Professor H K Chang, President of City University of Hong Kong, participated in celebrations held by Fudan University from 23 to 25 September to mark Fudan’s centennial anniversary and further promote relations between the two universities.

 

Fudan University in Shanghai, established in 1905, was the first higher education institution privately funded and independently established by the Chinese in China, Professor Chang said. “Over the past century, it has nurtured many intellectuals who have had a significant impact on the country and society,” he said.

 

“Fudan University’s centennial anniversary also marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the links between our two universities. I would like to send my sincerest congratulations on behalf of City University of Hong Kong,” Professor Chang said.

 

Professor Chang arrived on 23 September and was accompanied during his busy two-day trip by Ms Laura Law , a student in the Department of English and Communication at CityU and currently an exchange student at Fudan University. (See attachment for the student’s reflections.)

 

Professor Chang’s first engagement was the opening ceremony of the Calligraphy Exhibition Hall, a permanent display area dedicated to the works of Mr Yu Youren, a master of calligraphy and one of the seven honoured founders of Fudan University. The display area is housed in the Cai Guanshen Humanities Building. Mr Yu gave two pieces of his calligraphy to Professor Chang’s father in the past, and in order to celebrate the opening of the exhibition, which took place on 23 September, Professor Chang’s mother lent the two precious pieces for display in the new Exhibition Hall.  Professor Chang attended the opening ceremony as a family member of the donor, and the President of Fudan University, Professor Wang Shenghong, thanked Mr Yu’s family and all those who had donated works to the exhibition.

 On 24 September, Professor Chang attended the centennial anniversary celebrations, noting the importance of showcasing students’ achievements during anniversary years. “A university is not a building only. Its true and ultimate achievement is the achievement of its students. If we follow through our education mission at CityU and continue to broaden our students’ worldview, I believe we will certainly have many more outstanding alumni to be proud of and to celebrate our 40^th anniversary,” he said.

CityU and Fudan University have been working closely since 1995 to establish stronger links. In particular, Fudan University has helped CityU recruit undergraduates from the mainland and so far 51 mainland students have completed their first year foundation study at Fudan and then continued their studies at CityU.