SEMO reaches out to another Chinese university

Southeast Missouri State University has forged an agreement with a second Chinese university that will allow Chinese students to take two years of course work at the Cape Girardeau school as Southeast seeks to reach out to the developing Asian nation.

The latest agreement is with Hunan Normal University in Changsha, China, which like Southeast, started out as a teachers college.

A seven-member delegation from the Chinese school visited the Southeast campus Wednesday, signing an agreement at a 4:30 p.m. ceremony at the University Center.

"We can learn from each other," Southeast president Dr. Ken Dobbins told the delegation led by Dr. Liu Xiangrong, president of Hunan Normal.

"I think it is a good sign and a good beginning between our universities," the Chinese university president said through an interpreter.

The two presidents exchanged gifts. Dobbins said he hopes to make a trip to China this fall.

Hunan Normal, founded in 1938, has an enrollment of more than 20,000 students. The university has more than 900 faculty and staff. It offers 63 undergraduate programs, 56 master's degree programs and 10 doctoral degree programs.

"Hunan Normal's size and extensive doctoral programs make it a major research institution," said Dr. Adelaide Parsons, director of international programs at Southeast. "It is closely connected to initiatives with the Chinese government," she said.

Parsons said the articulation agreement, which is similar to one Southeast signed with Sichuan Normal University in March, will offer Chinese students the opportunity to combine the best of a western and Chinese education.

Eighteen students from Sichuan Normal already have applied for admission to Southeast for the fall semester.

Parsons said some students from Hunan Normal may enroll for the fall semester too.

The joint program will offer degrees in music, art, industrial technology, English, education and environmental sciences. Additional degrees likely will be offered in the future, Parsons said.

Study abroad

Under the agreement, Chinese students will study one year at their home university, two years at Southeast and then a final year back in China.

Students will graduate with degrees from both schools, officials said.

The fact that the Chinese students will be returning home to finish their college work may make it easier for the students to secure visas needed to study here, Southeast provost Dr. Jane Stephens said.

The agreement also will allow for faculty exchanges.

Parsons said some American students eventually may have an opportunity to study in China as a result of the educational partnership.

China's growing prominence in the global economy makes all the more important for Americans to learn about Chinese culture, Dobbins said.

mbliss@semissourian.com

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