Nanjing University’s Party secretary Hu Jinbo met with Professor Bao Zhenan, an academician of the U.S. National Academy of Engineering and dean of the Department of Chemical Engineering at Stanford University on the morning of May 19, 2019.

Present at the meeting was Wang Yunjun, a member of the NJU CPC standing committee, director of the NJU CPC’s United Front Work Department and director of the NJU CPC Committee’s General Office.

Also present was the relevant personnel from the university’s Development Commission and School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering.

The meeting was held at the South Administration Building, Xianlin Campus.

At the meeting (Photo: She Zhijun)

Hu Jinbo extended his welcome to Bao Zhenan for attending the Second Jiangsu Development Summit and thanked her for visiting the teachers and students on the occasion of the 117th anniversary of Nanjing University.

Hu also admired the alumna for being a young and worldwide outstanding woman scientist today and regarded her as the pride of Nanjing University and even that of the entire country.

He briefed Bao on the general situation of the Jiangsu Development Summit and the recent development and characteristics of Jiangsu’s economy and education. He particularly highlighted the university’s on-going efforts to build the “Double First-Rates” (First-Rate University and First-Rate Disciplines) as well as its major project work.

Besides, he emphasized the important role of institutional build-up in developing world-class universities, citing as examples Oxford University, Cambridge University and Berlin University.

Building Nanjing University into a world-class university is both our goal and means, said Hu. The key is to tap into the potential and raise the quality of the university’s development, and enhance its capacity of serving the country and building a community with the shared future of humanity.

In addition to the pursuit of a world-class university by meeting various indexes, said Hu, we should push Nanjing University towards excellence at the institutional and philosophical levels, and in these aspects we still have a long way to go.

To develop the university, he continues, the priority lies in the disciplinary construction, which in turn is led by scientific and technological talents, and building teams of scientific and technological talents is led by the institutional and environmental construction, which comes down to the fact that we should always adhere to the socialism system with Chinese characteristics and to the Party’s leadership.

At present, said Hu, Nanjing University is making great efforts at the innovation in institutional systems in order to create a favorable environment that benefits and attracts more outstanding talents at home and abroad.

In order to achieve the goal of the “Double First-Rates,” Hu expressed his sincere hope that Bao can make suggestions for the development of the university.

Bao expressed her deep feelings for Nanjing University because she had grown up on the campus and was deeply influenced by the atmosphere of her alma mater.

She said as an alumna, she was very pleased to see her alma mater have made great achievements and put forward grand visions. As the university is on the fast lane, she was willing to support and assist it in the fields of disciplinary development, talent introduction, and international exchange and cooperation.

Bao also briefly introduced Stanford University’s initiatives and objectives in disciplinary development, scientific research, administration and service for teachers.

At the meeting, Hu and Bao had in-depth exchanges on the construction and management of interdisciplinary platforms, the introduction and service for high-level talents and other topics.

Hu hands out the letter of trustee’s appointment.

At the end of the meeting, Hu issued Bao the letter of appointment for the Sixth Board of Trustees of Nanjing University and gave her souvenirs.

Source: News Center