ECUST’s “Three Excellence” Empowerment Project Honored as a Typical Targeted Assistance Project by the MOE
Recently, the results of the 10th Selection of Typical Precision Assistance Projects of Universities Directly Affiliated to the Ministry of Education (MOE) were officially announced. The project from ECUST named “Social Work Empowered by ‘Three Excellence’: University-Locality Joint Efforts for Sound Rural Governance, Exploring a New ECUST Model for Social Work to Boost Social Development in Western Counties” was successfully selected as a Typical Project in the Innovation and Experiment Category.
This is the third time ECUST has been included in the list of typical targeted assistance projects of MOE-affiliated universities, following two previous projects focused on rural revitalization demonstration programs and postgraduate volunteer teaching support for Xundian County.
A total of 107 projects participated in this selection, and only five were selected as Innovation and Experiment Projects. ECUST’s project stood out for its solid practice foundation and innovative assistance approach.
The project stemmed from more than a decade of targeted assistance work in Xundian Hui and Yi Autonomous County, Yunnan Province, conducted by the School of Sociology and Public Administration. It was also an achievement of the first batch of MOE innovative cultivation projects for rural revitalization undertaken by ECUST in 2021. Facing Xundian’s complex governance environment as a multi-ethnic county that has recently transitioned out of poverty, along with shortages of professionals, service platforms and service capacity at the grassroots level, ECUST has enhanced governance support by drawing on its strengths in sociology and public administration.
Aiming to empower rural social workers and serve rural revitalization, the project collaborated with local departments of civil affairs, education, and political and legal affairs to build a “Three Excellence” empowerment system: excellent talent, excellent platforms, and excellent professional application. It explored a practical model for social work to promote social development in western counties and advance sound rural governance.
Moving forward, ECUST will continue to study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important directives on education and agriculture, rural areas and farmers, and carry out normalized educational assistance to consolidate and expand poverty alleviation achievements in synergy with rural revitalization. By summarizing the experience of the “Three Excellence” system, ECUST will improve its long-term assistance mechanism, encourage professionals to take root in grassroots sectors, optimize the university-locality joint social organization incubation platform, and give full play to the demonstration effect of social work service sites. The university will accelerate the formation of a replicable and scalable “Xundian Model” of social work for county-level social development, contributing more ECUST wisdom and strength to building a great modern country.