Nanjing University and Jiangsu Writers’ Association held the first meeting of the leadership group on the establishment of Jiangsu School of Literature. The meeting was held on January 22 on Nanjing University’s Xianlin Campus.

Attending the meeting were Wang Yanwen, director of the Publicity Department and United Front Work Department of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee, Zhang Yibin, chancellor of Nanjing University, Xu Ning, deputy director of the Publicity Department of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee, and other related officials.

Zhu Qingbao, vice chancellor of Nanjing University, presided over the meeting.

Xu Ning announced the names of those on the leadership group:

Wang Yanwen and Zhang Yibin are the directors of the group;

Xu Ning and Yang Zhong are the deputy directors, Yang being executive vice chancellor of Nanjing University;

Bi Feiyu, deputy chair of Jiangsu Writers’ Association, is the principal of Jiangsu School of Literature; and

Wu Jun, vice dean of Nanjing University’s Graduate School, is the executive principal.

First meeting of the Leadership Group on the establishment of Jiangsu School of Literature (photo: She Zhijun)

Han Songlin, deputy chair of Jiangsu Writers’ Association, reported the plan of establishing Jiangsu School of Literature.

Jiangsu School of Literature is bearing the high expectations of generations of writers and literary workers in Jiangsu and is receiving full support by the Publicity Department of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committee.

Since the first preparatory meeting for the School of Literature on April 17, 2017, leaders of provincial CPC Publicity Department, Writers’ Association, Nanjing University and its School of Liberal Arts have held many discussions and agreed upon the plan of joint construction.

As planned, after its establishment, Jiangsu School of Literature will conduct activities including talent cultivation, academic research and academic communication by starting degree and non-degree education, holding the Yangtze River Forum and inviting young Chinese writers overseas.

Han Songlin and Zhu Qingbao signed the Memorandum of Establishing Jiangsu School of Literature on behalf of Jiangsu Writers’ Association and Nanjing University, respectively.

Han Songlin and Zhu Qingbao signed the Memorandum of Establishing Jiangsu School of Literature.

Wang Yanwen and Zhang Yibin unveiled the nameplate of Jiangsu School of Literature.

Bi Feiyu said that the establishment of Jiangsu School of Literature is an initiative with idealistic spirits and expressed his gratitude to the provincial CPC publicity department and Nanjing University for their joint planning and support.

With more and more people and more and more writers receiving higher education in China, Bi pointed out, there will still be many self-taught writers emerging in the future, but more and more writers will come from colleges and will have received formal literature education.

The reason why the literature of Jiangsu Province stands out among Chinese literature, Bi said, lies in its complete contingent of writers: the rising stars of literature in Jiangsu ensures the further development of Jiangsu literature with brand new literary works. The prosperity of Jiangsu literature is not possible without the growth of young people.

Bi encouraged young writers to study and improve themselves at Jiangsu School of Literature and would like to extend his welcome to more and more young writers.

Wu Jun said that Jiangsu’s literature enjoys being part of the highland, plateau, and peak in Chinese literature, Jiangsu School of Literature will be a new platform built on these bases, and Nanjing University will cooperate with the provincial CPC publicity department in making contributions to the development of Jiangsu’s literature.

He believed that as a pioneering undertaking in China’s literary field, the cooperation between the university and the writers' association in establishing a province-level school of literature on university campus is also a practice of applying to the field of literature the thoughts on socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era led by Xi Jinping, and the university still has a long way to go to put these thoughts to practice throughout higher education.

Wu hoped that all parties will work together to build a prosperous Jiangsu School of Literature and attract young talents to attend the school.

The establishment of Jiangsu School of Literature is an important measure to implement the spirit of the 19th CPC National Congress and General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech on the work in the literary and artistic field and implement the directives of the central and provincial governments on the prosperity and development of socialist literature and art.

According to the instructions of the Publicity Department of CPC Jiangsu Provincial Committees, Jiangsu School of Literature will be jointly built and managed by Jiangsu Writers’ Association and Nanjing University; by relying on the strengths of teaching and academic research of Nanjing University’s School of Liberal Arts, it will conduct all-round talent cultivation, academic research and academic exchange.

The co-founding and co-management of Jiangsu School of Literature by the provincial writers’ association and Nanjing University is not only a step of institutional innovation of Jiangsu Writers’ Association, but also an important measure taken by Nanjing University to make contributions to local cultural construction and carry out the education of mass entrepreneurship and innovation.

Nanjing University will give policy and resource support to the development and construction of the Jiangsu School of Literature. Through internal organization and integration, it will mobilize the resources of School of Liberal Arts of Nanjing University and other related fields to support the sustainable development of the Jiangsu School of Literature so as to create a national-level first-class center for cultivation of high-level literary talents, literary research and literary exchange. 

Source: News Center