Chaired by Prof X. Edward Guo, founding Dean of the department, a regular staff meeting took place in the Administration Building Conference Room on September 27, 2016. Also in attendance were Vice President Tang Tao, Executive Dean Chen Fangyi, and teaching staff Tang Bin, Shi Peng, Peng Cheng, Du E, Zhou Bin, Wang Dan, Chen Ying and Du Li.

The Dean introduced the staff to the departmental ethos of “3A”, i.e. Adventurous, Arduous and Amiable. He urged those present to be resourceful in problem-solving, to have an appetite for risk-taking, to show a gritty determination, and not least, to build a harmonious team spirit. He went on to explain the department’s planning in talent recruitment, research and teaching. He emphasized the importance of talent acquisition. Having acquired three professors to date, the department had met its hiring target for this year.

Vice President Tang Tao echoed the Dean’s ideas on development. He pointed out that our strategic thinking lies in encouraging healthy competition, even if it means “survival of the fittest”. He then spoke on the subject of joint nurturing of Master and Doctoral students, and in particular working out the fine points of our partnership with Columbia University in undertaking a joint M.A. and Ph.D. program in Biomedical Engineering. Finally, with input from other teaching staff, he discussed our philosophy in talent recruitment.

The last item on the agenda was a discussion of the 2017 budget. Other subjects were also touched upon, such as professional assessment, the Columbia University Project, method for the evaluation of scholarships, public relations Initiatives, and talent acquisition. The conclusion of the meeting was followed by the taking of a group photo.