“Give me a mechanism!”
In an apartment on Hoang Dao Thuy Street, there are many photos of the teacher and his wife when they were young, with smiles and joy shining brightly on their faces. It seems that the image and spirit of the teacher still exists very deeply in this space. Silent with emotion, holding in her hand the yellowed handwritten diary of her beloved husband, Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi recalled:
In 1993, Prof. Nguyen Van Dao transferred to work at the Vietnam Academy of Science in Ho Chi Minh City. The teachers lived the simple lives of ordinary scientists. At the end of 1993, they went to Hanoi to celebrate Tet. Unexpectedly, this trip created a turning point in the life and career of Prof. Nguyen Van Dao.
In the Teacher's diary - as Ms. Kim Chi shared "Only very important and thoughtful things do he write here.” - recorded this incident:
“On February 23, 1994, at 9:00 a.m., Mr. Quan (Minister of Education and Training Tran Hong Quan - PV) called to make an appointment to visit his house and discuss work, and made an appointment to come in the afternoon. At 2:30-3:30 p.m., Mr. Quan proposed to take charge and become the Director of the National University. After discussing with Mr. Quan some details about the schools, staff and staff planning, he concluded that he would think about it and reply later, as there were still many issues to consider at this time.
On March 2, 1994, in the afternoon, Mr. Quan called home to request approval of the previous day's plan. Mr. Quan asked to meet after work, but then got busy so he made an appointment for Friday afternoon, March 4, 1994.
On March 3, 1994, at noon, Mr. Quan called to request an earlier appointment this afternoon so that tomorrow the CP Executive Committee would have to decide on this matter.
17:30 – 18:15, met Mr. Quan at the Ministry of Education, Mr. Quan continued to discuss ideas about taking up the assignment at VNU. My opinion is to consider further and wait for everything at the Center to be clear, with a decision from the Government. Mr. Quan suggested to submit options to the Government for consideration.
On March 7, 1994, from 4:45 p.m. to 5:15 p.m., Mr. Nguyen Khanh (former Deputy Prime Minister - PV) met at the Government Office. Mr. Khanh informed me of the opinion of the Secretariat and the Government to nominate me as Director of the National University. If I agreed, a decision would be made soon. I suggested taking it slow and waiting for the center's work to be completed. I asked: Does Mr. Kiet (Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet - PV) support my becoming director? Mr. Khanh said: Mr. Kiet supports me even though he does not understand me as well as Mr. Khanh. Mr. Khanh advised me to accept and that this is an important matter, something the Government is very concerned about. I suggested that we postpone it for a while.
March 11, 1994, 10am, Mr. Quan called to request a meeting to discuss some matters of the National University this afternoon.”.
Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi. (Photo: Thanh Long/USSH)
Associate Professor Tran Thi Kim Chi said: Although he is a scientific officer, he has many years of experience in university teaching and is very passionate about issues related to university education. In 1981, after a scientific exchange at more than 20 universities in the US, he wrote an article in Nhan Dan newspaper (issued on November 9, 1981) mentioning two things that surprised him when studying the management model at American universities:“University education in the US does not develop according to a certain plan. Training programs, textbooks, exams, and thesis defenses are also determined by each school. For the most part, American universities, whether private or public, require students to pay quite high tuition fees.”.
Experience in management combined with those new perceptions made me see very clearly the shortcomings in university education management in Vietnam at that time. To meet the demand for quality human resources in society, there must be a radical reform in university education, that is, to change the "quality", methods and training content, of which a major factor is the management issue; to give autonomy and self-responsibility to universities. At the time when ideas about education were "mature", as a mission, I was asked to build VNU. This urged me because this was the place for me to fulfill my wish. But this was also a "lose or win" challenge, because with many years of working experience, I understood that I had to face, had to confront a solid fortress of conservatism, of outdated views in university education.
Having a lot of concerns about building a management organization model at VNU, he often discussed with her: "How should universities be built to develop? How should activities be organized to create changes in quantity and quality? If we only gather schools and add investment funds, we cannot create changes in quality!”.
In his memoir “Remembering the difficult early days”, he wrote “My concerns revolve around the difficulties of organizing a university with a completely new model and high autonomy in Vietnam's conditions.”. That concern was completely justified when the conditions for building autonomy for Vietnamese universities at that time were still very difficult due to delays and stagnation in awareness and management thinking.
Longing for a mechanism to work, the Master thought of the saying of the ancient mechanic Archimedes, “Give me a fulcrum, and I will move the Earth.” Now, borrowing his words, the Master said: “Give me a mechanism, I will successfully build a National University.!”. A simple saying containing a big dream, and especially containing the determination and boldness of a leader who dares to think, dares to do and dares to innovate!
Fight for the existence of VNU
If autonomy is the core spirit in the development process of VNU that Professor Nguyen Van Dao wants to aim for, then the first Regulations of VNU are the product that most clearly demonstrates that spirit. The Regulations made him ponder a lot before starting to write, because he understood that this is the fulcrum for the development of VNU.
For four consecutive months (April-August 1994), he personally chaired and drafted the charter with the participation and contributions of hundreds of scientists from VNU, combined with consulting many charters of universities at home and abroad. Associate Professor Kim Chi said: “Writing and rewriting, day and night, it took four months to complete the Charter. The work capacity of Master Dao was truly “terrifying”, thinking quickly and writing quickly.!”.
