Dear John,
Great thanks to you and Deane Neubauer for your instruction and guidance 15 years ago at the “International Forum on Educational Leadership Institute 2020” in Hawaii!
With your encouragement and good example, I have become the president of the Asia-Pacific Quality Network (APQN) today and continue to contribute to high-quality education in the Asia-Pacific Region.
May God bless you in Heaven, John!
*****
An Old Diary Entry in Memory of John Hawkins
From left: Jianxin Zhang, Ph.D., professor, Yunnan University, and president, Asia-Pacific Quality Network (APQN); Prof. John Hawkins, and
other participants from the "International Forum for Education for 2020," held at the East-West Center of the University of Hawai'i in 2005.
Prof. Youqun Ren (former vice president, East China Normal University in Shanghai, and now head officer, Department of Teacher Education and
Development, Ministry of Education of China), took this photo for the group on John’s balcony, which faces the blue sea. What a wonderful
night we had at John’s house in Hawaii! (Photo courtesy of Prof. Jianxin Zhang.)
September 22, 2005, 5:30 p.m. Prof. John N. Hawkins invited eight participants (Ren Youqun, Li Wenli, Betty, David, Yin Yue,Yang Yuchen, Yang Yinfu and Jianxin Zhang) in the “International Forum for Education for 2020,” held in 2005 at the East-West Center, University of Hawai'i, to his marvellous house.
John is Director of Center for International and Comparative Education in University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA). He has published 15 books and a series of papers on education, such as “Development or Degradation?,” “Rural Work in Asia,” “Rethinking Educational Exchange between U.S and Japan,” etc.
What amazed me is that he came to China to write his doctoral dissertation “Mao Zedong’s Educational Thought” in 1966. [During that visit], he met Zhou Enlai and Guo Moruo and when Mao Zedong inspected the red guards at Tiananmen Square, John was there. . .
John's house is located by the sea and the balcony faces the blue and wide sea. The white waves called us to swim. Swimming in the sea is my dream. Today, this wish has finally come true. The sea water was salty, but very clear. We could even see a lot of coral under water, and the fish sawm with us. What a wonderful treat!
The sky was blue, the sea was blue. I swam to the farthest place where there were “Danger” signs. Everybody went ashore, but I stayed in the sea and enjoyed it immensely. Soon I found John had also stayed and waited for me because he was worried. I was moved and immediately went ashore with him.
The sea accepted us into her infinite breast. Appreciating the wide sea broadened our minds. Unlimited vision made us look further. The in-and-out tides washed away the dust in our hearts. The sea breeze blew away the miscellaneous thoughts in our hearts. In the sea, we forgot our small trivia and boring worries and abandoned the pursuit of fame and wealth. Swimming in the sea —the sun, the beach and the waves — carried our beautiful dreams forward.
Jianxin ZHANG
Professor, Yunnan University, China
President, Asia-Pacific Quality Network (APQN)
Chief Expert, Yunnan Higher Education Evaluation Center (YHEEC), China
Published: Friday, August 14, 2020
