MANSFIELD, PA— Eight graduate students from Shaanxi University of Science and Technology (SUST) in Xi’an, China have completed their three month “travel study” program at Mansfield University.
“Phoebe” Gao Tingting, “Kathy” Kang Qian, “Monica” Meng Jingru, “Belle” Qiao Sen, “Amy” Dong Yue, “Nelly” Wei Zhen, “Mars” Zhang Haoliang, and “Sunny” Zhang Weipeng received certificates of completion from Council of Trustees Chairman Ralph Meyer and MU President Fran Hendricks at the Trustees meeting on Wednesday, March 23.
The students arrived in late December and stayed with local families for their first two weeks in America.
They took three short-term graduate courses, two of which were co-taught, during the spring semester. The courses were Leadership Theory and Practical Application, co-taught by Adam Brennan, Music, and Adrianne McEvoy, Philosophy; The American Experience with Jeffrey Bosworth and Frank Chua, History and Political Science; and The American Experience Lab with Brad Lint, English and Modern Languages.
In addition to their graduate studies, the students visited a number of cities and tourist destinations, including New York City, Washington, DC and Niagara Falls. They also spent a weekend camping at Hills Creek State Park.
The student’s visits were supervised by Marie Domenech, director of the MU Center for International Cooperation and Exchange, and her husband, Edgard Domenech, Mail Services coordinator.
At SUST, the Chinese students are studying a variety of degree fields, from Ideological and Political Education to Light Industry Technology and Engineering.
The study travel program, the only one of its kind between SUST and an American university, came about after a visit to China by interim Dean of Arts and Sciences John Ulrich and Assistant Professor Brad Lint last year. The hope is for the program to continue and expand in the future.