Zhejiang University-University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Institute (ZJUI) held its 2019 year-end meeting as classes ended in December. The meeting summarized the progress made in 2019 by ZJUI in teaching, research, and faculty development. The resolution of several key issues raised during the summer retreat meeting was discussed, and the meeting set up future development plans for the institute.
Dean Li gave a summary of the achievements of the past year and expressed his gratitude to the faculty and staff for their hard work. He presented the three research themes of the ZJU-UIUC research center, its co-leaders, and the development plan. He described a plan to establish a ZJU-UIUC-International Research Alliance of local industries. He issued letters of appointment to the faculty members who joined in the second half of 2019 and welcomed them.
Professor Philip Krein, Executive Dean of ZJUI, discussed 2019 results from four viewpoints: the Institute’s profile, education and teaching, faculty recruiting, and research. Multidisciplinary courses are expanding. The collaboration between the two partner universities has deepened. For instance, cooperative doctoral and postdoctoral programs have been implemented and master’s degree programs are nearing final agreement. The ZJU-UIUC Joint Research Center was officially established. Professor Krein expressed high expectations for the future development of ZJUI, with the hope that faculty from the two universities will strengthen exchanges, deepen research collaboration, and promote the development of multidisciplinary scientific research.
The Institute announced preparations for graduation ceremonies for the class of 2020.
At present, there are 518 undergraduate students, 48 doctoral students, 24 ZJUI local faculty members, and 21 staff including administrators, lab technicians, and tutors. In 2020, the first ZJUI students will graduate. We believe that these students, like ZJUI itself, will have a bright future. Going forward, we will contribute to the education of outstanding cross-disciplinary engineering talent, to the creation of a world-class engineering college, and to the “double first-class” initiative of Zhejiang University.
