To celebrate the historical moment of Tsing Hua's centennial anniversary, a forum was organized and presented by NTHU's Thinkers' Club on April 14^th, 2011. Five outstanding alumni were invited as guest speakers at the forum co-hosted by Vice President Fang Da-Shuan and Mr. Jie-Heng Chung a member of the Thinkers' Club. The invited speakers were: President Lih J. Chen, President Way Kuo of the City University of Hong Kong, Mr. Cheng-Li Lu, president of INSIGHTS Consulting Inc., Mr. Jian-Bang Chen, president of VisEra Technologies Company Ltd., as well as Ms. Chu-Chen Hsiao, a famous film producer and director. The discussion focused on the history of the past hundred years and reflection on the spirit of innovation which the speakers believe to be the single most important factor contributed to the success of Tsing Hua as an institution of higher education.

President Lih J. Chen first pointed out many innovative measures that NTHU has undertaken to advance higher education in Taiwan. These include the general education program, the Points of Thousand Lights Project that expanded admission to under-privileged areas and the Little Tsing Hua Program especially designed to assist aboriginal youth. The great heritage that we share with Tsing Hua, Beijing is certainly a unique asset but having a glorious past along does not make NTHU a first rate university said President Chen. We have coupled the prestigious heritage with continuous innovations so that we could be in the forefront of our peer institutions.

Other alumni in the forum stressed the need for their alma mater to make a concerted effort to cultivate a global perspective in the minds of all Tsing Hua students. They believe the new Tsing Hua people should be individuals who are well-versed in liberal arts and professional education and, more importantly they shall all have a strong commitment to work for the common good of the mankind.

Ms. Chu-Chen Hsiao, a winner of the Golden Horse Award, said that the general education courses she took at NTHU inspired her greatly and motivated her to discover a new path for herself. As an observer, Ms. Hsiao said that she is not too concerned with the fact that higher education in Taiwan places too much emphasis on professional training. Instead, she worries about the fact that students nowadays are not getting adequate education on topics such as society and life. In her opinion, general education is the most important part of a college education because it offers an opportunity for students to be exposed to humanistic and social subjects that will make them not only better informed students but, more importantly better persons.

Dr. Way Kuo, President of the City University in Hong Kong made a special trip coming back to campus to share his thoughts with students of his alma mater. He believes that the term "internationalization" has become a rather catchy word lately but people using the same word might have different ideas in the back of their minds. He believes that internationalization means adopting criteria, standards that are internationally recognized. He further emphasized that in order to promote social harmony, universities in the 21^st century should follow established rules and respect the due process of conducts.

While Mr. Cheng-Li Lu and Mr. Jian-Bang Chen both have a background in science, they in fact also have admirable humanistic credentials. Mr. Lu, winner of the Best Non-Fiction Prize at the recent Taipei International Book Exhibition, indicated that while majoring in Chemistry, he had never lost his love for history. With a background in science, he developed a more rigorous attitude toward history which allows him to view historical "facts" critically. Thus, what appears as two conflicting attitudes, scientific rigor and aesthetic appreciation merged and provided Mr. Lu with a new attitude to study and understand historical as well as contemporary human activities. Mr. Jian-Bang Chen took the opportunity of this forum to encourage students to develop an ability to think independently. One should not just think within conventional "boxes," one should develop one’s own ideas even if such ideas differ from the conventional wisdom.