President Leads Successful Mission to China

MELBOURNE, FLA.— Florida Institute of Technology President Anthony J. Catanese sits with Ma Ying-jeou, President of the Republic of China (ROC), commonly known as Taiwan (pictured). Catanese recently led the state delegation to the Second Taiwan-Florida Higher Education Conference, following up on last year’s meeting in Orlando. As chairman of the Independent Colleges and Universities of Florida (ICUF) and Florida Delegation chairman, Catanese signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the cooperation and partnership of all Florida private universities with all Taiwan private universities. As Florida Tech president, Catanese signed a MOU for student and research partnerships with the Civil Aviation University of China in Tianjin; developed a partnership with Beihang University University (Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics), one of the top institutes of technology in China; and developed a program for recruiting top Chinese engineering and science students with five private companies. Joining Catanese on the trip were ICUF President Ed Moore and Florida Tech Provost and Executive Vice President T. Dwayne McCay.

Florida Tech has a longstanding history with Taiwan. During the 1970s and 1980s, the university was one of the leaders in granting graduate fellowships to Taiwanese students. Florida Tech Founding President Jerome Keuper was a published author on the Chinese language and had been decorated by the Chinese government for his service in the U.S. military during World War II. Taiwanese officials presented the Chao Tsu-Yu Clock to Florida Tech in 1981, which stands in front of the Keuper Administration Building today.