2023.10.14
On October 14th, the University System of Taiwan (UST), comprising National Tsing Hua University (NTHU), National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU), National Central University (NCU), and National Chengchi University (NCCU), celebrated its 20th anniversary with a spirit of unity and festivity.
The celebration included a book launch detailing the UST's growth over two decades of collaboration among the member universities and a two-day sports event with spirited participation from 573 athletes. Ultimately, NYCU emerged victorious, claiming the team championship.
UST President Lih-Juann Chen (陳力俊) highlighted the UST's remarkable journey since its inception in 2003. The UST has grown to include four member universities, each committed to collective excellence through resource integration.
W. John Kao (高為元), President of the host university, underlined the strength found in unity and expressed hopes for another 20 years of fruitful collaboration. He reflected on 20 years of remarkable achievements, including credit recognition, collaborative faculty hiring, and research advances.
NCCU President Tsai-Yen Li (李蔡彥) expressed joy at being part of the UST and emphasized the strong bonds formed among the institutions. NYCU President Chi-Hung Lin (林奇宏) highlighted the advantages of the UST's collaboration to international exchange, whereas NCU President Jing-Yang Jou (周景揚) underscored the improvements in humanities and social sciences since NCCU's inclusion.
The event also featured distinguished guests, including former UST President Chao-Han Liu (劉兆漢), former Minister of Education Wei-Ling Chiang (蔣偉寧), former President of NTHU Wen-Tsuen Chen (陳文村), and former President of NCCU Ming-Cheng Kuo (郭明政). The distinguished guests expressed gratitude to the former Vice President of UST Zheng-Cheng Chen (陳正成) for editing the book Twenty Years of the University System of Taiwan within a short timeframe.
The "Outstanding Contributions Award" was presented to the UST's longtime supporters, including Sinyi Realty Inc., Sayling Wen Cultural & Education Foundation, and United Microelectronics Corporation (UMC).
To strengthen the bonds among the four universities, NCU hosted the first UST Sports Day last year, and this year, the torch passed to NTHU. The official competitive events included men's and women's basketball, volleyball, table tennis, badminton, tennis, and a creative cheerleading competition. Next year, NCU will take over as the host.
The UST Sports Day showcased the outstanding talents of athletes from the four universities. NYCU excelled in men's and women's badminton, men's table tennis, and women's tennis, while NTHU secured victories in men's basketball, men's tennis, and women's table tennis. NCU demonstrated its prowess in women's basketball and volleyball, and NCCU emerged victorious in men's volleyball. In the creative cheerleading competition, NTHU's team was honored with the gold medal, while NYCU and NCCU received silver medals.
In sum, the UST's 20th-anniversary celebration was a testament to unity, achievement, and the promising future of continued collaboration among its member universities.
The UST's 20th-anniversary celebration featured all four universities coming together to cut a celebratory cake.
President W. John Kao (高為元) expressed hope for the UST's bright future.
President Lih-Juann Chen (陳力俊) (second from the left) presented the "Outstanding Contributions Award" to Jun-Ji Zhou (周俊吉), Chairman of Sinyi Realty Inc. (second from the right), Neng-Yu He (何能裕), Executive Director of the Sayling Wen Cultural & Education Foundation (far left), and Jin-Shuang Chen (陳進雙), Vice President of United Microelectronics Corporation (far right).
President Lih-Juann Chen (陳力俊) of the UST hosted the opening of the Second Sports Day.
NTHU's cheerleading team secured the gold medal in the UST Creative Cheerleading Competition.
NTHU's men's volleyball team (left) competed fervently with NCCU on the UST Sports Day.
In the women's volleyball competition, NCU (left) faced NCCU.
NYCU's men's table tennis team claimed the top prize.
In the men's basketball competition, NCU (in black) played against NCCU.
