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USC Viterbi Faculty Win Grants in the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology Targeted Strategic Partnership Program

USC Viterbi School of Engineering faculty won three grants for collaborations between the two world renowned universities, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) for Targeted Strategic Partnerships.

June 05, 2013 —
Article
Professors Cyrus Shahabi, Dimitris Papadias, and Lei Chen

(Academic Initiatives for China and East Asia)
As part of the initiative by the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) for Targeted Strategic Partnerships, USC Viterbi School of Engineering faculty won three grants for collaborations between the two world renowned universities. The HKUST Sponsorship Scheme for Targeted Strategic Partnerships (SSTSP) has identified USC as one of their strategic partners worldwide. The main purpose of the initiative is to encourage HKUST scholars to develop collaboration with targeted partners and to build the foundation for the sustainable development of these partnerships. The inaugural awards included three grants to USC Viterbi School of Engineering faculty, as follows:
1. Collaboration between CBME of HKUST and Chemical, Environmental, and Materials Sciences of USC. The USC awardee is Professor Joe Qin, Vice Dean for China and East Asia Academic Initiatives; the HKUST awardee is Professor Guohua Chen, Head of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering. The project will receive funds to support i) the visit of 8 HKUST faculty visit to USC; ii) the visit of 8 USC faculty to HKUST ; and iii) a workshop at HKUST. The project duration is 18 months and is expected to initiate additional faculty collaborations.

Awardees Professor Fugee Tsung (HKUST) and Professor Qiang Huang (USC)

2. Effective and Efficient Mobile Crowdsourcing. The USC awardee is Professor Cyrus Shahabi, Department of Computer Science; the HKUST awardee is Professor Lei Chen, Department of Computer Science and Engineering. The project will receive funds for two years to support i) the visit of two HKUST faculty to USC ; ii) the visit of (Professor Cyrus Shahabi to HKUST; and iii) a workshop at HKUST with invited speakers.

3. Strategic Partnership on the Next Generation Manufacturing Research between HKUST and USC. The USC awardee is Professor Qiang Huang at the Daniel J. Epstein Department of Industrial and Systems Engineering; the HKUST awardee is Professor Fugee Tsung, Head of Department of Industrial Engineering & Logistics Management. The project will receive funding to support i) the visit of one HKUST faculty to USC for 3 times; (ii) the visit of one USC faculty visit to HKUST for 3 times; and iii) two workshops at HKUST with invited speakers.

USC is among the first batch of targeted strategic partners. Other partners includes: California Institute of Technology (Caltech), Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), and École Normale Supérieure (ENS).

Vice Dean Joe Qin visits with HK UST Prof. Guohua Chen, Head of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering and Prof. Furong Gao, Professor of Chemical Engineering.


“USC Viterbi School of Engineering already has on-going partnership with HKUST in student exchanges and research collaborations”, said USC Viterbi Dean Yannis C. Yortsos. “We are very pleased to see HK UST make a strategic effort to enhance this partnership that will open up more collaboration between the two strong schools of engineering.”
Founded in October 1991, the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology has established itself as an intellectual powerhouse, energizing the community's transformation into a knowledge-based society, and securing a place on the academic world map in record-breaking time.