At 8 a. m., September 2, the opening ceremony for 2023 fresh students was held simultaneously through interactive live broadcasting across three campuses: Xueyuan Road Campus and Shahe Campus in Beijing, and the international campus in Hangzhou, commencing the new journey of these students at Beihang University.
Among attendees were Beihang Party Committee Secretary Zhao Changlu, President Wang Yunpeng, Vice Presidents Liu Shuchun, Zhang Hailan and Huang Haijun, Vice Secretary of the Party Committee Cheng Bo, Vice President Lyu Weifeng, and Alumni Representative Shi Xiaorong. The ceremony was hosted by Cheng Bo.
After all the participating students and staff watched the opening video titled “The Firmament”, the ceremony officially kicked off in the solemn national anthem.
At the ceremony, Zhao Changlu presented university badges to freshmen representatives. With pride and responsibility, all 2023 fresh students pinned their badges on their clothes.
Lyu Weifeng read out the prize winners of the 2023 Scholarship for New Graduate Students. The honorary certificates were presented to the winners on stage by university leaders.
Xie Kaizhou, a freshman from Shen Yuan Honors College, delivered a speech as an undergraduate representative. He shared his childhood dream and story of devoting himself to the aerospace industry, expressing his determination and perseverance.
As a representative of the new postgraduates, Wang Zhiting from the School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering expressed her resolution to realize the value of life in the wave of the time.
Zhou Chuang, a Ph.D student from the School of Astronautics, shared his story at Beihang. He called on all students to firmly believe in the sentiment of the country and to grow into a young talent through innovation and hard work.
Professor Zhang Youguang from the School of Electronic Information Engineering spoke as a representative of teachers. He talked about his 36 years of learning and working experience in Beihang University, and sent a message to all new students to grasp the learning opportunities in a diversified environment, establish a firm and lasting faith in their interest and love, broaden the research horizon in the cross-field, and shoulder the heavy responsibility entrusted by the time.
At the ceremony, the university leaders presented letters of appointment to counselor representatives. As friends and great mentors to students, the counselors will accompany them in the next few years.
Shi Xiaorong, the deputy director of the Seventeenth Institute of the Fourth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation addressed a speech as an alumni representative. She was admitted to the School of Automation Science and Electrical Engineering as an undergraduate student and postgraduate student in 1994 and 1998 respectively, and became a Ph.D student in 2000. She shared her ten years of study at Beihang University and her twenty years of experience and sentiment in the space industry. She told all new students to aim high and be a practitioner of life planning. She also encouraged the students to be ambitious, diligent, innovative, and bravely take the responsibility of establishing the sci-tech self-reliance and self-strengthening at higher levels.
On behalf of all faculty members and students at Beihang, President Wang Yunpeng extended a warm welcome to 11,660 fresh students. He introduced Beihang's history of more than 70 years to the students, noting that since its birth, Beihang consistently stand in solidarity with the country through thick and thin.
President Wang encouraged all the students to remain true to their original aspiration and dedicate themselves to serving the country. Students are expected to actively integrate their personal ideals into the needs of the motherland and the people, transform their patriotism into practical actions, and cultivated their creative spirit, thinking and ability. Moreover, they should shape an inclusive temperament at Beihang University, which is more open, diversified, and energetic. President Wang also noted in his speech that the new generation of Beihang University should strive to become students with great love and virtues in their heart.
"The future belongs to the youth, and the hope is placed on the youth." President Wang hoped the new generation will be brave enough to bear the Beihang mission, inherit the Beihang gene, shape the Beihang temperament, cultivate the Beihang aspiration.
The opening ceremony came to an end with all faculty members and students chorusing the university anthem “Look up at the Starry Sky”.
Reported by Zheng Tingyu and Li Shiyu
Photographed by Di Bailu, Song Chao, Zhao Jinhao, Zhang Zhibo, Yang Yaru, Huang Tianjia, Zhu Quan, and Zhang Keli
Reviewed by Li Jianwei
Edited by Jia Aiping
Translated by Yao Zipeng
