Peking University, February 14, 2022: The Spring Festival Party of PKU Guanghua’s “Future Leaders” Program was held successfully on January 22nd,2022. Program students, faculty members, and program staff joined the virtual celebration with high spirits. Through talent shows and interactive games, participants shared together this moment of joy from all around the world.
In a well-coordinated and smooth way, a two-hour highly engaging program was constructed and carefully prepared. Faculty and staff members from PKU Guanghua as well as both the first and second cohort of “Future Leader” students participated enthusiastically and looked back at the celebration with a smile.
The party was kicked off with speeches by Prof. Qiao Liu, Dean of Guanghua and Prof. Li-an Zhou, Associate Dean of Academic Programs. They first summarized the achievements that the School has made in the past year; Guanghua climbing in the international rankings, increasing the number of high-quality publications, and entering into new meaningful partnerships with leading international universities. In addition to these achievements, loving and encouraging words were expressed as well, with the hope to be allowed to all unite in person at Peking University soon.
The performances were opened by an old song from the British band Queen “ Don’t Stop Me Now”. A group of students spread over Asia and Europe singing together this classic song remotely was a touching moment for all. Many more showcased their unique talents during the party, notably a Coldplay cover which all commented “superior to the original song”, beautiful drawings created in under 30 seconds, a poem was composed dedicated to the program. These performances demonstrated exactly what makes the “Future Leaders” cohort so special; a group of culturally diverse, highly talented, ambitious, and open-minded peers.
Some spice was added to the party as well. The two cohorts and a faculty & staff team fiercely battled each other in various games where 112 push-ups were performed in under 2 minutes, a football was juggled over a hundred times and a sudoku task was solved in a matter of seconds. The participation of the faculty team surprised the “Future Leader" students: it is a rare spectacle to see internationally acclaimed professors performing push-ups in their living rooms.
Despite the rather competitive nature of the activities, a true feeling of unity was felt and shared by all, thereby truly embodying the “Future Leaders” Program’s mission: “to bridge cultural gaps”.
During the party, the “Future Leaders” students also expressed their excitement for the upcoming semester, another opportunity to gain more knowledge on China’s culture, business environment, financial industry and changing geopolitical role, all while interacting with a diverse and energetic cohort.
The party concluded with awarding prizes to the best performances and MVPs and exchanging best wishes for the coming new year. On behalf of the “Future Leaders” Program, we wish you all a happy and successful year of the tiger.
Writed by: Philip Fischer
Edited by: Haylie Wong, Hong Zhu
