在浙江大学建校120周年纪念大会上的致辞
（2017年5月21日）
非常感谢浙江大学的领导和老师们邀请我参加贵校建校120周年校庆。我感到无比的荣幸。我谨代表伊利诺伊大学和贵校在全球的所有合作院校对贵校第120个华诞表示热烈祝贺。
很高兴能来到浙大。当然，我充分地了解之所以能够获得这份荣幸不是因为我本人，而是因为我作为伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校的校长；我有幸担任这一职务只有短短不到10个月。浙江大学—伊利诺伊大学厄巴纳-香槟分校联合学院于去年启动，这是一个创举，也是一项远大的计划。目前，首批30名学生和来自两校的教师已经成功结束第一年的教学工作。联合项目正在顺利推进，今年秋季即将迎来第二批160名新生。思及此，我们感到由衷的激动。
这是我校与贵校之间的第一个综合性联合项目，涵盖了包括教育、科研、服务和经济在内的各个层面，是史无前例的。不过，涉及科学发现、创新和发明领域，我校历史上不乏“首次”和“最佳”的先例，与贵校之间的联合办学项目也在此列。
我想或许所有人都认为，这个联合项目是我们两个学校之间的第一条纽带。其实，我们之间的渊源可以追溯到一个多世纪以前。早在1913年，贵校伟大的竺可桢校长就是在伊利诺伊大学就读，并取得农学学位的。我本人也是从事农业作物研究的，因此今天能够受邀来到这里，沐浴着竺校长给这所大学、给这个国家的遗泽，不能不说荣幸之至，也惶恐之至。
浙江大学是中国名副其实的顶尖名校——我校在美国也享有同等的高度声誉。在中国9所一流高校中，贵校的地位不言而喻。我们两者之间的另一个相似点是，贵校在过去的一百多年同样为贵国、为全世界作出了杰出的贡献。更加无巧不成书的是，本月贵校为120年的辉煌热烈庆祝，而就在二月份，我校也以同样激动的心情度过了我们的第150个生日。所以，我深深地知道能够受邀参加如此特殊的庆典是何等的荣幸。
我们在这里看见了贵校卓越的教学科研水平、放眼全球的广阔胸怀，以及尝试改变世界的雄心壮志；就这些特质而言，我们两校又是不谋而合。
我真切地相信，进入21世纪以后，一所伟大的高等学府，其眼界绝不应仅限于单打独斗所能取得的成就，其成就更应该在于构建国际合作网络、通过与全球其他机构展开合作，寻求应对所有人共同面对的全球化挑战的新型解决之道。
我们伊利诺伊大学就不乏与全球其他高校通力合作，解决重大时代性挑战的经验。我坚信，但凡伟大的学府，绝不会满足于躺在过去的功劳簿上酣睡，它们只会不断自问：如何才能更上一层楼？
浙江大学的精益求精之旅已经走过了120个春秋，正是由于这种不懈的追求，才有了我们如今这个精彩纷呈的世界。
最后，再次祝贺贵校120岁生日快乐！我也衷心祝愿未来的120年贵校更加辉煌！
附原文：
Thank you to the distinguished leaders and faculty of Zhejiang University for inviting me to be a part of this 120th anniversary celebration.It is an honor to participate in it.On behalf of the University of Illinois and all of your institution's global partners, congratulations on this historic milestone.
It is a great pleasure for me to be here.But, I also fully understand that this honor wasn't extended to Robert Jones personally, but to the Chancellor of University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign—a role that I have been privileged to hold for just nine or ten months now.The ambitious and ground-breaking ZJU-UIUC partnership that officially launched last year has seen the first 30 students and our joint faculty complete a very successful inaugural year.And we are excited to see that program grow significantly with an expected 160 new students to j oin them in the fall term.
This is our first comprehensive joint venture between our universities—encompassing education, research, service and economic develop at all levels.It is a partnership unique to the University of Illinois—truly the first of its kind for us.Our university has a long history of“firsts”and“bests”when it comes to discovery, innovation and invention—and this collaboration now takes its place on that list.
As I hope you all know, this may be the newest thread that links our institutions, but our connection goes back more than a century.We trace our relationship to 1913 when your great president, Coching Chu, earned his agricultural degree from the University of Illinois. And as a crop scientist myself, I am truly honored and humbled to be standing here today surrounded by the legacy of his impact on this university and this nation.
You are among the truly elite universities of China—just as we are in the United States. Your place among the C9 here is well-known and like Illinois, your record of service and accomplishment to your nation and the world traces back more than a century.In fact, in this year when you celebrate 120 years of excellence, we at Illinois are celebrating the 150th anniversary of our own founding.And in February, we had a celebration much like this one to honor that occasion.So, I know what a special privilege it is for a visitor to be included in such a significant event.
It is clear we have found, here in Zhejiang University, a level of excellence, a global vision and a bold ambition to change the world that matches our own.
I truly believe the great universities of the 21st century and beyond will not be defined by what they accomplish alone.But, instead, they will be known by the international networks and collaborations they establish that lead to new solutions to the global challenges that confront every person on this planet.
It is my experience and my belief that the great universities of the world seek each other out and find ways to work together to solve the grand challenges of our times.They aren't content to rest on their past reputations and they aren't afraid to ask themselves—“how can we be better?”
Zhejiang University has been doing this for 120 years now—and the world is a better place because of that commitment.
Congratulations on this milestone.And I wish you an even more successful second 120 years！