On October 6th, the 70th Anniversary Celebration Ceremony of HUST was held at the Optics Valley Stadium.

Zhang Chang’er, alumnus of HUST and Vice Director of the CPPCC National Committee on Culture, Historical Data, and Studies attended the ceremony. Zhong Denghua, member of the Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Education and Vice Minister of Education delivered video remarks. Shao Xinyu, HUST alumnus and Vice Governor of the Hubei Provincial People’s Government, addressed the participants at the ceremony. Li Yuanyuan, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Chair of the University Committee, presided over the ceremony. You Zheng, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and President of HUST, delivered a keynote speech. The university senior leaders, faculty representatives along with student representatives attended the ceremony. Also present at the ceremony were government officials, Academicians from CAS and CAE, former university senior leaders, and heads from sister universities and organizations, entrepreneurs, alumni representatives, media representatives, as well as representatives from all walks of life who have shown care and support to the development of HUST.

At 10:00 a.m., the solemn National Anthem was played, marking the start of the ceremony.

Zhong Denghua said that HUST has made significant contributions to the development of Chinese science and technology, noting that HUST has trained more than 700,000 talents of all kinds, established several major national scientific research bases, and nourished a mass number of high-level scientific research achievements over the past 70 years.

Shao Xinyu pointed out HUST’s contributions to S&T industries as well as in combating COVID-19. “ HUST is a leading university in Chinese higher education and a solid supporter of Hubei’s innovation and socioeconomic development”, he said.

Qiu Yong, Chair of the Tsinghua University Committee and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, delivered a video speech as a representative of domestic universities. Qiu spoke highly of the collaboration between HUST and Tsinghua University. He also proposed that the two universities make joint efforts to build a first-class university system, and transform Chinese universities into platforms for global academic exchanges, thoughts communication, and cultural integration.

Peter Salovey, President of Yale University, together with Ulrich Rüdiger, President of RWTH Aachen University, delivered their congratulations via video respectively. Salovey highly praised HUST’s rapid development as well as the fruitful Yale-HUST cooperation, and wished HUST to “embark on another 70 years of extraordinary achievement”. Ulrich expressed his admiration for the remarkable achievements of HUST, hoping to further expand collaboration in various academic fields and strengthen the partnership between the two universities.

President You Zheng extended a warm welcome to the honored guests and expressed his heartfelt gratitude to everyone who cares about the development of the University.

Recapping HUST’s glorious 70-year-history, You urged the students to forge ahead to make HUST a powerhouse for profound S&T breakthroughs, a pioneer in pursuit of core technologies in key areas and to advance fundamental research, to support China’s high-standard self-dependence and self-improvement in S&T. He also emphasized the importance of external exchanges, aiming to keep HUST open and inclusive to the world as a means of engaging in cross-cultural communications and integrate into the global network of innovation.

Zhang Dingyu, 1986 alumnus, winner of the National Honorary Title of "People's Hero", and deputy director of the Health Commission of Hubei Province, along with Chen Gang, 1984 alumnus, academician of the US National Academy of Engineering and MIT professor, addressed the participants via video respectively. Zhang shared his experiences in combating Covid-19. He said that the HUST motto and academic excellence of HUST’s teachers guided him forward. Chen Gang affectionately recalled his study and the time he spent at HUST, encouraging the students to seek and follow their dreams, and share HUST’s wisdom with the world to address global challenges.

Professor Xiong Youlun, winner of the "Most Beautiful Teacher" in China, academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and professor of the School of Mechanical Science and Engineering, and Professor Hu Yu, winner of "National Model in Education", president of the First Clinical School and Affiliated Union Hospital, delivered speeches as teacher representatives. Xiong Youlun said that since its founding, HUST has cultivated numerous elites in all fields, making important contributions to scientific and technological innovation, economic development, and social progress. Hu Yu shared his experience in guarding human health, taking on key research projects, and imparting knowledge to others.

Wang Yiwei, 2020 postgraduate student of the School of Journalism and Information Communication and winner of "The Most Beautiful Volunteer in China", and Yang Jikai, 2019 undergraduate student of the School of Naval Architecture and Ocean Engineering addressed respectively as student representatives. They narrated the concerted struggle in pursuit of the S&T progress of their classmates as well as their solid accomplishments.

The ceremony concluded as all the participants sang the University Song of Huazhong University of Science and Technology, wishing the prosperous future of HUST.

The ceremony was broadcast live by Xinhuanet and other state media platforms along with HUST accounts on major social media platforms, with combined viewers at home and abroad of more than 7 million. Audiences also expressed their congratulations on HUST’s 70th anniversary and solid faith in its future.

The faculty, students, and alumni watched the livestream of the ceremony at the Branch Venues.

Written by: Zhang Shiyu

Edited by: Zhang Zhanyu, Peng Yumeng