A ceremony was held in the school auditorium to honor the establishment of the School of Humanities, on October 20th. Tsinghua University President Chen Jining, Tsinghua University Council Chairman Hu Heping, Tsinghua Vice President Xie Weihe, and Tsinghua Vice President Jiang Shengyao attended the ceremony.
Chairman of Tsinghua University Council Hu Heping announced the university's decision to open the School of Humanities.
Wan Junren, former Dean of Tsinghua’s Department of Philosophy, has accepted the position of School Chair.
Tsinghua University President Chen Jining speaks on the ceremony
The School of Humanities at Tsinghua University can be traced as far back as 1925, to the Graduate School’s Institute of Chinese Studies, followed in 1926 by the Departments of Chinese Literature, Western Literature, History, Philosophy, Economics, Political Science, Pedagogical Psychology, Sociology and so forth, and in 1928, by the Institute of Literary Studies. Many outstanding scholars, including the Four Great Tutors of Chinese studies, Wang Guowei, Liang Qichao, Chen Yinque, and Zhao Yuanren, came to the Tsinghua campus during this period of time to help blaze new trails in the field with new thinking and methodologies. They emphasized a focus on blending both classical and modern styles of learning, as well as Chinese and Western styles of learning. They educated a large number of talented students, who have gone on to become leaders in new scholarly trends and have had a positive and profound impact on the history of scholarship and education in China.
From 1952 to 1978, Tsinghua University was reformed into a polytechnical institution, as a result of the 1952 restructuring of higher education in China. Its humanities departments were sent off to other universities and research institutions.
Wan Junren, former Dean of Tsinghua’s Department of Philosophy, has accepted the position of School Chair.
Although the humanities programs were suspended during this period of time, the traditions of humanistic and superior scholarship were persevered and remained as strong as ever. Since 1978, Tsinghua University has either founded or restored the departments of Foreign Languages and Literatures, Sociology, Chinese Language and Literature, the Institute of the Humanities, the Institute of Education, the Institute of Science, Technology and Society, and the Tsinghua Art Center. In December 1993, the School of Humanities and Social Sciences was formed, covering the entire range of disciplines in the humanities and social sciences, including literature, history, philosophy, law, economics, management, and so forth.
In order to further promote the development of the humanities and social sciences, Tsinghua has decided to establish two separate schools based on the School of Humanities and Social Sciences. The School of Humanities was opened last week and the School of Social Sciences will be opened next week.
Disciplines taught in the School of Humanities include literature, history, philosophy, and the respective subjects that they cover. In addition to the comprehensive academic programs, the school also hosts more than 1,000 international students who come to study Chinese language and culture at its International Chinese Language and Culture Center, every year.