On September 4, NEU held its opening ceremony for the incoming class of 2026 at Zhixing Plaza on the Nanhu Campus. Attendees included Professor Bing Zheng, former Standing Committee Member of the CPC Committee and Executive Vice President of Jilin University; Major Liu Weiting, Commander of the Military Training Corps; Guo Hai, Secretary of the CPC NEU Committee; Feng Xiating, President of NEU; Wu Haowei, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Secretary of the Commission for Discipline Inspection; Tang Lixin, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Vice President; Wang Qiang, Wang Xingwei, Wang Hui, Xu Wei, and Liu Chengjun, Members of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Vice Presidents; Jiang Yuyuan, Member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and Head of the Organization Department of the Party Committee; Liu Yanhui, Assistant to the President; as well as heads of various schools, colleges, and relevant departments, and instructors of the Military Training Corps. Over 12,000 undergraduate, graduate, and international students of the Class of 2026 attended the ceremony. Wang Qiang presided over the event.
The ceremony commenced to the majestic strains of the national anthem.
On behalf of the university, Feng Xiating extended a warm welcome to the incoming students of the Class of 2026, and expressed sincere gratitude and high respect to the teachers and parents who had nurtured and accompanied the students in their growth. Delivering a keynote message themed “Seeking Truth, Embracing Innovation, Practicing Diligently, and Reaching Far,” he exhorted all freshmen to study diligently, take solid actions, forge ahead with determination, and dedicate themselves to serving the country, striving to write a brilliant chapter worthy of their era, worthy of their homeland and families, and worthy of their youth upon the expansive stage of Chinese modernization.
Representing the faculty, Professor Lu Zhiguo from the School of Mechanical Engineering and Automation drew upon NEU’s century-old spiritual legacy and his own personal insights accumulated over years of guiding students in innovative practical endeavors. He encouraged all freshmen to treat learning as their primary task, constantly remind themselves to foster proactive self-discipline in their studies, strive to create their own miracles, and sound the strongest note as NEU members along the journey toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
Speaking on behalf of current students, Ai Xin, a doctoral candidate of the Class of 2023 in Computer Science and Technology from the School of Computer Science and Engineering, noted that throughout his educational journey from undergraduate to master’s and doctoral degrees, he has deeply realized that NEU seamlessly integrates its mission of educating talents to rejuvenate the nation into the entire educational process. The university not only imparts scientific and cultural knowledge to students, but also endows them with the tremendous drive and purpose to align their personal development with the needs of the times and the nation.
Speaking on behalf of the freshmen, Mi Sicheng, an incoming undergraduate of the Class of 2026 majoring in Materials Science and Engineering from the School of Materials Science and Engineering, stated that all the new students have gathered at NEU driven by shared aspirations, making this a solemn and mutual journey of commitment. All incoming NEU students will carry the defining hallmark of “self-strengthening,” take the firm stride of “pragmatic action,” and shoulder the mission of “rejuvenating the nation.” Through the tempering and refining at NEU, they will, in their respective ways, write their own chapter of responsibility as a new generation of NEUers in the process of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.
During the ceremony, Guo Hai and Feng Xiating pinned university badges onto representatives of the incoming class.
The ceremony drew to a successful close amidst the impassioned singing of the university anthem by all faculty and students present.