On September 5, 1994, the Prime Minister signed a decision to promulgate the Regulations on the organization and operation of VNU, with the basic acceptance of the draft submitted by VNU with the main contents: VNU is allowed to use a seal bearing the national emblem, to fully decide on the right to international cooperation, and to grant bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees. The first operating regulations for VNU created an important foundation for the development of VNU with a high degree of autonomy.
As a spouse and a fellow educator, Associate Professor Tran Thi Kim Chi always believes that she is very lucky to be able to be by his side and share many things about his work and aspirations. Witnessing her husband's worries and anxieties, she understands more and more that in reality, the fight for the autonomy of VNU is not smooth and simple. As the highest leader, a pioneer and "pavers the way" for a new direction, he faces pressure from many sides. Because "university autonomy" is so new, it is difficult to accept even for officials working in educational management, including those close to him. There are even doubts that Mr. Dao is doing something for himself?
The dedication of Professor Nguyen Van Dao has received support from the highest leaders, including the late Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet. The Prime Minister once said in a meeting at FPT University: “When Mr. Dao worked at VNU, I supported him, but he had to struggle very hard to fight for the existence of VNU and to implement that regulation.”.
When VNU was in the first days of development, a rather "serious" event occurred. In early 1999, in the education reform outline of the Ministry of Education and Training, the section related to national universities mentioned the issue of removing the national emblem of VNU, completely abolishing the model of VNU. A day before the meeting on this matter, Mr. Dao received that outline from the Ministry. As usual, Associate Professor Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi read the document in advance to help him. That night when he returned, she exclaimed: "Brother Dao, please take back the national emblem and abolish VNU.!”. Almost “grabbing” the document, the Teacher read it and then stayed up all night writing a response to the Ministry’s project. Thoughts and emotions filled the Teacher’s mind, causing him to write 40 pages of scientific and strong responses in just one night.
Some staff of the VNU Office probably still remember that the very next morning, Prof. Nguyen Van Dao mobilized all the secretaries to type and bind the documents into bundles to be distributed in the afternoon meeting. That was the official response of VNU to the idea of reforming the national universities in the education reform program of the Ministry of Education and Training.
The most stressful time was at the end of June 1999. On June 22, 1999, Master Dao received news that the Ministry's education reform project had been submitted to higher levels for final review and approval.
On the afternoon of June 23, 1999, many cadres of VNU came to the teachers' houses with a heavy and sad mood. Quietly, without much noise, perhaps more than ever, the spirit of solidarity and wholehearted support of the cadres and staff of VNU for their leader was expressed so deeply and emotionally. Flipping through the pages of the documents of the Teacher about VNU in those days, on the outermost page there was a short but clear line: "Fight for VNU!”.
On June 24, 1999, Master Dao left for a meeting in Belgium. On the plane was a delegation from the Government Office going to France. Among them was a comrade who strongly supported VNU, Hanoi, who came to meet Master Dao, held his hand and said, “It's broken, man.!”.
But with the persistent struggle of the two National Universities and the support of high-ranking, prestigious leaders and teachers and scientists dedicated to the cause of education, on July 11, 1999, Prime Minister Phan Van Khai convened a special meeting to discuss issues related to the National Universities. The final decision of the Government was: to maintain and develop the model of National Universities.
The Master was very happy! Telling the story to her, he said: "At the end of the meeting, a very responsible person said that from now on, whoever wants to leave VNU, that individual will leave, but the organization will stay!”. The journey of Professor Nguyen Van Dao with VNU has gone through such difficult and dramatic moments!
To the good news…
Hidden in the stories about Prof. Nguyen Van Dao and VNU, we feel the love, affection mixed with admiration and trust that his partner has for the famous scientist and manager. As she herself admitted, her personality is simple and introverted, seemingly in contrast to the strong and decisive personality of the Teacher - a person with innate qualities in management and leadership, and the more difficult the circumstances, the more that talent shines. But those differences seem to only help to resonate more closely between the two partners who share the same interests in work and career.I learned a lot from Mr. Dao!" - Associate Professor, Dr. Tran Thi Kim Chi confided to us. Not only is it the resilience and independence in work, the determination and perseverance in overcoming circumstances, she also learned from the Teacher the meticulousness and patience of a scientist. In dealing with colleagues and subordinates, the Teacher is very principled in work but always thoughtful and understanding.
Hall 10/12 - the place that marks important events of VNU - has recently been renamed Nguyen Van Dao Hall. This is a deep gratitude from the leaders and generations of teachers and students of VNU for his contributions as a leader who paved the way for the development of VNU. The multidisciplinary, multi-field university model with high autonomy of VNU is also recognized in the Law on University Education 2012. At the end of 2013, the Government issued a new Decree on VNU with open conditions for the future development of VNU. We saw the emotion in her sparkling eyes: “This is a great honor and joy for our family, the achievement of many generations of teachers and students of VNU, and the wish of Master Dao during his lifetime. The things that he wished and expected of VNU have now been achieved. In a faraway place, he must be very happy…”.
Author:Thanh Ha
Newer news
Older news
