Each year, around the middle of March, TKU students from various regions of Taiwan set up stalls at Poster Street and sell their local fare as part of Annual Culture Week. But this year is different. 2013 at Tamkang is the year of moral character. So aside from stall after stall of regional snacks – like cactus ice cream from Penghu Island – this year’s week-long festivities have received a new name: “Moral Character and Culture Week”.

To begin the event, an opening ceremony was held at the Fu Yuan Garden, Tamsui Campus, on 18th March. It was hosted by TKU President, Dr. Flora Chia-I Chang, and it encouraged students to serve as role models for the community. Students made vows, pledging to serve as examples of positive moral conduct; to show temperance and discipline; to be filial and respect their elders; to respect all forms of life; to create a clean environment and maintain a pure heart; to be grateful; to live by the TKU motto (simplicity truthfulness, firmness, perseverance); to be fair and just; to care and be kind to others; and to be responsible, upstanding citizens.

A paper “train track” of moral character now winds through the campus, with train stations named after moral values. Moreover, the organizing body, the Office of Student Affairs, has set up a Facebook fan page called “students have morals; Tamkang has character”.