Chen Wen-chang (陳文章), dean of National Taiwan University’s (NTU) College of Engineering, is to become the university’s new president after yesterday winning in two rounds of voting.
A source familiar with the election process said it was convoluted because the School of Medicine and the College of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science nominated multiple candidates.
Aside from being a recognized academic, an eligible candidate for the nation’s national chair professorship program and holder of numerous patents, Chen is also known as a capable administrator, with one of his proudest moments being when he raised funds to build multiple dormitories for the engineering college, the source said.
Photo: Lin Cheng-kun, Taipei Times
NTU is a comprehensive university, making it difficult to secure external funding, but Chen has been competent in securing investments not only for the college, but also for other units, NTU Election Committee convener Liang Kung-yi (梁賡義) said.
The election process was “smooth and peaceful,” as the committee had previously interviewed the candidates and was fully briefed on their ideals for running a university, Liang said.
The committee met in the afternoon, debating for an hour the voting method.
It voted on six candidates in the first round, which whittled the candidates down to two, he said.
Chen is to succeed NTU president Kuan Chung-ming (管仲閔) after Kuan’s term comes to an end on Jan. 7 next year, Kung said.
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