Soochow University - Annual Yearbook (Taipei, Taiwan)

Page 14 text:

SOOCHOW UNIVERSITY A Historical Sketch - Soochow University was established in the City of Soochow in Kiangsu Province in November, 1900. First classes were held in March, 1901. The university received a charter from the State of Tennessee in the United States of America. The new university gained resources and personnel from several institutions which had been founded and were being operated by missionaries of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. These institutions were: Tsung Yung Yuan .Shu Yuan, later Buffingtonlnstitute of Soochow, the Anglo- Chinese' College of Shanghai, and the Kung Hang School of Soochow. Soochow Universitys first college was a College of Arts and Sciences. For a time the university operated a medical school and a school of theology, but these proved unnecessary when colleges of medicine and theology were established by American protestant groups in Nanking. The Law School of Soochow University was organized September 3, 1915. It metin a building of the Second Middle School in Quinsan Road, Shanghai. Charles W. Rankin, an American lawyer and a teacher of V political science, was the first dean of the law school. He had become a member of the faculty in Soochow in 1912. In 1915, the first year, the Law School had ten lecturers and fewer than ten students. The faculty were well-equipped lawyers and judges of the American, British, and International courts in Shanghai. In 1918 the LL.B. degree was conferred upon the first graduating class of seven. The la w School was known as the Comparative Law School of China. Many of its graduates went to the' United States and earned doctorates in jurisprudence at leading universities. P The college in Soochow grew uninterruptedly with strong work in the natural sciences. New buildings and'a new power plant were built with funds mostly from the southern part of the United States. - After the outbreak of the Sino-Japanese War in 1937, Soochow teachers and students were scattered. Many made their way into the Interna- tional Settlement in Shanghai. The Japanese still respected the neutrality of this area. Various departments of the university operated here sub- rosa with some degree of co-operation. The Comparative Law School was opened again. This name had previously been used only in the English languageg now it was translated into Mandarin and the new Mandarin title became the name of the school. This device helped in escaping the notice of the Japanese and their collaborators. - The dean of the Law School and many of its students and staff had fled to Chungking in Szechuan Province. Here a site was prepared and instructior continued for the duration of the war. After the Japanese surrender, all units of Soochow University got back home and resumed their norm zl functioning under a revived and enlzrged Board of Trustees. A commencement was held June 23, 1946, in the Metropole Theater, Shanghai Four h.undred fifty-eight degrees were conferred as follows: B.A., 1573 B.S., 88Q, LL.B. 213. Some years earlier Soochow University had become one of thirteen receiving 'benefits and promotional assistance from the United Board for Christian Colleges in China, UBCCC. This organization, in 1968, is known as the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia, UBCHEA, and Soochow, in Taipei, Taiwan, is an associate member. ' The Communist rebellion of 1949 brought a temporary end to Soochow University as to all other Christian institutions in mainland China except' those operated by local congregations.-The Soochow campus is, reportedly, now occupied by 'iThe South Kiangsu College of Education. In 1951 Soochow was reactivated in Taipei, the capital of the Republic of China, in rented quarters at No. 15 Hankow Street, Sect. 1, in the midtown business district. It became an unregistered school known as the Soochow preparatory -School. In 1954 this school was reorganized as the Soochow University Law College thanks to the active interest of many alumni lawyers in Taipei and other Taiwan cities who had fled the mainland and were resuming their practice and their old lives of usefulness and influence. ,A constitution was drawn up for Soochow University and submitted by its Board of Trustees to the Ministry of Education. This constitution was eventually approved by the lvfinistry.

