Duke President Richard H. Brodhead concluded a three-day trip to China with an address at Tsinghua University in Beijing on Tuesday. Speaking to more than 150 Tsinghua faculty, staff and students, Brodhead outlined the challenges facing higher education in China and in the U.S. He emphasized the value that research universities provide, as well as the need for broad liberal arts education to train future global leaders. (Read the speech here.)
During his visit to Tsinghua, Brodhead and Tsinghua President Chen Jining finalized a new memorandum of understanding supporting cooperation between the two universities. Brodhead then participated in a roundtable discussion about the future of higher education with several Tsinghua faculty members.
Read MoreDuke and Tsinghua maintain active research collaborations and an MBA student exchange program. Brodhead, who received an honorary degree from Tsinghua in 2006, is a member of the Honorary Advisory Board of the Schwarzman Scholars program, which will be located at Tsinghua University.
Brodhead's trip began Sunday with a visit to the Duke Kunshan University (DKU) campus, which is currently under construction and scheduled to open to students in the fall of 2014. Accompanied by DKU Chancellor Liu Jingnan and Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Brown Bullock, Brodhead also met with officials from the city of Kunshan and DKU staff and faculty members.
On Monday Brodhead met with China's Minister of Education Yuan Guiren to discuss their shared expectations for DKU and its role as a platform for innovative approaches to education and research in China. Yuan expressed his appreciation for Duke University's commitment to DKU and reiterated the Ministry of Education's support for DKU's continued development. Brodhead noted that he was pleased by the ministry's understanding of DKU's ambitions and its support for DKU.
Following the meeting with Minister Yuan, Brodhead joined Liu and Bullock in meetings with Chinese and international media to announce the DKU Advisory Board and provide updates on the progress of DKU.
Monday evening Brodhead and Duke Trustee Gao Xiqing L'86 hosted a reception for more than 100 Duke alumni, parents and friends in Beijing.
Below: DKU Chancellor, Liu Jingnan, President Richard Brodhead and DKU Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Brown Bullock stand in front of the DKU academic center. Photo by Jie Shen.
