60% of modern 'Lei Fengs' have higher education

An exhibition, which opened on Monday at Beijing World Art Museum, showcases photos and audio material featuring Lei Feng. [Zhou Guoqiang / China Daily]

Over 60 percent of modern "Lei Fengs" in Beijing have higher degrees, Beijing Youth Daily reported Monday.

Beijing organized a selection of "Lei Fengs" across the city in October 2012 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Chairman Mao Zedong's call to learn from Lei Feng. In all, 50 people were chosen.

The 50 people are from different walks of life, with different educational backgrounds. But among them, 31 have received junior college education or above.

It shows a new trend in public service: NGOs rely more on volunteers' knowledge and professions and thus need more people with higher education, said Zhang Yiwu, a culture scholar at Peking University.

Also, over 60 percent of them are male, and almost half of them are born in the 1960s and 1970s.

Lei Feng was a People's Liberation Army soldier known for his "selfless service for the people". He died in 1962 at the age of 22.

In 1963, Chairman Mao initiated a nationwide campaign to follow the soldier's example of selflessness, dedication and other moral values.