President Li Jiajun Meets with the President of RPI

On September 12, Tianjin University (TJU) President Li Jiajun met with President Shirley Ann Jackson and Vice President Jonathan S. Dordick of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in the United States. Representatives from the Office of International Cooperation and the Office of Science and Technology attended the meeting. Both sides exchanged views on further collaboration.

President Li extended a warm welcome to President Jackson and expressed his gratitude to her for sparing time to visit TJU during her stay during the 2012 Summer Davos. He presented TJU's history and recent development to the guests and emphasized that, as the first university in China, TJU had made outstanding achievements in many engineering areas. Programs such as chemical engineering, architecture and research into the internal combustion engine at TJU are prestigious in China and carry significant international influence. Large numbers of research results have been widely applied in related fields throughout China. The newly-built Research Institute of Aeronautics and Space, the Binhai Industrial Research Institute, the Centre of Applied Mathematics, and the Innovation Center of Chemical Science and Engineering of Tianjin will all provide a new impetus to TJU's scientific research. The guests spoke highly of TJU’s achievements, learning that TJU alumni also took leading roles in designing the architecture of Beijing 2008’ Olympic Games as well as the new campus plan of TJU.

President Jackson and Vice President Dordick presented an overview of RPI. In particular, they introduced to President Li the unique practices of their Experimental Media and Performing Arts Center (EMPAC) and Center for Biotechnology and Interdisciplinary Studies (CBIS) in terms of education, scientific research, and the training of talented students. President Jackson mentioned that RPI also attaches great importance to the establishment of an international strategic partnership. With the two universities having so much in common, President Jackson hoped to promote deeper cooperation with TJU (a renowned university in China) in the fields of chemical engineering, architecture and so on. Furthermore, she warmly invited President Li to visit RPI at his convenience. President Li hoped that further cooperation could be developed with joint efforts from both sides.

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) is a private university located in Troy, in the state of New York. It is the oldest technological university in the U.S. For its highly competitive faculty, advanced teaching facilities and rigorous academic atmosphere, RPI has been celebrated across the educational, academic and engineering technology circles. In 2012, RPI was ranked 50th in the nation by U.S. News and World Report.