HNU to the World!

President Kwang-Sup Lee attended the Turnover ceremony of the Association of Christian Universities and Colleges in Asia (ACUCA) as the outgoing President University. The event took place on November 17th (Friday) at Doshisha University in Kyoto Prefecture, Japan. President Kwang-Sup Lee, who has served as the President of the association since January 2022, worked tirelessly to improve the cooperative relationships between the federation and its member universities and to promote their continuous mutual development. In December 2023, the presidency will be handed over to Doshisha University, where Professor Tomoko Ueki serves as the president.

The Association of Christian Universities and Colleges in Asia (ACUCA) is an interdenominational Christian university consortium in Asia. Formed in 1976 in Manila, Philippines, ACUCA consists of 67 universities from 8 countries including Korea, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, the Philippines, Thailand, and Taiwan. It actively promotes the development of Christian universities through conferences, joint academic activities, and student exchanges. In Korea, members include Hannam University, Keimyung University, Soongsil University, Ewha Womans University, and Handong University.

From October 18th to 20th, a general assembly and executive meeting of the federation were held at Hannam University with the participation of about 100 presidents and international relations officers from 63 ACUCA member universities, under the theme 'Innovation and Spirituality: Directions for Change in Asian Christian Universities.'

The departure ceremony held at Doshisha University's chapel included federation officials, Kwang-Sup Lee, President of Hannam University, Tomoko Ueki, President of Doshisha University, international exchange representatives from both universities, and faculty members from Doshisha University. Doshisha University, established in 1875 by American missionaries, is a prestigious private Protestant university located in Kyoto, Japan, and is part of the Kankandoritsu, a group of renowned private universities in Japan. The university comprises four campuses and has approximately 30,000 students.
It is notably known as the university where poets Yun Dong-ju and Jeong Ji-yong studied abroad, and memorials honoring the two poets continue to attract visits from Koreans. Following the ceremony, President Kwang-Sup Lee and the delegation from Hannam University concluded their schedule with a handover meeting of the presidency, a campus tour of the university and its missionary heritage sites, and a celebratory dinner. The universities also agreed to further develop their cooperative relationship through ACUCA in the future.