating people.
Second, do not forget the Chinese characteristics but base our efforts on the unique history, culture and national conditions and build a socialist university with Chinese characteristics.
Third, do not forget the tradition of Nanjing University but carry on the principle of “strengthening moral education and cultivating people,” which has been an unremitting pursuit by generations of the faculty and students as well as a manifestation of the university’s time-honored concept on study and people cultivation.
Fourth, do not forget the mission of teachers but pass on the work ethic and practice of famous teachers in the university’s history.
Chen Jun suggested that the university improve its work in four key areas in order to strengthen moral education and talent cultivation:
First, we should strengthen education on ideals and beliefs and make such work a priority in our education system. We should help our students set up lofty goals and encourage them to have big dreams. We should help them form a correct outlook on the world, on life and on various values, form a correct view of today’s world and our country, and have a correct understanding of the responsibilities of youth of their generation and a correct understanding of the relationship between having great dreams and doing concrete work.
Second, we should further improve our curriculum and strengthen moral education and talent cultivation so as to make steady progress in the program of building “One-Thousand High-Quality Courses.” We should make full use of our moral education courses and make further improvement in our general education courses, specialized courses and practical courses.
Third，we should encourage professors to set good examples for students. The professors should have a good professional ethic and guide students in their academic and moral growth.
Fourth, we should carry on the fine tradition of the university and make progress and innovation. We should keep pace with the time and add new elements to the tradition by absorbing and summarizing new experiences from our educational and management practice in new situations.
The anniversary celebration, said Chen, is also a meeting for encouraging the entire university to implement the idea of strengthening moral education and improving talent cultivation.
All faculty and students at Nanjing University should work hard for their dreams and their future so that our university will make new achievements in her practice and become a world-class university, said Chen at the end of his speech.
The representative of fellow universities, former president of Tsinghua University Gu Binglin congratulated Nanjing University on its 115th anniversary and recalled the close relations between the two universities.
With great achievements in innovation and in the education of numerous talents, he said, Nanjing University has made significant contributions to the prosperity of the nation as well as to China’s long-term development of education, science and culture.
In the “Double First-Class” construction programs, Gu said, universities like Nanjing University and Tsinghua University should not only reach a high level of education, but also make contributions to the economic and social construction by having several disciplines reach the international level and forming a university culture with Chinese characteristics.
Academician Gu gives a speech. (Photo: She Zhijun)
Faculty representative, Professor Xu Yanping, from the School of Liberal Arts, said in his speech that he has been teaching undergraduate students for more than ten years and that he and his colleagues are making an effort to carry forward the idea of “a teacher being rooted in class” as put forth by late Professor Cheng Qianfan.
As teachers, he said, we should try to let students shine and let them feel our attention, and we ourselves should shine the way for students.
Professor Xu gives a speech. (Photo: She Zhijun)
Student representative Du Tianjiao, from the school of Software Engineering, recalled in her speech the care and love she received from the university.
In her college years, she said, the student-oriented education preserved the diversity of the students, and the program of “Reading Classics” enabled them to read outstanding classics and appreciate the impressive spirit of this university.
Nanjing University offers all students opportunities to study and encourages them to pursue their dreams.
“Nanjing University is like a mother caring about my growth,” Du said.
Du Tianjiao gives a speech. (Photo: She Zhijun)
On the spot (Photo: She Zhijun)
