On Sept. 30, 2015, the Shanghai Municipal Government presented NYU Shanghai Vice Chancellor Jeffrey Lehman with the Shanghai Magnolia Gold Award. In September of 2013, Vice Chancellor Lehman was honored with his first award, and now two years later he traveled to the Shanghai City Hall to receive yet another outstanding mark of recognition. The Shanghai Magnolia Award was established in 1989 to recognize expatriates’ contribution to the city of Shanghai. It carries the name and the spirit of Shanghai’s city flower. Generally, depending on the length of stay in China, distinguished foreigners are presented with either the Magnolia Gold Award or Magnolia Silver Award. Recipients represent various industries and come from numerous backgrounds. At the 2015 ceremony, right after Shanghai Mayor 杨雄 (Yang Xiong) presented the certificate to prominent expatriates, the vice mayor, 屠光绍 (Tu Guangshao), pointed out the importance of the non-Chinese in China as a key part of the diversity and strength of the community. He stated: “You truly live up to the honor we gave you today and the Shanghai people shall always remember your contribution and your friendship.” In a talk with Professor Lehman, he noted the importance of the award for NYU Shanghai. The vice Chancellor asserted: “For NYU Shanghai being included as a key international entity, a key cosmopolitan entity that is contributing to the city is wonderful.” The professor also took time to reflect on NYU Shanghai’s growth over the past three years: “Every one of them [the Mayor, the Party Secretary, and the Vice Mayor of Shanghai] is clearly very happy with the way things are going so far for NYU Shanghai. What they are happiest about in some ways is you guys, the students… Students are engaged, whether it is with community service, internships, competitions – all these things that are always attracting attention in the city. And it is actually resonating. People are starting to say ‘oh, we see that it’s not just that all the student talent is coming in, something is happening inside the community so that the talent is flourishing.’ And that is the message that is starting to spread.” Professor Lehman also notes with pride that this year NYU Shanghai was the only non-profit represented at the ceremony. While the Vice Chancellor was the only representative of academia, other honorees were all leaders of multinational companies. In addition to Vice Chancellor Lehman’s recognition, it is essential to note that Provost Joanna Waley-Cohen was awarded the Magnolia Silver Award. This year, NYU Shanghai takes pride in being represented two times at the ceremonies. This article was written by Lana Kugli. Send an email to [email protected] to get in touch. Photo Credit: NYU Shanghai Website