A day with Sun Yat-sen University, one of IU’s key partners in China
During a daylong visit to Sun Yat-sen University (SYSU) on Friday, President McRobbie and the IU delegation met with university leaders, faculty, and staff, as well as toured facilities on three of SYSU’s campuses.
IU delegation toured the East campus of SYSU. A statue of Sun Yat-sen stands in front of the impressive library facility.
SYSU ranks among the top 300 universities in the world and one of southern China’s best universities. It has three campuses in the city of Guangzhou and one in Zhuhai. The extensive new East campus in the sprawling Guangzhou Higher Education Megacenter, an area that houses 10 universities and more than 140 buildings, was completed in 2004. The South campus hosts disciplines in the sciences and humanities, while the North campus focuses on the medical sciences.
Last year, a delegation of 37 administrative officials from SYSU visited IU, with stops on both the Indianapolis and Bloomington campuses. In Guangzhou on Friday, President McRobbie followed up with SYSU Executive Deputy Secretary and Vice President Chunsheng Chen, who had led the SYSU delegation to IU.
IU President McRobbie speaks with SYSU Deputy Vice President Chunsheng Chen.
In the meeting, Chen described some of the key outcomes of the visit, in particular the next steps that SYSU intends to take for additional training with IUPUI’s Center for Teaching and Learning. He and Executive Vice President Minghai Wei also spoke briefly about a proposal by the Guangdong Province and Zhuhai Municipality to create a new school of finance, which SYSU has been approached to help create. SYSU would be tasked with identifying an international university as a partner.
Throughout the day, the IU delegation also met with:
- Sherry Wang, Director of Academic Programs, and other staff members of the SYSU School of Philanthropy to discuss ongoing cooperation with the IU Lilly Family School of Philanthropy. The school at SYSU does not currently grant degrees but is in the process of proposing that such degrees be offered through its affiliated academic unit, the School of Sociology and Anthropology. There may be further opportunities for IU and SYSU to collaborate on this endeavor.
- Dr. Chao-Nan Qian, Assistant to the President of the SYSU Cancer Center and Professor of Nasopharyngeal Carcinoma, to learn more about the cancer center’s operations. Dr. Qian led a tour of the facilities, and staff member Mathilde Guerin gave a brief presentation about the center’s areas of outstanding research, high-volume patient treatment of nearly all cancer types, and international partnerships. McRobbie gave a brief overview of IU’s efforts in cancer research and treatment.
- Professor Haipeng Xiao, Director of SYSU Medical Education Affairs and Deputy Dean of Zhongshan School of Medicine, to learn more about student exchange activities between SYSU and the IU School of Medicine. Xiao also gave the delegation a tour of the school’s medical simulation facility where students practice procedures on dummies and learn about specific protocols such as pre-surgical sanitary preparation.
Professor Haipeng Xiao shows President McRobbie the medical simulation facilities of SYSU.
Dr. Joe Xu, professor of anatomy and cell biology at the IU School of Medicine and director of the Confucius Institute at IUPUI, accompanied the IU delegation on Friday. The Confucius Institute, which celebrated its fifth anniversary in April, has played an important role in facilitating cooperative activities between SYSU and IU.
IU and SYSU have an extensive portfolio of collaborations, involving multiple academic programs on the Indianapolis campus. This includes several dual degree programs with SYSU in the areas of business, computer science, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, media arts and science, public affairs, and math. Students in the programs must complete their first two years at SYSU and final two years at IUPUI, earning degrees from SYSU and IU (or in some cases Purdue University, depending on the area of study).
The IU School of Nursing is exploring exchange opportunities with the SYSU School of Nursing. Dean Marion Broome and Dr. Mary Beth Riner, Associate Dean for Global Affairs, are visiting SYSU from May 23-25 to learn about the nursing education programs and research agenda at SYSU and tour clinical health facilities, initial steps toward building a relationship. This is the first visit by IU School of Nursing leadership to SYSU.
