When the communists seized power in 1949, they called on young people to return from overseas to build the "New China." The schools 'founder Tan Kah Kee also returned to live in his native area, and Jimei entered a boom period.
一九四九年，共黨奪權，號召海外青年回國建設「新中國」，數以萬計的南洋華僑子弟回國就學、就業，加上老校主陳嘉庚回鄉定居，為集美開啟了一段風光歲月。