10/29/97
ATTN. OHIO EDITORS, NEWS DIRECTORS: A color JPEG file of Dean Lee suitable for newspaper reproduction is available on the World Wide Web at: http://www.cats.ohiou.edu/~univnews/pix/HWA-WEI_LEE.JPG. If you prefer a black and white print, contact News Services.
Dean Lee will be available to discuss the meeting with the Chinese president after returning home Friday night, after 10 p.m. His home number is 614-592-5194. If you wish to speak to Dean Lee prior to his flight to New York on Thursday, his office number is 614-593-2705.
ATHENS, Ohio -- Ohio University Dean of Libraries Hwa-Wei Lee has been invited by the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., to join a select group of American Chinese professionals and scholars who will meet the President of the People's Republic of China, Jiang Zemin, in New York City this Friday as part of Jiang's official U.S. visit.
Lee and other guests will be involved in meetings with Jiang between 9:30 a.m. and noon at the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China, 520 12th Ave., New York City.
Lee was born and brought up in China and spent eight years in Taiwan before coming to the United States in 1957. He first went back to the mainland in 1982, when he was invited to give a two-week workshop on managing information centers. It was the beginning of a longstanding relationship between Lee and the Chinese Ministry of Education and Chinese universities. More recently, Lee helped set up the Chinese Services Center of OCLC Online Computer Library Center. OCLC is the largest international computerized library network in the world. The Chinese component opened last year in Beijing.
Lee just returned last week from a trip to China in which he was an invited guest of the National Library of China to participate in the celebration of the 85th anniversary of the founding of the National Library. While in China, Lee received several honors which included a guest professorship of Beijing University; a consulting professorship of the Beijing Post and Telecommunication University; an Advisor of the National Library of China; and a consultant of the State Education Commission for the Higher Education Library and Information System of China.
Since 1982, Lee has been invited to China for lectures and consultancy each year under various sponsorships such as the State Education Commission of China, International Development Research Centre of Canada, United Board of Christian Higher Education in Asia, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization, and the World Bank. Many leading Chinese universities have honored him with the title of consulting or visiting professor. In addition to the National Library, Lee is also the advisor to the Wuhan and Nanzhou Libraries of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
