Training the Heavens

Chapter 347 Aurora System

Ha, what a coincidence! Sun Yat-sen had just invited him to be the president of Sun Yat-sen University, and then Chen Jiageng invited him to be the president of Xiamen University. Zhang Xingjiu felt that he had become a hot commodity.

But it's normal to think about it. The development of Aurora University to its current level is certainly due to the contributions of Ma Xiangbo, Yan Fu and others, but more importantly, it is because of Zhang Xingjiu at the helm, which has enabled Aurora University to maintain stable development without having to worry about funding.

Now Aurora University is on the right track. Although Ma Xiangbo is old, he is still in good health. With him around, it is no problem for Zhang Xingjiu to be away for a few years. This was proved by his trip to Peiping a few years ago to help Peking University improve its strength in science and engineering.

Chen Jiageng was friends with Zhang Xingjiu and had worked together on the Jimei School. He had personally witnessed the abilities of the teachers trained at Aurora University. Now that he was preparing to establish Xiamen University, he immediately thought of Zhang Xingjiu.

Previously, Zhang Xingjiu did not agree to let Cai Heqing serve as the president of Peking University because the situation in the capital was somewhat chaotic. Even if he became the president, he would not have much room to play his role. Being a dean of the science department would be just right for him.

Going to Xiamen University is relatively better. This is a private institution funded by Chen Jiageng. The school affairs are decided by the board of directors. If Zhang Xingjiu goes there, they will welcome him very much. Even if there are some constraints, they will not be too many. As long as the school can develop smoothly, they can accept it.

However, he had already promised to go to Guangdong to help Mr. Yixian in a few years, so Zhang Xingjiu made a plan based on this time. "As for the principal, Mr. Chen, you should find someone else. I can be a consultant for two or three years, go to Xiamen to teach students, and provide some advice on setting up the school. After two or three years, I will leave."

"That's enough, that's enough!" Chen Jiageng was overjoyed. He had not expected to invite Zhang Xingjiu over. It would have been great if he could ask him for help and advice and introduce some teachers from Aurora University. He did not expect that Zhang Xingjiu would be willing to stay in Xiamen for a few years. This was definitely a pleasant surprise.

After chatting for a few more words, Tan Kah Kee took the initiative to talk about salary. "Mr. Zhang, as long as you are willing to go, I will satisfy you in terms of salary even if I have to sell the sugar factory!"

"It doesn't have to be too much. A few years ago, the Ministry of Education promulgated the 'Regulations on the Appointment and Salaries of National University Staff,' which stipulates that university presidents are divided into three levels, with monthly salaries of NT$600, NT$500, and NT$400 respectively. Cai Heqing earns NT$ a month, so I'd be happy if I could do the same!"

Zhang Xingjiu specifically explained, "I'm actually not short of money. The patents I developed previously bring me a lot of dividends every year, and I also make some investments myself. Whether it's personal life or research needs, I don't rely on salary!"

"Mr. Chen, I'm sure you've heard the story of Zigong redeeming a man and Zilu accepting an ox. If I don't ask for a salary, or ask for too little, it will be difficult for the principals of other schools. I will use the salary to establish a Qiangguo Scholarship to support students with outstanding academic performance and financial difficulties. The school doesn't need to disclose my name, so other teachers won't be embarrassed."

"Brother Zhou Ping is so thoughtful." After a moment's thought, Chen Jiageng understood the profound meaning behind Zhang Xingjiu's actions and could not help but admire him greatly. "I can't let Brother Zhou Ping take all the credit. I'll also get a share of the Strong Nation Scholarship."

Tan Kah Kee stayed in Shanghai for a few more days, discussing with Ma Xiangbo and others which teachers and outstanding graduates should be invited to teach and manage schools in Xiamen. Zhang Xingjiu also persuaded Ma Zongwen to take their two children to Xiamen for a few years. Before they even left, news of Zhang Xingjiu's appointment to Xiamen University caused a huge stir in the education community. Many schools immediately dispatched representatives to Shanghai. Their thinking was straightforward: if Zhang Xingjiu could go to Xiamen University, perhaps he could also come to our school? Even if not this year, perhaps he could come once Xiamen University was completed and on track!

So, representatives from these colleges and universities immediately flocked to Aurora University and almost broke the threshold of Zhang Xingjiu's office. Faced with their enthusiastic invitation, Zhang Xingjiu could only decline politely. He was now preparing for the establishment of Xiamen University, and in a few years he would also have to prepare for the establishment of Sun Yat-sen University. He really couldn't spare the time.

But since they came all the way here, it would be bad to let them make a wasted trip, so Zhang Xingjiu took the opportunity to talk to them about cooperation, such as authorizing the use of textbooks compiled by Aurora University, introducing them to teachers and outstanding graduates from Aurora University who had taught there, and even jointly organizing exams for unified enrollment.

Nowadays, most universities in the Republic of China recruit students independently, which has caused great disadvantages for students' applications and school enrollment. Transportation is not as convenient as it is in later generations, and students' channels for obtaining information are relatively narrow. They can often only apply for schools nearby in their hometowns.

This will result in excellent students being unable to get into good universities, and universities being unable to recruit enough good students. Zhang Xingjiu's proposal of jointly holding examinations and unified enrollment can solve this problem to a certain extent.

In the original history, it was not until 37 that the five highest-level institutions of higher learning in the Republic of China at that time, namely National Central University, National Peking University, National Tsinghua University, National Wuhan University and National Zhejiang University, organized a nationwide unified entrance examination, which was called the "Joint Examination of the Five Famous Universities" by people at that time.

With Zhang Xingjiu's current influence in the education field, he could indeed try to conduct a joint examination of multiple schools in advance. Many representatives present were quite interested and quickly sent telegrams back for instructions.

Zhang Xingjiu also sent telegrams to Peking University, Tianjin University, Nankai University and other familiar schools to discuss unified admissions. These schools were also somewhat interested and sent representatives to Shanghai to hold a meeting to discuss the matter.

Finally, the eight schools that decided to participate in this joint examination included Aurora University, Peking University, Nankai University, Zhijiang Academy, Xiamen University, National Wuchang Normal School, National Chengdu Normal School, and National Nanjing Normal School.

By this summer, these eight schools will adopt unified examination papers, unified grading, and unified scoring, and then admit students based on their wishes and scores. The examination centers are located in eight major cities including Shanghai, Beijing, Tianjin, Hangzhou, Xiamen, Wuchang, Chengdu, and Nanjing, basically covering most of China.

In this way, candidates can save the trouble of traveling thousands of miles, and schools can expand their enrollment scope and admit better students. At the same time, they can take this opportunity to strengthen exchanges and contacts with other universities.

The first joint examination achieved good results. Seeing this, other schools also asked to join and went to Aurora University to recruit outstanding teachers. Gradually, the influence of the Aurora Department in the education field became greater and greater.

(End of this chapter)