NCHU Secures Over NT$540 Million in MOE Higher Education Sprout Project Funding—Ranks Second Nationwide in Additional Grants
2025-06-23
興新聞張貼者
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The Ministry of Education (MOE) launched the Higher Education Sprout Project in 2018 to strengthen institutional development and enhance international competitiveness. Now entering Phase II, Stage 2 (2025–2027), the MOE recently announced the 2025 funding allocations. National Chung Hsing University (NCHU) has been awarded a total of NT$546.5 million, an increase of more than NT$85 million compared to 2024—ranking second nationwide in increased funding, on par with National Sun Yat-sen University and just behind NTU, NCKU, NTHU, and NYCU.
Among the funding categories, NCHU saw a 56% increase in “International Key Areas,” with funding rising from NT$160 million to NT$250 million, and a 94% increase in “University Social Responsibility (USR),” from NT$11.1 million to NT$21.5 million—highlighting the MOE’s strong recognition of NCHU’s outstanding implementation of the Sprout Project.
NCHU’s Phase II initiatives focus on six key dimensions: advancing campus-wide teaching innovation, fulfilling social responsibility, strengthening industry-academia collaboration, enhancing the public accessibility of higher education, improving international administrative support, and expanding internationally focused academic domains. In addition, three major research centers have been established in strategically prioritized fields:
• Innovation and Development Center of Sustainable Agriculture
• Advanced Plant and Food Crop Biotechnology Center
• iEGG and Animal Biotechnology Research Center
Looking ahead, NCHU has set clear goals across all dimensions. In teaching innovation, the university aims to optimize instructional systems, enhance faculty support, and foster students’ core competencies in IT-humanities integration, interdisciplinary learning, and self-directed study. In the area of social responsibility, all five of NCHU’s USR projects have been approved, and the university will integrate resources across academia, government, industry, and NGOs to develop cross-disciplinary value-added platforms and promote sustainable, internationally impactful team initiatives.
In terms of industry-academia collaboration, NCHU is advancing five major partnership frameworks and aligning with six regional strategic industries to strengthen students’ problem-solving, innovation, and entrepreneurial skills. To enhance the accessibility of higher education, the university is improving student support mechanisms, promoting Indigenous education, and fostering an inclusive, student-centered campus.
On the internationalization front, NCHU is enhancing its administrative support system, embedding bilingual practices into all colleges and departments, and expanding support for international students, including dedicated career counseling for post-graduation employment in Taiwan. In international key academic domains, the university is integrating plant and animal agricultural biotechnology, bridging STEM and humanities disciplines, and partnering with world-class institutions such as UC Davis and Texas A&M to cultivate top-tier talent and advance academic innovation.
In the agricultural sciences, NCHU is a national leader, with three flagship research centers:
1. Innovation and Development Center of Sustainable Agriculture, led by Chair Professor Chun-Liang Lin in collaboration with Academician Chiu-Chung Young, brings together experts in agriculture, engineering, science, life sciences, humanities, and law to form an interdisciplinary team. Focusing on circular agriculture, smart facilities, ecological systems, and agri-tech, the center aims to redefine sustainable agriculture and advance toward net-zero emissions.
2. Advanced Plant and Food Crop Biotechnology Center, directed by National Chair Professor Chang-Hsien Yang, brings together top scholars, including Academicians Tuan-Hua Ho and Shyi-Dong Yeh, as well as Yushan Scholar Dr. Wilhelm Gruissem. The center focuses on Taiwan’s key economic crops—orchids, rice, and premium fruits and vegetables—and leverages globally leading technologies to drive breakthroughs in plant and agricultural sciences, facilitating the transformation of the biotech industry.
3. iEGG and Animal Biotechnology Research Center, led by Vice President Chuan-Mu Chen, brings together Distinguished Professors Hung-Jen Liu, Yu-Chan Chao, Chih-Feng Chen, along with a team of 30 researchers and both international and domestic academicians, including Cheng-Ming Chuong, Wen-Hsiung Li, Robert Reisz, and Patrick C.Y. Woo. The center focuses on animal health biotechnology, disease monitoring and vaccine development, and the development and application of avian genetic resources, aiming to establish a robust R&D platform to boost the competitiveness of Taiwan’s animal biotech sector.
