News--Welcome to National Chiayi University

　　A meeting of the NCYU Higher Education SPROUT Project Advisory Committee for 2021 was held on the Lantan campus on Dec. 3rd. As members of the advisory committee, National Chung Cheng University Vice President Wen-Kung Chang, Feng Chia University Dean of Academic Affairs Vey Wang, and Provence University Dean of Academic Affairs Cheng Chi-Wen were invited to give their insightful suggestions on the implementation results of the NCYU’s “Higher Education SPROUT Project” in 2020, and implementation plan for 2021 and 2022.

　　In his speech, Vice President Chishih Chu indicated that the university was granted NT$60.93 million for “Higher Education SPROUT Project” by the Ministry of Education this year. Measures have been taken in response to the four major areas of the project, including “fostering educational innovation and teaching quality,” “developing university features,” “enhancing publicity in higher education and facilitating assistance to the disadvantaged,” and “fulfilling social responsibility.” In the past four years (from 2018 to 2021), the university has achieved remarkable results through innovative practices and implementation plans regarding appropriate funding allocation as well as management and examination mechanisms. Compared to its counterparts, NCYU pioneers in initiating cross-domain cooperation, and fruitful results have been demonstrated.

　　During his presentation, Hsu Shan-Te, Dean of the Office of Research and Development, pointed out that the university is implementing strategies for innovative teaching and quality assurance. With curriculum design and synergy between teachers and students, the university has been promoting food safety and agriculture, and smart agriculture, as well as cultivating excellent teachers and professionals with a view to showcasing the university features. In addition, the university is dedicated to helping enhancing the employability of the economically disadvantaged students, and serving the local community by utilizing the expertise of the faculty and students. The objectives include: “cultivating cross-domain professionals in highlighted fields, and unleashing the innovation potential of teachers and students”; “developing food and agriculture elites, and optimizing teaching and research environment”; “facilitating publicity in higher education, and promoting social mobility”; and “showing concerns for regional needs and working towards local development, art and cultural education, and co-prosperity.” By integrating the university’s resources, it is expected to become “the hub for geographical knowledge and social welfare in the Yunlin-Chiayi-Tainan region.”

　　The Advisory Committee members acknowledged the results and pragmatic plans NCYU has demonstrated in conjunction with the “Higher Education SPROUT Project,” and complemented it especially on the the planning of the operational capstone course. They also shared their experiences in university governance and offered constructive suggestions. In the face of a competitive higher education environment, declining birthrate, and change in students’ learning habits, it is critical to attach importance to institutional research and development of key features in conjunction with the unversity’s mid-term development plan. The faculty, staff and students will work together to brainstorm and implement the next phase of Higher Education SPROUT Project from the overall picture, issues, system and other perspectives. At the meeting, members of the committee also proposed a number of strategic directions for improvement, hoping to help stimulate momentum in teachers and students and bring out more effective results.

　　Vice President Chu concluded that this year they will follow the PDCA cycle in formulating the NCYU’s mid-term development plan for the next five years. They will also work out a wide spectrum of teaching, research, service and other strategies in conjunction with the Higher Education SPROUT Project. With synergy between teachers and students from different departments, they hope to contribute to the unversity’s sustainability and feature development. The ultimate goal is to nurture diverse talents to meet the demands of the society and fulfill the university’s social responsibility.