At noon on April 15, the Wutong Avenue in front of the School of Economics and Management at Beijing Polytechnic University was bustling with activity. The "Wutong Youth Innovation Hub", a key branded event for the university to deepen the reform of science and innovation education, was officially launched. More than 50 booths featuring scientific and technological innovation projects, cultural and creative handicrafts, traditional cultural experiences, and second-hand item exchanges were lined up in succession. Students acted as "stall owners" and "makers", integrating sales and trade with immersive craftsmanship and innovation experiences, as more than 2,000 teachers and students gathered for this spring feast.
The "Wutong Youth Innovation Hub" educates people through practice, nurtures the mind with culture, and inspires wisdom with science and innovation. It promotes the in-depth integration of "majors + practice + education + innovation and entrepreneurship", and has gradually developed into a comprehensive ideological and political platform connecting professional education, academy-based education, innovative practice, and social services.
At noon, Wang Wei, Deputy Secretary of the University Party Committee and President, Liu Rong and Xu Jiangbo, Deputy Secretaries of the University Party Committee, Xin Xiulan, Member of the Standing Committee of the University Party Committee and Vice President, Feng Zhixin, Assistant to the President, and other leaders visited the "Wutong Youth Innovation Hub" site. They toured each booth one by one, had cordial exchanges with the "stall owners", and encouraged students to cherish the practical platform, turn creative ideas into feasible projects, and hone practical skills in the real market.
Small-Scale Practice Venue Empowers Comprehensive Training
Students from the School of Bioengineering set up a hand-ground coffee booth, filling the entire Wutong Avenue with aroma. Teams such as Zhuojian Tea Club and Songling Light Food have initially achieved the transformation of scientific research achievements, demonstrating the infinite possibilities of "moving from the laboratory to the market". Students from the School of Art and Design drew cartoon portraits on site, with everyone eager to become the "characters in the paintings". Anime peripherals and handicraft experiences also attracted many teachers and students to stop by. Students from the School of Automotive Engineering innovatively applied their professional skills: they not only explained automotive maintenance knowledge to teachers and students on site, but also displayed cultural and creative products such as 3D-printed automotive engine models and creative pen holders, adding an artistic touch to hardcore machinery.
"Don’t underestimate these retail booths; they all embody students’ ingenuity and complete business logic," said Zhu Jiawei, a counselor from the School of Economics and Management. The event set up five major zones: scientific and technological innovation, cultural creativity, traditional culture, retail, and item exchange, attracting more than 50 teacher and student teams from across the university to participate. From project application to official booth setup, students spent nearly two weeks preparing, handling every step including product selection, pricing, procurement, and promotion by themselves. Before the event, the School of Economics and Management specially organized "pre-job skills training" for the "stall owners" of the Innovation Hub, covering pricing strategies, customer acquisition techniques, ledger keeping, customer service, and safety regulations. Teachers broke down the "business knowledge" from textbooks to help students turn "wanting to start a business" into "being able to run a business".
"I used to think running a stall was easy, but I realized there’s so much to it once I started," said Zhang Yujia, a 2024-grade student from the School of Economics and Management and a retail zone stall owner. Her group discussed pricing several times, balancing cost recovery, market conditions, and the spending power of the student population.
From theory to practice, this immersive activity extended professional classrooms to the "second classroom". Students completed a full-process training session of "micro-entrepreneurship" in practice, gaining not only sales revenue but also real insights into the market, customers, and business operations.
Craftsmanship Mentors Join the "Youth Innovation Hub"
One area stood out at the event: the exhibition area of 14 model workers, who also serve as craftsmanship mentors at the university’s Jingrong Academy, drawing large crowds. Wang Wenwang, a national model worker, curator of Beijing Wenwangge Woodworking Museum, and mentor of the "Wutong Innovation Studio" at the School of Economics and Management, came to the site to personally guide students on optimizing operations and improving service awareness. "My mentor reminded me that cultural and creative products should not only look good but also tell a compelling brand story," said Liu Xiaoyuan, a 2024-grade student from the School of Arts and Sciences selling peach wood cultural products. The on-site feedback from the craftsmanship mentor deepened his understanding of "product added value".
The "Bringing Model Workers and Craftsmen into Campus" initiative is a key part of Beijing Polytechnic University’s ideological and political education system. Focusing on cultivating the core competencies of skilled craftsmanship talents, the university has formed a mentor team consisting of "ideological and political teachers + professional teachers + model workers and craftsmen". With "one center, one space, one community, and one innovation studio" as its positions, the university provides immersive ideological and political education, skill training, and project research for students. Craftsmanship mentors participate in guiding student internships and practices, bring real enterprise projects into classrooms, integrate craftsmanship standards into curriculum evaluation, and deeply engage in the entire process of talent cultivation. This helps build a library of ideological and political cases, practical projects, craftsmanship mentors, practice bases, and innovation and entrepreneurship incubation resources for students’ outstanding growth.
Wu Xin, Director of the Student Affairs Department, stated that the university is developing an evaluation standard for students’ professional literacy, integrating scientific and technological innovation practices such as the "Wutong Youth Innovation Hub" as key components of the system. It will implement a digital and portfolio-based certification system for students’ professional literacy, aiming to create a model for ideological and political education in vocational undergraduate universities.
Turning "Golden Ideas" into "Golden Projects"
"What we aim to cultivate are high-level skilled talents with both interdisciplinary professional capabilities and innovative practical literacy," noted Wu Xin. High-quality projects from the "Wutong Youth Innovation Hub" will be recommended for university-level roadshows and entrepreneurship competitions, with access to incubation resources to become genuine "golden projects".
In the scientific and technological innovation exhibition area of the Wutong Youth Innovation Hub, four gold medal-winning teams from the university’s 2026 "Challenge Cup" Entrepreneurship Plan Competition made a collective appearance. The "Tianshu Zhichuang" team showcased a lightweight humanoid robot; the "He Cang Shan Hai" team launched a Chinese-style cultural and creative IP inspired by Classic of Mountains and Seas, with 13 cute mythical creature blind boxes that have obtained design patents and sold thousands of units; the "Songling Light Food" team focused on the silver economy, developing age-friendly healthy snacks that have been launched on multiple e-commerce platforms; the "Yuanxin Intelligent" team targeted precise rehabilitation for cerebral infarction, building an integrated "screening-diagnosis-intervention-rehabilitation" system using microneedle patches and brain-computer interface technologies.
From a single scientific and technological innovation practice to a comprehensive education system, Beijing Polytechnic University is planting the seeds of science and innovation education under the name of "Wutong". When every creative idea is taken seriously and every attempt is supported by mechanisms, the significance of science and innovation education goes beyond slogans, taking root in every tent, every transaction, and every student’s growth journey.
Location:
Dynamics