Rooted in Central Taiwan with a global outlook, NCHU is committed to cultivating future leaders equipped with both scientific and humanistic literacy, strong communication and innovation skills, global vision, and a deep sense of social responsibility. Aligned with national policy priorities, the university continues to focus on its five core strengths: agri-food biotechnology, smart manufacturing, healthcare, green energy and carbon reduction, and advanced materials—consistently advancing education, social engagement, industry collaboration, international administrative support, and academic excellence in pursuit of its goal to become a world-class institution.
Among the funding categories, NCHU saw a 56% increase in “International Key Areas,” with funding rising from NT$160 million to NT$250 million, and a 94% increase in “University Social Responsibility (USR),” from NT$11.1 million to NT$21.5 million—highlighting the MOE’s strong recognition of NCHU’s outstanding implementation of the Sprout Project.
NCHU’s Phase II initiatives focus on six key dimensions: advancing campus-wide teaching innovation, fulfilling social responsibility, strengthening industry-academia collaboration, enhancing the public accessibility of higher education, improving international administrative support, and expanding internationally focused academic domains. In addition, three major research centers have been established in strategically prioritized fields:
• Innovation and Development Center of Sustainable Agriculture
• Advanced Plant and Food Crop Biotechnology Center
• iEGG and Animal Biotechnology Research Center
Looking ahead, NCHU has set clear goals across all dimensions. In teaching innovation, the university aims to optimize instructional systems, enhance faculty support, and foster students’ core competencies in IT-humanities integration, interdisciplinary learning, and self-directed study. In the area of social responsibility, all five of NCHU’s USR projects have been approved, and the university will integrate resources across academia, government, industry, and NGOs to develop cross-disciplinary value-added platforms and promote sustainable, internationally impactful team initiatives.
In terms of industry-academia collaboration, NCHU is advancing five major partnership frameworks and aligning with six regional strategic industries to strengthen students’ problem-solving, innovation, and entrepreneurial skills. To enhance the accessibility of higher education, the university is improving student support mechanisms, promoting Indigenous education, and fostering an inclusive, student-centered campus.
On the internationalization front, NCHU is enhancing its administrative support system, embedding bilingual practices into all colleges and departments, and expanding support for international students, including dedicated career counseling for post-graduation employment in Taiwan. In international key academic domains, the university is integrating plant and animal agricultural biotechnology, bridging STEM and humanities disciplines, and partnering with world-class institutions such as UC Davis and Texas A&M to cultivate top-tier talent and advance academic innovation.
In the agricultural sciences, NCHU is a national leader, with three flagship research centers:
1. Innovation and Development Center of Sustainable Agriculture, led by Chair Professor Chun-Liang Lin in collaboration with Academician Chiu-Chung Young, brings together experts in agriculture, engineering, science, life sciences, humanities, and law to form an interdisciplinary team. Focusing on circular agriculture, smart facilities, ecological systems, and agri-tech, the center aims to redefine sustainable agriculture and advance toward net-zero emissions.
2. Advanced Plant and Food Crop Biotechnology Center, directed by National Chair Professor Chang-Hsien Yang, brings together top scholars, including Academicians Tuan-Hua Ho and Shyi-Dong Yeh, as well as Yushan Scholar Dr. Wilhelm Gruissem. The center focuses on Taiwan’s key economic crops—orchids, rice, and premium fruits and vegetables—and leverages globally leading technologies to drive breakthroughs in plant and agricultural sciences, facilitating the transformation of the biotech industry.
3. iEGG and Animal Biotechnology Research Center, led by Vice President Chuan-Mu Chen, brings together Distinguished Professors Hung-Jen Liu, Yu-Chan Chao, Chih-Feng Chen, along with a team of 30 researchers and both international and domestic academicians, including Cheng-Ming Chuong, Wen-Hsiung Li, Robert Reisz, and Patrick C.Y. Woo. The center focuses on animal health biotechnology, disease monitoring and vaccine development, and the development and application of avian genetic resources, aiming to establish a robust R&D platform to boost the competitiveness of Taiwan’s animal biotech sector.
Rooted in Central Taiwan with a global outlook, NCHU is committed to cultivating future leaders equipped with both scientific and humanistic literacy, strong communication and innovation skills, global vision, and a deep sense of social responsibility. Aligned with national policy priorities, the university continues to focus on its five core strengths: agri-food biotechnology, smart manufacturing, healthcare, green energy and carbon reduction, and advanced materials—consistently advancing education, social engagement, industry collaboration, international administrative support, and academic excellence in pursuit of its goal to become a world-class institution.
