On the morning of September 1st, the opening ceremony for the freshmen of 2017 was held at the Eastern Conference hall of the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC). Party secretary XU Wu, president BAO Xinhe, and deans from all the schools together welcomed these youngsters to join USTC .The opening ceremony was hosted by JIANG Yi, deputy party secretary of the school committee.
At 9 o'clock, the opening ceremony officially began. A huge banner flag lifted by the bearers moved slowly to the rostrum, students burst into excited shouts when the flag passing over their heads. Then all the students and faculty stood up and sang the National Anthem of People's Republic of China.
President BAO Xinhe made a speech at the opening ceremony. On behalf of all the faculty, he congratulated freshmen on becoming an honorable USTCer. Next, president BAO talked about “dream” and expressed some expectations and requirements for freshmen:
First of all, students should make their dreams come true through hard work. He wished them to keep their interests and curiosity about science. USTC will also provide students with personalized training conditions and practical opportunities to encourage them to be creative and dare to explore.
Secondly, students as USTCers should be clear about the glorious history of USTC. USTC was founded by the older generation of revolutionaries and scientists. One of the lyrics in the school song "Eternal East Wind" goes, "put the red flag on the peak of science", that is the dream of USTC. In recent years, the school has made a number of leading research achievements in the frontier domains. These achievements are proves of our USTCers’ dreams.
Finally, students should bend themselves to individual strivings as well as focus on the current events. President BAO expected all of students could combine personal dreams to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation. Driven by dreams, seize the day, and enjoy a colorful and fruitful time during the next four years.
Next, the delegations of teachers, elder students, and freshmen gave some speeches in turn.
Professor GUO Guoping, the owner of Youth Science and Technology Award of China and the National Outstanding Youth Fund, gave a speech as the delegation of teachers. 21 years ago, professor GUO attend the opening ceremony as a member of freshmen. Reviewing his life in USTC, he believed that students should pay attention to deal with interpersonal relationships, and explore better ways of learning. He expressed his blessings to all the freshmen and wished them an enjoyable campus life.
On behalf of the old students, FAN Yangyang, a graduate from the School of Chemistry and Materials Science, shared his experience during last four years. He advised the freshmen to learn from the elder students, and find their own interests and stick to it. For example, he had took part in some community activities and academic exchanges, he was also a member of the school dragon boat team. Such experience made his college life rich and unforgettable.
As a freshman, ZHANG Rui who came from the School of Management shared his feelings when he just arrived in USTC. After meeting the roommate and paricipating in orientation activities, he had tried to understand how to be an USTCer. Freshmen must have a clear goal and cherish the time, ZHANG Rui said, only in this way can we meet the request of General Secretary XI Jinping to be an aspiring and virtuous college student .
In the end, all of participants stood up and sang the school song "Eternal East Wind". The opening ceremony for freshmen of 2017 ended in the unchained melody. After the opening ceremony, all the freshmen began to have their first seminar. To help the freshmen to adapt to college life and establish their goals, USTC carried out the "science and society" seminar since 2013. This seminar held 6 talks each year and invite famous scientists and entrepreneurs to share their opinions with students.
As an academician, president BAO Xinhe gave a speech as the first seminar for the freshmen. Firstly, president BAO expounded the responsibilities of the university. Our university should shoulder the responsibility of promoting technological innovation and make contribution to China's development. President BAO introduced some high-techs which could influence the future world, and arouse students’ interests through interactive talks.
President BAO took himself as an example to tell the relationship between the scientist and the country. For decades, his team has committed to efficient energy conversion and has made important contributions to the development of clean energy in our country. He pointed out that, responsible innovation is the moral obligation of a scientist. Finally, president BAO quoted the words from general secretary XI Jinping when he visited USTC on April 26, 2016: “I wish you all to make persistent efforts and enjoy innovation".
After his speech, president BAO had some interactive communications with freshmen. He answered students' questions on the high-tech development, discipline development and construction of the middle campus. The whole seminar was rich in content, and student gave a round of applause from time to time.
(YANG Xinqi, USTC News Center, Image by Student Affair Department)
