WM Has New Sister University In China

By Amber Lester Kennedy Thursday, December 16, 2010

The College of William and Mary has entered a “sister university” agreement with a college in China.

Following a three-day visit to Williamsburg, officials with the University of Electronic Science and Technology in China agreed to form a relationship with William and Mary that both sides hope will generate shared educational and research initiatives.

William and Mary President Taylor Reveley signed a memorandum of understanding with UESTC Vice President of International Affairs Wang Houjun during a ceremony Tuesday in the Great Hall of the Wren Building. Officials from both universities met for three days to talk about ways each institution could contribute and benefit from a partnership.

“UESTC is one of the most distinguished universities in China,” Reveley said at the ceremony. “We look forward to an exchange of faculty and students in academic programs and cultural exchanges between Chengdu and Williamsburg.” He added that “the agreement that we sign today is modest, but it contemplates earnest cooperation in the exploration of our future together. History shows that the future often favors modest beginnings earnestly pursued.”

In his prepared remarks, Wang said he and his colleagues “are fascinated that our two institutes can become sister universities and carry out more extensive collaborations in the future.” While visiting, the Chinese delegation toured the Integrated Science Center, the Virginia Institute of Marine Science, the Mason School of Business and the Muscarelle Museum.

William & Mary already has several international partners in education, including a joint degree program with the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, which will enroll its first students next fall.

Dennis Manos, William and Mary’s vice provost for research, said the week’s meetings were organized by topic: science and environmental studies; business; and a sister school relations meeting. Manos told W&M News that inter-university collaborations would likely grow from projects among faculty members at each college. In the past, he worked with former UESTC President Liu Shenggang on a microwave tube project funded by the Department of Defense at W&M’s Applied Research Center. Math professor C.K. Li is preparing to work with UESTC scientists on applications of his matrix theory.

Manos also expects the two colleges to draw on each other’s strengths. UESTC, which began as a technical university, is interested in broadening its scope, and “a liberal arts university like William & Mary would be able to offer a lot to such a place,” he said.