On the morning of November 10, SYSU’s first award ceremony for service excellence was held in Liang Qiuju Hall of south campus. Fifteen retired teachers who had worked for SYSU for more than fifty years received the medals. They are (ordered by age): Wang Zhongyan, Zhang Hongda, Liao Xianghua, Xia Shuzhang, Liang Zhixun, Yang Yansheng, Fu Jiarui, Lin Qibo, Li Zhuomei, Li Huazhong, Su Jingyu, Zhang Zhanxia, Guan Zhongzhen, Huang Tianji and Lin Haoran. The oldest medal winner was ninety-six, and the youngest was seventy-five. At the ceremony, Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU and Huang Daren, the President of SYSU awarded the medals to the recipients. Liang Qinyi, the Deputy Secretary-General of SYSU, Xu Ningsheng, the Deputy President of SYSU and Chen Chunsheng, the Deputy President of SYSU attended the ceremony. More than one thousand people attended the ceremony, including relatives of the recipients, the heads of the departments and the schools and some representatives of teachers and students. The ceremony was presided over by Li Ping, the Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU.

The Site of the Ceremony
At the ceremony, President Huang Daren gave a speech. He said that the reason why SYSU launched the Service Excellence Award on the occasion of SYSU’s 85th Anniversary was not to bring up something new or original but to found an honor system. The honor system brings neither promotion nor money. It honors faithfulness, persistence and professional spirits for the work. Thus the award is to honor the basic value accepted by the human society. We hoped to advocate the basic value by launching the award in the university.
President Huang said that as an academic community, the university should be a prism. The three sectors--teachers, faculty and students, who made up the university, form the three sides of the prism. The people in the university should embody only one goal: to dedicate themselves to the developing of the academic community. It depends on the loyal service of every individual in the community to achieve the goal. When we evaluate the standards of the “Excellent Service”, we should not confine it to the achievements in academic field or the contributions of the management. An important standard of evaluating the excellent service is the loyalty to the cause. There is a limit to one’s life, but Sun Yat-Sen University is to last forever. In the academic community of SYSU, we carry the common ideals, the common goals, the common causes, the common interests, the common honors, and we have the responsibility to make it better. Whoever served in SYSU, his or her every effort would leave a mark on the path of the development of SYSU. The honor of SYSU is made by the loyal service of the people of SYSU, thus the honor of SYSU is shared by everybody at SYSU.

Li Ping, the Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, presided over the ceremony.

President Huang Daren gave an important speech.
Professor Zhang Zhanxia, the representative of the medal recipients, stated in her speech that she felt greatly honored and happy to be given the First SYSU’s Service Excellence Award on the occasion of SYSU’s 85th Anniversary. SYSU’s Service Excellence Award is the highest award for the faculty of SYSU; it embodies the highest honor that SYSU gives out to the recipients for their excellent services. Professor Zhang Zhanxia recalled how she formed a deep bond with SYSU during study and work as a youth to the age of more than seventy. She said that most of the recipients are retired, but they are still concerned about the development of SYSU since their lives are closely integrated with the development of SYSU. They sincerely hoped the university would accomplish the strategic development objective on schedule: to strive and become a leading university among China’ top notch universities and a preeminent university with international influence at SYSU’s 100th Anniversary in 2024. “For this reason, we are trying to maintain our good health and longevity to witness the day in person.”

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Wang Zongyan. Wang Daqiang, the son of Professor Wang Zongyan, received the prize on behalf of Professor Wang Zongyan.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Zhang Hongda.
Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Liao Xianghua, Li Anxing, the student of Professor Liao Xianghua, received the prize on behalf of Professor Liao Xianghua.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Xia Shuzhang.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Liang Zhixun.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Yang Yansheng.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Fu Jiarui.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Full Senior Technologist Lin Qibo.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Li Zhuomei.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Li Huazhong.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Su Jinyu.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Zhang Zhanxia.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Guan Zhongzhen.

President Huang Daren awarded the prize to Professor Huang Tianji.

Zhen Detao, the Secretary of the Party Committee of SYSU, awarded the prize to Professor Lin Haoran.

The recipients, the relatives of the recipients and the leaders of SYSU had a group photo for souvenir.
SYSU’s Service Excellence Award is to honor the faculty who had worked for a long time at SYSU and made excellent contributions to the school. The purpose is to generate the fine traditions of SYSU, carry forward the professional spirits of performing the duty and devoting to the work, and praise individuals who shared common weal and woe with SYSU, participated and witnessed the glorious history of SYSU. The honor is the highest award for the faculty of SYSU, embodying the highest reward that SYSU gives out to the recipients for their excellent services. As the cultural band of SYSU, the award ceremony will be held on the SYSU’s anniversary annually.