Page 13 text:

Emm+imQ-nixibmwwmmax,mEexmfMmwmmaEmm+iw 1 EEi+liCHWf3iU RH'iiEWiUWhiAdMMmUmiEEmWE EQ1l!lI+7'r-GF CNWIL-l:-555 JSF! 1 EIEIHEIWA-k:ff1E C-iL3i,RiFD QKTTULLIL Q TQf3ZEF?Ei?i539H?JtfJi9? f EE1?T5iE2E1iI55iEE 0 Eiiiniiimi, iimmmwvmit? iwfmiiiio 5EEmiH7V'iEQgQEmQwmwQwQ wumwwaa-aicwgEiymm,zaQi-wSxwwEiw Eillllll-I-fxii C 47Ln,5i7LfliD Q5l3i'SE1JfF'flL- CCF'9Qf??ISf1?D O mmm+mic-nfoin:H,mmwwuqw1wwmmgmmQW0 7145 ' 53EE?fTEQ?5'FI?AZ 0 EETEQ 'LCEEZEQ EEE! HEL + iii C-7L7'r-ffl? iii?-TE? ' ' ?5lE113i5'E29III?s-'25ETi?5I55Z 1 51? Eliilffi-P Ef5i5Ei2i?E5'1-3-5Li5'S?IffI'5 cEiEi D ?1?Tf3iQf'5Ii 6?f?'E57KE2:FJ?Z'iEfi5'eJ55ii1L QEPJF G f :g.'-Q- w1iim44 1 '11 -Z S, Jfvffa 1'Qf'i, 'Wvgw mayb B mx 5 vm ,,,Xaa,,..X,R W 9? W aft? C A7Lil-qi? -EF! 1 iiiifiitff? 3355351125 CE IVINAEELD HEHCTIE ,H if-30 EQmiiwf,mwmwwmc W A+ H2 Emi+3ic-naman fiicmwimggwwax - Q V -Q mbmaimawmmiiimmzmo ' igiiciwimmymwmmiagmxw ' smisEiw,mmiiEmxmwiEmQ E, QWQQEQQKWQQESGQQ i3'i.ET5:l: ' TQQQWETE Efvgiiiib 'IPM . 'xv' ,- V Qyv EEl5.EEEL+UBfii C-'7L7'T3iiD EEE?-335562-EEUi3i?iiCDYSOn HHIIWZEBZ f O liliililfnl-I-Jifii C-7L7'r7i5f'iD i5Z?iiiQ3'fil1E v Effiiiifiiiig O E'E E1i-Idiii C-1151-lzib itEEf'EQ'TE5i?5!3Z O i5QM5fH?f1i5'3iiFf5iI:4i EEE Q Elgdiik EI 35255 0 ElE3i+-E352 Cd7L7'TRi5 QZECEHCTE ' EEEEJ-E? ' 5651256 1 551534543 CIEUTIE 3116565545 CQIUED 5'E?55:??35J3?. D 'l:HE5Q?fEEiE'E!EEW1'5Q O 9'L.HEPF3'EE5i'LJHi Q i5Q:fE5Efiif1'QE1fi13EPF5 c 5 0 El5l'l1i+fxi15 Cs'7L7'2'7 l..fF'D il1'tEET'EQ?5Ii3Z O

Page 15 text:

