President Ma Ying-jeou met on the morning of May 26 with U.S. Occidental College President Dr. Jonathan Veitch. In addition to thanking Dr. Veitch for his efforts to promote liberal arts education in Taiwan's universities, President Ma also expressed his hope for more widespread and in-depth cooperation in this endeavor in the future.
During the discussions, President Ma mentioned that liberal arts education is an important topic in higher education and that he strongly supports it. Courses in the liberal arts establish a strong foundation for university freshmen and sophomores, and aid in the pursuit of learning in other fields later on, said the president, who explained that quite a few universities in Taiwan have already begun paying attention to the importance of a liberal arts education and have established colleges to help achieve this objective. For instance, National Chengchi University has established the Chengchi College Project , while National Tsing Hua University , Tunghai University , National Chung Cheng University , Asia University , and Chung Hua University have also established similar colleges to facilitate teaching and studying of the liberal arts. The objective of a liberal arts education, the president stated, is to cultivate the ability to think independently and critically, and to avoid overemphasis on professional expertise at the expense of moral education. The idea is to cultivate a populace that can sustain a modern and democratic society, he said.
The president added that the successful promotion of a liberal arts education expands future development possibilities for students, enabling them to more easily adapt to varied environments. President Ma shared his experience in studying at Harvard University 30 years ago, noting that Harvard not only provided traditional general education courses in science and computer training, but also added courses in foreign cultural history to hone students' understanding of foreign history and the sources of their cultures. This knowledge helps to cultivate world-class leaders, he said.
President Ma remarked that Occidental College is a well-known liberal arts college in the United States, and US President Barack Obama attended the college for two years. Dr. Veitch, the president noted, is an expert in the history of American civilization and has carried out research on American literature, politics, history, and cinema. These, he said, are important aspects of a liberal arts education, adding that he hopes Dr. Veitch will not only assist Taiwan's universities in promoting liberal arts education, but will also engage in broader cooperation with Taiwan in the future in this respect.
Dr. Veitch was accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning by Minister of Education Wu Ching-ji (吳清基) and National Chengchi University President Dr. Wu Se-Hwa (吳思華) to meet President Ma. Also attending the meeting was National Security Council Deputy Secretary-General Chih-kung Liu (劉志攻).