The predecessor of CCNU is the combination of Huazhong University, Zhonghua University and the Pedagogical College of Zhongyuan University, with Huazhong University as the main part. Huazhong University was the largest and most influential mission university in south central China, and it developed from Wenhua Academy (the college of mission school) which was founded in 1903. In 1951, the public Huazhong University came into being after the Pedagogical College of Zhongyuan University merged with Huazhong University. Then it was reorganized into Huazhong Higher Normal School in 1952 and later renamed Huazhong Teachers College in 1953. In 1985, the university was formally entitled Central China Normal University and Deng Xiaoping, one of the founders of Zhongyuan University, inscribed the new name of the university. In 1993, President Jiang Zemin wrote an inscription for the university “Developing normal education, improving the nation’s quality”.