But Soochow hadnot come to an end. In 1951 Soochow was reactivated in Taipei, the capital of the Republic of China, and opened its doors in rented quarters in the mid-town business section at No.- 15 Hankow Street, Section 1. It became an unregistered school known as the Soochow Preparatory School. In 1954 this school was recognized as the Soochow University Law College, thanks to the active interest of many alumni lawyers in Taipei and other Taiwan cities who .had ' fled the mainlandand who were resuming their practice and their old lives of usefulness and influence. A constitution was drawn up for Soochow University and submitted by he Board- of Trustees to the Ministry of Education. This constitution was approved by the Ministry. In 1956, largely through the influence and hard work of 'the late Methodist Bishop Ralph A. Ward, -the Board of Missions of the Methodist Church in New York, N. Y. , U.S. A. , voted an arrangement whereby Methodist- funds could be contributed to the work of Soochow University. The board also appropriated USS15,009. 00 which was used to help purchase a new campus north of Taipei. Since the old days in Soochow and Shanghai, there has been a merger of three principal Methodist bodies in the United States so that there is no longer a Methodist Episcopal Church, South., Thatlbody has been' merged with the others into the new Methodist Church and it is this latter' body whose mission board has now expressed a renewed interest in Soochow University. In 1957 the university acquired a new 37.5 acre campus in Shih Lin, Wai Shuang Hsi, a beautiful valley that has since been designated for development into a cultural center for Taipei area. In the fall 'of 19581 the institution was able to transfer all day classes to the new campus, using the first building, the academic building, for both administrative and instructional purposes. The Hankow Street property was retained temporarily for the exclusive use of the evening classes in law. 9 In the summer of 1961, a major change in the operation of the university was effected by the removal of the Law Department from Hankow Street, to the suburban campus in Shih Lin, thus concentrating all administrative and academic work in one place. .I The new academic building is a large three-storied structure of reinforced concrete, containing twenty large classrooms, three small ones, and nine for office and administrativ'e uses. In front tof this building and on the lower main level portion of the valley are the athletics grounds: a large soccer field, volley ball court, baseball diamond, and eight tennis courts. A second building, the Student Center was planned and the main central Cauditoriumy section brought to completion in 1959, financed entirely by funds contributed by alumni and friends and well-wishers in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and other centers of Chinese population. A war-like gesture by the Chinese communists, in that same year, brought the project to a sudden, though temporary standstill, to await a more stabilized international mood for completion at some future date. In the period, 1959-61, three other buildings appeared on the campusg a men's dormitoryvof 36 rooms, and a women 's dormitory 'of 40 rooms, with a combined capacity of 380 students and a small though very commodious structure known as Kuang Tao T'ing, Cjfggtigiy to be 'used as a small chapel for the less -formal religious programs, and for certain social and music activities connected therewith. Attached to the west end of this building is the clinic room, which is staffed by the Water of Life Clinicof the Taipei Methodist Church. During the summer of 1961 residences were constructed for the president of the university, plus an initial six families among the faculty and administrative' staff. ' A third major buildin-.g program was initiated in the spring- of 1964, which was just ten years after the school's registraion with the Ministry of Education. This represented the resumption of work for the completion of the Student Center, .after an interruption of five years, ,and the culmination of the plans for an appropriate memorial to the late Bishop Ralph A. Ward. The Student Center, which with equal reason could be called Alumni Hall was designed at first so that the second floor could- serve botlras auditorium and gymnasium. The dining room and kitchen occupied the ground floor. In 1961 the expanding needs for space necessitated the removal of the library collection from the main classroom building to the auditorium where the space was sharedfor more than two years. This in turn brought to an end the former practice of using the place for gymnastics, which there-after were' assigned to the athletics field. It was doubly welcome, uilgggefore, when Dry Stone announced in the spring of 1964 that the Hong Kong alumni had contributed money enough to complete the Student Center Center, which had been left unfinished since The addition of the wings , as planned originally, has made possible severa new offices, the dressing rooms offfstage, the postoffice and projection booth, a sizeable conference room, the remodeling of the kitchen, the enlargement of the dining room, and the provision of a wide stairway leading up from the main entrance to the auditorium. V Several years prior to this time, December 11, 1958. Bishop Ward had passed away rather suddenly in Hong Kong. This unexpected, news was met by a spontaneous 'contribution of funds from friends in America for a memorial to his missionary career in China. This was to be a part of the University, since his latter ,years were dovoted so tirelessly and with such vision to the transplanted-institution which was evolving hopefully in its new island home. Later it was agreed to build a chapelf since there was no memorial more fitting as a tribute to Bishop Ward's life, than 31 place of worship- on. a college campus. In the end Ward Hall was designed as a dual-purpose structure, .with one part as a temorary library - the symbol of the. educated mind - and the other part, 3 Chapel 7 the symbol of the aspiring spirit, - the building being so .located that all who came into the Wai Shuang Hsi Valley could' see and recognize the tower and cross, as the symbolic representation of the nature and centrality of the Christian faith in the scheme of Christian higher education. 4 W In the summer of 1964 the campus underwent a renovation as to electric power lines, drainage system, and water mains, including the erection of a new 'water tower uphill and the sinking of a new deep well along the bank of the creek which forms the boundary of the athletics field on the campus. Now, all buildings are connected by walks, cement ramps, or steps, including the areasqof the dormitories and the faculty residencess. . On December 1, 1964, at the time of the dedication of the new chapel by Bishop Hazen G. Werner, all of the buildings were included in a dedication to Christian education, and the main Structures were officially named: '