After the discussion, Fry delivered a speech entitled "Innovation and Entrepreneurship- Key Elements in a 21st Century Education." In his introductory remarks, President Jiang reflected on his days studying at Drexel University and pointed out that as a PhD graduate of Drexel, he is leading the faculty and students of ShanghaiTech to "create an outstanding university with great impact in higher education of China."
In his speech, President Fry highlighted the ways in which expanded understandings of entrepreneurship help us to prepare students to be innovators, critical and creative thinkers, resilient and courageous actors, collaborative team builders and skilled communicators. He talked about entrepreneurship as a habit, an attitude, approach to life and a process of seizing and creating opportunities to produce something of value-be it a new product, start-up, or for social good. The students were highly interested in this topic and asked questions on how to balance their studies and entrepreneurial attempts, and how to tackle failure while trying to be innovative.
Last year, ShanghaiTech and Drexel University signed a MOU. Many professors and leaders from Drexel have visited ShanghaiTech, and they held in-depth talks with ShanghaiTech faculty in physical science and information sciences. The delegation's visit lay a solid foundation for the future collaboration with Drexel in Physical Science, Design and Media Art.
