On Friday, Sept. 9, NYU Shanghai hosted its fourth annual Reality Show performance, which officially marked the end of Orientation 2016. Before the Reality Show, NYU Shanghai also held the 2016 University Welcome with NYU President Andrew Hamilton, who addressed the new freshman Class of 2020 in his fourth visit to the portal campus since accepting presidency.This event was the first time Pres. Hamilton met with the entire student body of NYU Shanghai, since it’s completion with four classes this year. Celebrating NYU Shanghai’s sense of community and oneness with the campus, Pres. Hamilton recognized the importance of NYU Shanghai as an American institution in an ever-growing China, as well as the school’s mission of creating global citizens. Talking to the Class of 2020, Pres. Hamilton said, “You all have great vision, you all have 2020 eyesight, you are the Class of 2020. You chose NYU Shanghai because it is a remarkable, a very young but remarkable, institution, one utterly committed to global perspectives in everything that you do. I have to tell you that one of the reasons I came to NYU is because of the existence of NYU Shanghai...and in 2016, the world needs NYU Shanghai graduates. The world needs people who understand other cultures, who are comfortable with difference, who will know and understand different languages, who have lived and become very much part of other cultures. So for me, it is the existence of NYU Shanghai, it is the knowledge in NYU Shanghai and other parts of NYU.” The dynamic community within NYU Shanghai, despite being part of the bigger NYU Global network was also mentioned, and a loud round of applause followed his comment of relating to the fears and hopes of being a freshman, as he too is in his first year of presidency. President Hamilton is being officially inaugurated as the new President of NYU on Sept. 25, at the NYU New York campus. The week of Sept 19-25, named “Inauguration Celebration Week”, will feature several events “celebrating the spirit, drive, and innovations of NYU”; key events include the NYU Tandon MakerSpace Ribbon Cutting, Violet Lights, and the Making A Difference Award Ceremony. You can follow the calendar of events and a live-stream of the official inauguration here.This article was written by Lathika Chandra Mouli . Please send an email to [email protected] to get in touch. Photo Credit: Shikhar Sakhuja