Editing Peking University (section)

=== Notable academics and staff ===
Peking University has benefited from the services of notable academics and staff. These include founder of the People's Republic of China [[Mao Zedong]] who worked as a library staff at the university, as first claimed in Edward Snow's Red Star Over China.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Mao Zedong {{!}} Peking University Library|url=https://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/portal/en/bggk/bgjs/lishiyange/maozedong|access-date=20 January 2021|website=www.lib.pku.edu.cn|archive-date=27 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210127215043/https://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/portal/en/bggk/bgjs/lishiyange/maozedong|url-status=live}}</ref> Although Mao audited classes while working at PKU, he was not a formally enrolled student and did not graduate from the university. 

The university's second president was educator, politician, and revolutionary [[Cai Yuanpei]], who was the first to bring European university concept to China after a stint at [[Free University of Berlin]] and fought for the school to be named "Beijing '''Daxue'''". Cai equally protected the freedom of expression of his staff and students, allowing a plethora of influential journals, including [[New Youth]] and New Tide. <ref>{{Cite web|title=Cai Yuanpei {{!}} Chinese educator|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cai-Yuanpei|access-date=20 January 2021|website=Encyclopedia Britannica|language=en|archive-date=26 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201026085748/https://www.britannica.com/biography/Cai-Yuanpei|url-status=live}}</ref> Peking University students participated heavily in the May Fourth Movement, spurned and sometimes also held back by staff from the time. 

More recently, the university has been home to influential economist [[Michael Pettis]].