Xi Jinping Thought on Culture serves as the practical compass for cultural development in the New Era of socialism with Chinese characteristics. It provides strong theoretical support and practical direction for universities to achieve the fundamental objective of fostering virtue through education and to strengthen their cultural education systems. This paper elaborates on the internal logic of how Xi Jinping Thought on Culture guides university-based cultural education in two dimensions: principles and approaches. Theoretically, cultural education in universities in the New Era should uphold the people-centered development philosophy, the Party’s leadership in cultural affairs, and the “Two Integrations”. Practically, specific analyses cover four key elements: disciplinary culture, teachers’ ethics culture, red (revolutionary) culture, and cyber culture, discussing how to build a multidimensional, collaborative cultural education ecosystem in universities through content integration, institutional innovation, and cultural leadership.