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SC Faculty and Students Heading to China

Two Southwestern College faculty, their wives, and three SC students will spend the second semester in China beginning Feb. 8.

George Gangwere will teach introductory physics; Terry Barnett will teach organic chemistry; and Patricia Gangwere and Cheryl Barnett will teach conversational English and American culture at Huangshan University in Tunxi, China.

Cooper Hart, junior theater and music major, and Andy Stanfield, junior history major, will both be taking 12 hours of Chinese language and culture classes from Huangshan University. Krista Cross, junior biology education major, will be taking 6 hours of Chinese language and culture classes from Huangshan University and 6 hours of education classes from Southwestern online.

“We’re pleased by our growing connection with Chinese universities.  The opportunity for well-planned study abroad experiences, in the company of Southwestern College faculty, is immensely valuable for our students,” says Southwestern College President Dick Merriman.

“We will take trips to local villages and the Huangshan Mountains as well as trips to Shanghai, Beijing, Hangzhou, and Xi’an,” Gangwere says.

Since June 2008, Southwestern College and Huangshan University have been sister schools agreeing to send students and faculty to their institutions.  For students, academic credit earned during the overseas learning experience is awarded by the host campus and accepted by their sending campus.

The group will return to the United States in June.

Nili Luo, coordinator of early childhood education, is also in China this semester.  Luo is at Ding Qi schools where she is teaching early childhood education to 13 teachers who work at that school.  Ding Qi schools is based in Mongolia but has offices throughout China.  Although Nili is based in the Beijing school, she has been to Hohhot Mongolia to provide some teacher training.  Best practices in early childhood education are fairly new in China and the government recently passed legislation to force all early childhood learning centers to be current in the discipline.  Nili is responding to that call. 

“Her work is exciting and it is also creating paid internship opportunities for SC students who would like to join her this summer,” says Andy Sheppard, vice president for academic affairs and dean of faculty at Southwestern College.

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