From the President:
New Year's Greetings, 2008
The sun of the year 2008, Year of the Mouse, Muja, has risen. I wish the best to Chonnam National University (CNU)'s faculty and staff and their families, with the hope of the rising sun that shines over the town.
In the year 2008, CNU will face new challenges and elect a new leader who will guide them through. As is often the way in life, once you're over the first hill, getting to the top of the mountain is not as hard. The Year Muja will be, as we solemnly pledge, the year that establishes a solid ground for CNU to make it to the list of one hundred universities in the world, after successfully meeting the challenges.
We achieved a number of splendid feats thanks to the dedicated CNU members in the year 2007. Most importantly, we laid strategic plans to enhance competitiveness for the years of 2008, 2012, 2015, and 2020 and found clear direction towards the achievement of those goals. CNU students participated with confidence and hope in competitions and contests and displayed their excellence. Sang-Seop Lim, a 3rd year student majoring in math, topped the National Math Contest among over 400 contestants.
Three other CNU students earned prizes for their excellence as well. CNU ranked 8th nationwide and 1st among the universities outside Seoul in the number of applicants who passed the national bar exam. The placements of CNU graduates in the job market reflected brilliant results. Numerous awards and honors awarded to CNU students showed they lived out their dreams, confirming the motto, 'Those who dream can achieve their dreams.'
Dr. Jong-Oh Park from the College of Engineering, who leads the Micro-nano robot technology, and numerous professors and researchers were chosen for a number of governmental research projects with over 100 billion won in funding. CNU research teams being selected for projects from the Korean Ministry of Education and Human Resources (KMEHR) and the Korean Academic Promotion Foundation at the end of last year was another great feat, bringing hope for the future.
CNU ranked 2nd in the field of social sciences, 6th in engineering and medical and pharmaceutical field, and 10th in agriculture, fish and oceanography according to research fund earnings. CNU's Biohousing Research Project and Hansang Research Project were named as two of the 51 most outstanding research endeavors of the year announced by Korea Research Foundation.
CNU also fulfilled its commitment to the local community. CNU laid a foundation for serving the community educationally by offering a new lecture series, 'Science Touch on Friday'. Also, CNU had the largest number of students who participated in the blood donation drive among Korean universities and colleges, which represents the life of sharing and living together in action. Volunteer works in education and other areas increased as well. Some of the students’ domestic and international works included helping with the clean-up oil spill in the Tae-an peninsula and participating in camps in the Philippines and other underdeveloped countries.
Another great feat for the local people is that CNU Honam Studies Center published the 'Honam Studies Collection' in 15 volumes and 6 categories, which provide the people of Honam with guidances for their lives. 'The Monument of Educational Guidelines Declaration' and 'Commemoration Statue of Martyr Yoon Sang-Won' were built to commemorate CNU's message that education is meant to encourage humanity, bring justice into our lives, and value truth and human dignity.
Thanks to such achievements, an increasing number of people have become interested in what CNU is doing. Lots of donations have ensued: an Octogenarian Mrs. Sun-Rye Lee donated her property to CNU, Geumho Hall was donated by Geumho Group, and a day care center by Gwangju Bank. The Architecure Hall expansion was undertaken by Mr. Sang-Jun Choi, CEO of Namwha Civil Engineering, and the Honam Studies Project received substantial funding. CNU alumni and local businessmen pitched in to contribute one billion won for law school students in need.
In the New Year, we will further our efforts to make it to the world 400 top universities list. About 30% of CNU's colleges and departments, as well as the university administration have prepared highly plausible development plans and will make the first steps towards putting them into practice. We can write a new chapter that will go down in history with the continued dedication and efforts of CNU members. Then at the end of the year 2008, we will be able to proudly say what we have achieved for the year.
In the year 2008, we will have a new government and new leadership for CNU. It is my sincere hope that the new leadership elected judiciously through fair competition will open an opportunity for all the CNU members to gain momentum in their learning, education, and dedication. The new president will surely present CNU's vision and plans and carry them out to move towards making our dreams and hopes come true. CNU looks forward to your commitment and active participation
There is much work to be done in the New Year: Getting the CNU Law School accredited and creating an effective learning environment for law students to begin with. We also need to spur our efforts for the KMEHR task, for which CNU hopes to be chosen as one of the leading universities in the reinforcement of global competitiveness in higher education.
Strengthening the base of five important development areas with strategic local industries, and the vision of the merger of the former CNU and YNU should be realized through mutually beneficial restructuring. CNU's culture, that serves the members of both CNU and the community, that is shared and enjoyed by them, and that challenges and practices our values should be promoted.
These jobs will not easy to do. However, we have a proud history and competent members and a concerned community. Let's continue with the achievements and efforts we made last year. Keeping in mind that the world is for the people who work for it, when we work for CNU, the university will become a proud asset to all of us. Let us be proactive for the betterment of CNU and let the world know what CNU's academic excellence and passion can do. All these great vision and efforts come down to one thing: Making CNU the first choice of university for students, and a community that they feel grateful for.
I am so proud of CNU and the community members.
I wish all of you the very best for the New Year.
January 1, 2008
Jung Chaee Kang, President