"Where there are Chinese people, there is Chinese medicine, GZUCM, and professionals from GZUCM!" On the morning of March 3rd, the ceremony for countdown of the 100th anniversary celebration of Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine（GZUCM）was held at the campus in Guangzhou Higher Education Mega Center. University leaders including Chen Wenfeng, Secretary of the CPC GZUCM Committee, and Wang Wei, President of the university, and representatives from various functional departments, colleges, affiliated hospitals and educational auxiliary units of the university, witnessed this historic moment. The ceremony was presided over by Qiu Yahong, Deputy Secretary of the CPC GZUCM Committee.
Chen Wenfeng, Secretary of the CPC GZUCM Committee, delivered a speech. On behalf of the university, he extended sincere greetings and blessings to all the teachers, students, staff, and alumni at home and abroad! He also expressed heartfelt thanks to the leaders and friends from all walks of life who have been caring about and supporting the development of the university for a long time! He stated that, since the 18th National Congress of the Party of China, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has persistently regarded education as both a national and party priority. Promoting the inheritance and innovative development of Traditional Chinese Medicine(TCM) is of importance in socialism with Chinese characteristics for a new era and a major event for The Great Rejuvenation of the Chinese Nation. GZUCM, as the pioneer of modern higher education in traditional Chinese medicine, was selected as one of the first universities for national“Double First-Class”and a key construction university for high-level universities in Guangdong Province. It shoulders the heavy responsibility and takes up the challenge in promoting the reform and innovation of higher education in TCM, and in providing talents and scientific technology support for the high-quality development of TCM.
Chen Wenfeng emphasized the continuation of TCM education. Since its origin in September 1924, when it was established as the Guangdong Specialized College of Chinese Medicine, GZUCM has been committed to maintaining uninterrupted education for a century, passing on the torch of nurturing talents and revitalizing the nation in its hundred-year history of running schools. The centenary celebration is an important milestone for the university to carry forward the past and open up the future, an assembly call for the university to build on the momentum to reach new peaks, and a significant and milestone event in the development history of the university! From "The superior doctor cures the country, just as the foresighted enlightens the populace" to "Enriching morality and learning, serving the world with sincerity", generation after generation, professionals from GZUCM have always breathed and shared the same destiny with the country, and have shouldered the great responsibility of developing TCM with benevolent heart and skill, and with steel-like perseverance, striving to build a "Chinese-style, world-class" university.
In his speech on the ceremony, Chen Wenfeng would endeavor to achieve the following:
(1) The university will spare no effort to create a celebration on academics, vigorously promoting respect for scholars and the pursuit of academic excellence. With a steadfast commitment to an academic orientation, the university will invite top experts and scholars from home and abroad, as well as renowned medical professionals, to host a series of high-level and influential academic events. These events aim to enhance academic exchange, broaden academic horizons, and focus on the innovation and achievement transformation of TCM, thereby empowering the high-quality development of TCM.
(2) The university will spare no effort to create a celebration on humanities, cultivating and promoting the spirit of GZUCM. It will solidify its profound cultural foundation in TCM, inherit and develop TCM as a gem of Chinese culture, continue the century-long historical and cultural lineage, and highlight the historical depth of this century-old university.
(3) The university will spare no effort to create an open and inclusive celebration, including all the faculty, staff, and students to enjoy the event. A series of enriching cultural activities with distinctive characteristics of GZUCM will be carried out. The celebration of anniversary affords an opportunity to dig into the university’s history to tell compelling stories about TCM and the tales of GZUCM, thus ensuring that all faculty, students, affiliated hospitals, clinical medical colleges, and cooperative hospitals share the unparalleled glory of the centennial anniversary;
(4) The university will spare no effort to create an alumni-focused celebration, gathering the wisdom and strength of alumni from both home and abroad. This initiative aims to further strengthen the bonds between teachers and students, as well as to enhance the sense of belonging and pride among alumni, both domestically and internationally, as members of the GZUCM community.
The centennial celebration of GZUCM serves as an opportunity to comprehensively review and summarize the educational experience and achievements over the past 100 years since its establishment. It is also a new starting point for further liberating thoughts and embarking on a new journey characterized by "changing work style, emphasizing practical work, starting a new situation, and striving for excellence", and accelerating the construction of
"Double First-Class" and high-level university. He expressed the hope that the entire university community will steadfastly follow the path of high-quality and connotative development. By pooling formidable strength to strive for the first class, with more resolute determination, more magnificent spirit, and more effective measures, “a new GZUCM” will be created!
Wang Wei, President of the university, read aloud the "Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine 100th Anniversary Celebration Announcement" (No. 1). The announcement briefly reviewed the centennial history of GZUCM, which includes the establishment in Guangzhou, the hardships during the war against Japanese aggression, the resumption of classes in Hong Kong, the re-establishment in Guangzhou, and the continuous pursuit of academic excellence despite all the vicissitudes of history. The university has adhered to the socialist direction in running the school, implementing the fundamental task of fostering virtue through education, and has gathered a large number of distinguished figures with noble medical ethics. It has cultivated a significant number of high-quality professionals in TCM for the country and the party. During national emergencies such as the SARS epidemic and the COVID-19 pandemic, the university has taken on critical missions and dispatched medical teams to provide aid both domestically and internationally, contributing to the construction of a global community for health. The university has played a significant role in these efforts, showcasing the strength and commitment of GZUCM.
Wang Wei stated that a new century is about to begin, and GZUCM will always adhere to the guidance of Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, keep in mind the mission and responsibility of higher education in TCM, and actively contribute to the construction of a highland of TCM in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area and the construction of a strong province of TCM in Guangdong. It will unremittingly strive to build a first-class university with both Chinese characteristics and world-class standards, contributing to the construction of a healthy China and the realization of the Chinese Dream of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation! He extends a warm invitation to alumni from both home and abroad, distinguished members of society, and colleagues from all sectors to take time out of their busy schedules to attend and celebrate together. He encourages everyone to reminisce about old friendships, discuss and plan for the future, and compose a new chapter in the development of the university's second century!
