Prof. Wen-Chang Chen, the 13th NTU President, received his PhD in chemical engineering from the University of Rochester. He is Chair Prof. of NTU and Distinguished Prof. of NTU’s Department of Chemical Engineering. His past positions include Dean of NTU’s College of Engineering, President of the Federation of Asian Polymer Societies (FAPS), President of the Polymer Society (Taipei), and Polymer Program Coordinator of the National Science and Technology Council. He has been awarded an honorary PhD by the Université Grenoble Alpes, National Chair Professorship by the Ministry of Education, Academician of the Asia Pacific Academy of Materials (APAM) and Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry (FRSC).
National Taiwan University held the 13th Presidential Handover Ceremony on January 7 with the Ministry of Education (MOE)’s Political Deputy Minister of Education Mon-Chi Lio presenting the letter of appointment to Professor Wen-Chang Chen, the new President and the outgoing President Chung-Ming Kuan handing over the presidential seal. With enthusiastic guests from all walks of life filling the hall, the historic yet heartwarming ceremony was punctuated with frequent bursts of applause and laughter.
On receiving the baton, President Wen-Chang Chen declared that he was in the relay race, a race in which every President makes strides to maintain NTU’s position as the nation’s leading university. He promised, therefore, to do his best to oversee every aspect of university operations. He also expressed his gratitude to the members of the Presidential Search Committee, students as well as faculty, for giving him this opportunity to serve the University. He will surely seize this opportunity to press forward, in step with every NTUer.
President Chen’s vision for NTU is to “build a world-class university and show its centennial glory.” During his tenure as president, he expects NTU to complete four missions:
1. Uphold academic freedom, pursue truth, and shape the philosophy that is respected by the international community;
2. Cultivate future leaders with creativity, leadership, execution and altruism in various professions;
3. Encourage faculty members and students to accept challenges by keeping committed to solving important issues related to sustainable development and leading the development of the world;
4. Actively contribute to national development, guide the trend of thought in society, and act as the vital think tank for future development.
As the new President of NTU, President Chen declared that he will focus on campus autonomy, academic freedom, and educating the future generation of leaders. Further, he will make every effort to realize the vision and development strategies to maintain the NTU’s high standing in global academia, including building a smart and sustainable campus, trailblazing in key research areas, enhancing international competitiveness, encouraging research and independent learning, completing planning for NTU’s centennial celebration, fostering connections with alumni, and replenishing financial resources, to mention just a few. He hopes realizing this mission will be a joint effort with every NTUer. In the meantime, he hopes NTU will continue to play a leading role in improving society by proposing higher education reform strategies and fulfilling its social responsibilities.
Political Deputy Minister of Education Mon-Chi Lio (left) presenting the letter of appointment to Prof. Wen-Chang Chen, the new President (right).
Prof. Chung-Ming Kuan, the outgoing President (left), handing over the seal to Prof. Wen-Chang Chen, the new President, at NTU’s 13th Presidential Handover Ceremony.
From left to right: current NTU President Wen-Chang Chen, former Presidents Pan-Chyr Yang, Wei-Jao Chen, Zhen Sun, and outgoing President Chung-Ming Kuan.
