Harvard-Berkeley International Forum on Higher
Education in Contemporary China

October 10-12, 2008
Co-chairs: William C. Kirby, Harvard University, and Wen-hsinYeh, University of California, Berkeley

This forum brought together top university leaders from China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore to discuss the challenges of higher education in the 21st century with colleagues from Harvard and Berkeley. Presentations addressed national policy and institutional change; regional perspectives on economic development and institutional change; comparative perspectives on politics, economics, and institutional reform; the role of American foundations; strategic planning for excellence and competitiveness; and new concepts for university education. Sponsored by the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, Harvard University, and the Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley.

Friday October 10, 2008

Welcome, Introductions, and Agenda

William C. Kirby, Chang Professor of China Studies; Spangler Family Professor of Business Administration; Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor; Director, Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies; Chairman, Harvard China Fund

Wen-hsin Yeh, Morrison Chair Professor in History; Director, Institute of East Asian Studies; University of California, Berkeley

National Agendas and Regional Perspectives

National Policy and Institutional Change: The View from Beijing

Lin Jianhua, Executive Vice President and Provost, Professor of Chemistry, Peking University

Qian Yingyi, Dean, School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing; Professor of Economics, University of California, Berkeley

Municipal Planning, Economic Development, and Institutional Changes: Regional Perspectives

Zhang Jishun, Chairwoman, University Council, East China Normal University

Yang Fujia, Chancellor, University of Nottingham; Former President, Fudan University

Comparative Perspectives from Taiwan: Politics, Economics, and Institutional Reform

Liu Chao-Han, Vice President, Academia Sinica, Taipei; Former President, National Central University, Taiwan

Politics, Business, and Higher Education Reform in Hong Kong and Singapore

Amy Bik May Tsui, Pro-Vice Chancellor and Vice President, Chair Professor of Language and Education, University of Hong Kong

Wang Gungwu, Professor and Chairman, East Asia Institute and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore; Former Vice Chancellor (President), University of Hong Kong

Summary Comments & Discussion

Ezra Vogel, Ford Professor of Social Sciences, Emeritus,
Harvard University

Jan de Vries, Ehrman Professor of History and former Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, University of California, Berkeley

Roundtable: American Foundations and Chinese Higher Education

John Fitzgerald, Director, Ford Foundation China Office; Visiting Fellow, Department of Social Science; Former Foundation Professor for Asia Studies, LaTrobe University

Wen-hsin Yeh, Morrison Chair Professor in History; Director, Institute of East Asian Studies; University of California, Berkeley

Saturday October 11, 2008

Forum Location: 1730 Cambridge Street, CGIS South Building, Room S-030

Thematic Issues and Challenges in Chinese Higher Education

Strategic Planning for Excellence and Competitiveness

Lawrence Lau, Vice Chancellor (President) and Landau Professor of Economics, Chinese University of Hong Kong

Liu Chao-Han, Vice President, Academia Sinica, Taipei; Former President, National Central University, Taiwan

Lin Jianhua, Executive Vice President and Provost, Professor of Chemistry, Peking University

Reconceptualizing University Education and General Education in Elite Universities

Amy Bik May Tsui, Pro-Vice Chancellor and Vice President, Chair Professor of Language and Education, University of Hong Kong

Zhang Jishun, Chairwoman, University Council, East China Normal University

The Internationalization of Chinese Higher Education and the Role of International Universities in China

Qian Yingyi, Dean, School of Economics and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing; Professor of Economics, University of California, Berkeley

Yang Fujia, Chancellor, University of Nottingham; Former President, Fudan University

Winners and Losers in Education Reform: The Case of the Humanities and Social Sciences

Wang Gungwu, Professor and Chairman, East Asia Institute and the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy, National University of Singapore; Former Vice Chancellor (President), University of Hong Kong

Summary Comments & Discussions

George Breslauer, Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost and
Professor of Political Science, University of California, Berkeley

Henry Rosovsky, Geyser University Professor, Emeritus, Member of the Faculty of the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology, and former Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University

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