On the morning of November 15, letter of intent for "SYSU Fran Award" signing ceremony was held on the South Campus, SYSU president Huang Daren, Vice President, Xu Jiarui, Mr. Chen Yunhe and his wife, Ms. Liu Xiuwan, and other staff involved attended the signing ceremony.
"SYSU Fran Award" is established by Mr. Chen Yunhe, the alumnus of Department of Chemistry who graduated in 1968, and Miss Liu Xiuwan, the alumna of Department of Physics who graduated in 1969 with 5 million of funds for individuals and teams who have made outstanding contributions in scientific research and academic study. They have always been enthusiastic in supporting the development of the school, and have set up "Fran Education Scholarship" at the School of Physics and Engineering and the School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, with an aim to reward excellent teachers and students of the two schools, which plays an important role in promoting the development of the two schools.
Huang Daren pointed out that “SYSU Spirit" lies in the stories alumni narrated over their course of struggles which is the essence of the SYSU culture. The set-up of “SYSU Fran Award” is the very embodiment of “SYSU Spirit”. The most important thing in the course of the university’s development l is talents. The school has achieved breakthrough in many Talents Schemes and the introduction of high-level personnel this year. The School seeks to provide all kinds of talents with various forms of encouragement, including improving the living conditions so that they can concentrate at work. To achieve this, in addition the efforts from the school, it requires also substantial support from alumni and individuals from all walks of life.
Chen Tunhe and Liu Xiu-wan said that 2009 is the 85 anniversary of Alma Mater. They analogized themselves to individuals with 85-year-old parents, and as older brothers and sisters who are married and have started their own career, they have the responsibility to pay back the family, care about their junior brothers and sisters. They said “Starting with ourselves, we need to take initiatives to lead younger siblings, and make sure the - culture and traditions are handed down from generation to generation and be flourished. This tradition is very important to the school. As the alumni are getting powerful, the school is bond to be stronger, the future of school will thus be inevitably better. For this, alumni have the responsibility of making some contributions”. They hope that they can play a leading role through the establishment of "Fran Award", to form the awardees into a small family; the awardees who have graduated can constantly pass the experience to their younger sibling from generation to generation eternally.
