From September 21 to 26, Guangjun Zhang, Secretary of the Party Committee of the University and Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, led a delegation to visit the United States, accompanied by Zhi Yang, Dean of the School of Management. During his stay in the U.S., Zhi Yang participated in the cooperation negotiation between Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), witnessed the signing of the inter-university agreement between the two universities, had in-depth exchanges with representatives of the university's Gies Business School, and reached a preliminary cooperation intention in the undergraduate and master's programs. During his stay in Chicago, Zhi Yang participated in the 13th “International Young Scholars East Lake Forum-Chicago Sub-Forum” to gather talents. At the same time, Prof. Yang also participated in the North American Alumni Exchange Meeting of Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST).
At the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Zhi Yang accompanied Guangjun Zhang to hold talks with John Coleman, provost of the university, and witnessed the signing of a memorandum of inter-university cooperation between the two sides. At the “Dialogue on Future-oriented Engineering Education and Innovation” jointly organized by the two universities, representatives from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and representatives from the School of Mechanical Engineering, the School of Energy, the School of Management and the functional departments of the university carried out forward-looking dialogues on the cultivation of multidisciplinary talents in cross-disciplines of the engineering field, shared their respective experiences, and explored the space for cooperation. During the visit, Zhi Yang met with representatives of the university. During the visit, Zhi Yang had an in-depth exchange with Christine Gozdziak, Associate Dean of International Affairs of Gies Business School, who expressed that a large number of our students go to Gies Business School for further study every year and highly affirmed the academic and employment performance of our students. The two sides reached an agreement on the 4+1 undergraduate master's degree program and master's degree 1+1 dual-degree program. The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is a public research university, a founding member of the Big Ten, and known as the “Public Ivy”. 2024 Times Higher Education World University Ranking 42nd, 2024 QS World University Rankings It is ranked 42nd in the 2024 Times Higher Education World University Rankings and 64th in the 2024 QS World University Rankings. According to 2023 USNews, the Gies School of Business is ranked 13th among the best undergraduate business schools in the United States, with accounting, insurance, and marketing among the top ten majors.
During his stay in Chicago, Zhi Yang participated in the 13th “East Lake International Forum for Outstanding Overseas Young Scholars - Chicago Sub-Forum” and introduced the Academy's situation in discipline construction, talent cultivation and internationalization, focusing on the policy of “Talent Pool” of the Academy. Since the implementation of the “Talent Pool” policy, the School has attracted a number of overseas talents to join it, which plays an important role in the construction of disciplines and scientific research of the College. At present, a number of potential applicants have contacted with the deans of the relevant fields, and are actively connecting.
Prof. Yang also participated in the North American Alumni Exchange Meeting of Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST). Baodong Wang, Consul General of the Chinese Consulate General in Chicago, Junying Huang, Science and Technology Counselor, and Zhiyong Yang, Education Consul, attended the event. In his concluding remarks, Guangjun Zhang warmly congratulated the flourishing development of alumni associations across North America, and fully affirmed the positive contribution of alumni associations across North America in overseas alumni liaison and supporting the development of the university. During the event, Zhi Yang met with alumni representatives from Southern California Alumni Association, Montreal Alumni Association, Tongji Overseas Alumni Association, Chicago Alumni Association, Vancouver Alumni Association, Toronto Alumni Association and other alumni associations, to enhance the connection between the School and North American alumni associations.
The visit is an important initiative for the School of Management to implement the “Huazhong University of Science and Technology Global Development Strategy 2030” and to actively expand educational exchanges and cooperation with the U.S. under the new situation, to expand international partners, to deepen the contact with the North American Alumni Association, and to enhance the international influence of the School.
