Alumni Association

1. Origination
     There are altogether 25 classes of CHIBS. Master Sheng Yen thought that an organization keeping graduates informed of each other’s situation would give them momentum to stay connected as well as encourage alumni to visit their Alma mater to share their experiences and provide service more often. The inception of the alumni association was set on Feb. 28, 1993, and Ven. Huimin was elected as the President, Chen Yuwen was secretory while Deng Keming, Lin Mengying and Chen Jiami  were elected to assist general affairs. The office is located within CHIBS.  

     April 17, 1993, was the first meeting on the articles of the association. Before the articles were passed officially, all activities were to be run according to the draft, including planning and holding events, applying for a foundation, submitting alumni’s progress reports…, etc.

     The Alumni Association was officially founded on April 10, 1994, in the second-floor conference room of CHIBS. Other than passing the articles, four major motions were confirmed: 1. The mission of the Association is to keep alumni connected, keep alumni in check, assist Alma mater’s development, and advocate Buddhist scholarship. 2. Major routine activities include publishing newsletters, holding reunions, and encouraging alumni to help each other. 3. The organization of the Association, and 4. The sources of financial support.  

2. Organization
     The Association respectfully asked Master Sheng Yen to be the guiding teacher. There will be one President, three administrative officers, and one secretary. The President is in charge of all the events that the officers execute approved activities, while the secretary is responsible for publishing newsletters and accounting. The sixth President, Professor Huang Guoqing motioned to reduce the workloads of the officers and secretary by adding an event planning division and an academic affairs division.    The former is responsible for offering at least 2 reunions annually while the latter is responsible for meetings for alumni’s progress presentations. The seventh President, Ven. Hou Guan added the network division to build up a stronger connection via the modern technology of electronic networks.

     Even though the educational section span off to Dharma Drum Buddhist College in 2007, the CHIBS Alumni Association kept on running as usual. After the Ministry of Education passed the founding of Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts in 2014, the Association was re-named Dharma Drum Higher Education Alumni Association to accommodate all alumni from CHIBS, Dharma Drum Buddist College, and Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts.