An opening ceremony for the establishment of Zhejiang Open University (Zhejiang OU) was held on 27 November 2020.

Cai Xiujun, vice chairman of Zhejiang Provincial Political Consultative Conference; Chen Ziji, director of the Department of Vocational and Adult Education of the Ministry of Education (MOE); Jing Degang, secretary of the Party Committee and president of the Open University of China (OUC); Ding Tianle, first-class inspector of the Department of Education of Zhejiang Province; and Wang Zhenglin, deputy team leader of the fourth inspection group of Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, attended the inauguration ceremony, which was presided over by Ye Hong, president and deputy secretary of the Party Committee of Zhejiang Radio and TV University (Zhejiang RTVU).

At the ceremony, the Written Reply from the Zhejiang Provincial People's Government on Renaming Zhejiang RTVU to Zhejiang OU was read out. Cai Xiujun and Chen Ziji jointly inaugurated the university.

Xu Gongfang, Secretary of the Party Committee of Zhejiang RTVU, delivered a speech on behalf of the university. He pointed out that over the past few years, under the leadership and support of the Provincial Party Committee, the Provincial Government, and the Provincial Department of Education, Zhejiang RTVU has achieved a "high score " in the practice and exploration of a Zhejiang Model of open universities. It has laid a solid foundation and developed stronger capacities to provide higher quality and diversified education services for lifelong learning for people across the whole province. He said that, at this new historical juncture, the university will spare no efforts to fulfil its new mission, develop Zhejiang OU into a well-known open university so that more people can learn about the university, participate in lifelong learning, and have a bright future through learning. He stressed that the university will not forget its original intention for education and keep in mind the mission of educating people. It will meet with the high standards required of an "important window,” focus its efforts to meet the needs of the OUC Comprehensive Reform Plan and identify a new direction so as to deliver more convenient, diversified, and efficient education and play a greater role in serving lifelong learning for all people and cultivating craftsmen in the new era.

Chen Ziji noted that the transformation of Zhejiang RTVU to Zhejiang OU is an important achievement for "window construction” in Zhejiang and demonstrates an important "Zhejiang model" for open universities. The OUC Comprehensive Reform Plan puts forward new positioning, new goals, and new requirements for open universities against the background of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, which ushers in a new development opportunity and a new growth cycle for RTVUs. He hopes that open universities will keep pace with the times, actively implement the new spirit and requirements of the Party and the country, make overall plans, and open up a new situation, so as to provide a strong guarantee for speeding up the modernisation of education, building an educational power, and providing satisfactory education for the people. It is necessary for open universities to focus on the overall situation and effectively build an education system that serves the life-long learning needs of all people. As well as ensuring and continuously improving the quality of academic education, open universities should also vigorously develop various forms of non-degree education, and constantly expand and enhance their social service functions. It is essential for open universities to seek development with unique features, implement reform requirements in a meticulous way, accelerate the completion of various reform tasks, pursue quality development, and comprehensively improve the quality of education.

Jing Degang pointed out that, over its 41-year history, Zhejiang RTVU has solved the problem of the loss of degree education for two generations, developed the human resources needed for the reform and opening up of Zhejiang Province, explored a “Zhejiang model” of lifelong education, and made historic contributions to the economic and social development of the province. He stressed that the change in the university’s name is a change in its fundamental form. However, the more important change lies in the transformation of its educational philosophy from pursuing large-scale development to improving strength with quality, from expansion to enhancement, from a focus on qualifications to one on knowledge, from providing degrees to enhancing skills, and from predominately online teaching to the integration of online and offline teaching. He hopes that Zhejiang OU will accumulate more experiences during its transformation and development and provide a reference for other open universities in China. At the same time, he hopes that Zhejiang OU will overcome any difficulties, accelerate its transformation and development, make due contributions to the construction of a lifelong education system serving the whole people, and greet the centennial anniversary of the founding of the Party with outstanding achievements. It will follow the MOE's requirements to build “a major platform for lifelong and online education and a platform for flexible education and foreign cooperation" and the deployment of Zhejiang provincial Party committee and government.

Ding Tianle said that the establishment of Zhejiang OU is of milestone importance in the history of the university's development and is a beneficial part of the higher education reform and development in Zhejiang Province, marking a new stage of development in the transformation and upgrading of Zhejiang RTVU and the construction of Zhejiang OU. He hopes that Zhejiang OU would improve its positioning, pursue a new development pattern, strictly following the standards of the construction of an "important window" in Zhejiang, promote the OUC Comprehensive Reform Plan in a down-to-earth manner, and create new features in its education. He stressed that, standing at the new historical starting point, Zhejiang OU should develop itself to a new type of university serving learning for all and lifelong learning, as well as a high quality university providing convenient access to education for students, in order to make new and greater contributions to accelerating the modernisation of education, building a strong educational province, and striving to construct an "important window" for the realisation of "two high-level construction” in the province.

Zhejiang RTVU, the predecessor of Zhejiang OU, was founded in 1979. Over the past 40 years, the university has always adhered to the socialist direction in its operation and upheld the Party's overall leadership. It has realised the fundamental task of moral education and attached vital importance to ideological and political work. With the goal of serving students and by relying on coordinated efforts in its education system and the effective use of network education, it has comprehensively promoted the reform of "Three Types of Education,” i.e., education for all members of society, education with comprehensive procedures, and all-round education. It has explored the formation of an open education model with distinctive Zhejiang characteristics, through which over 880,000 graduates with a range of degrees have been educated. It has also cultivated a large number of practical professional who are willing to stay in the province and contribute to the reform and innovation of industries, enterprises, grassroots social governance, and rural revitalisation for the social and economic development of Zhejiang Province. 

After the renaming, the relationships between administrative subordination, the management system, and the existing right to run degree and non-degree education remain unchanged. The university will take this opportunity to actively serve regional economic and social development around the national development strategy and further enhance its personnel training abilities. It will improve the quality and efficiency of school operation, speed up its transformation and development, and build a new type of higher education institution with a mission of promoting lifelong learning that is supported by modern information technology and is characterised by "Internet Plus,” while also playing a greater role in serving lifelong learning for all and cultivating craftsmen in the new era.

Relevant leaders of the OUC, leaders of provincial level open universities (RTVUs) and industry colleges from across the country, leaders of RTVUs and education programmes jointly operated with industries in cities and counties in Zhejiang, members of the leading group of Zhejiang RTVU, representatives of retired leaders, and representatives of teachers and students attended the unveiling ceremony. Other teachers, students, and alumni of Zhejiang RTVU system witnessed this historic moment by watching a live broadcast of the ceremony.

By Zhejiang Branch