MANSFIELD, PA— A delegation from Hefei University of Technology (HFUT) visited Mansfield University from June 23-25. HFUT and MU are partners in the China Center for International Educational Exchange 1+2+1 program.
HFUT is located in Hefei, the capital city of Anhui Province in China. Mansfield was the delegation’s only stop in the U.S.
Deputy Dean Huang Jinhua and Zhang Yaqiong, junior manager of Admissions and the HFUT International Student Program, met and exchanged gifts with MU President Fran Hendricks and Provost Steven Siconolfi and met with the President’s Cabinet.
MU student Hayley Kotulka led the delegates on a tour of campus, accompanied by John Ulrich, interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and MU Assistant Professor of English Brad Lint, who acted as translator during the entire visit. After the tour, President Hendricks and his wife Connie hosted the delegates to a reception at their home.
Huang and Zhang commented positively on the hospitality, friendliness, professionalism and sense of home at MU. They were also impressed with the new residence halls as well as the 3D printing technology in the Department of Geosciences.
More than a meeting of universities, the visit was also a meeting of cultures. The delegates shared several aspects of Chinese culture while at MU. For example, Zhang Yaqiong, who is nationally ranked as one of China’s top martial artists, gave demonstrations of Chinese kung fu and also taught MU representatives some basic movements of tai chi.
The delegates also showed video and slides of Huangshan, a mountain range in Anhui Province world famous for its spectacular scenery. For over a thousand years, Huangshan has inspired Chinese poets and artists, and today, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of China’s top tourist destinations.
HFUT has designed an annual summer Chinese Culture Camp that leads students to Huangshan and other scenic areas as well as introduces students to traditional Chinese martial arts, folk arts, customs and Hui cuisine. They hope Mansfield students will join their camps in the future.
“This was a great visit and the furthering of a great partnership with a university equally committed to student success,” Hendricks said. He added that MU will doubtless continue to have an excellent relationship with HFUT for many years to come.