DSU signs agreement with China’s Guizhou
University
Schools to exchange faculty and students
Dakota State University has signed an agreement with
China’s Guizhou University of Technology to exchange faculty for
researching and learning.
DSU President, Dr. Jerald Tunheim and Vice-President of
Guizhou, Xiayao Xie signed the agreement Thursday morning.
“China is one of
the most important economic partners in the world and will likely
be more important in the future,” Dr. Tunheim said. “It’s
important for our students and faculty to be exposed to the
Chinese culture.”
The agreement states
that there will be a reciprocal exchange of 2 to 4 members of each
school’s faculty for research and learning. It also states that
the two schools will create distance education using the campus
network and Internet to benefit on-campus American and Chinese
students.
“We have Chinese students taking our distance courses on
a regular basis,” said Tunheim. “Our goal is for our students
to take courses their faculty teach. Many of Guizhou’s classes
are taught in English.”
Also both
institutions agree to establish centers to provide convenient
accommodations for Chinese and American students.
“DSU
and Madison have a tradition of welcoming students and faculty
from around the world,” Lynn Ryan, DSU Director of International
Programs said. “We want to build on our strengths and send our
faculty and students around the world, too.”
“We hope to establish a formal program during the next
two years,” Dr. Tunheim said. “We hope to have active
exchanges on a regular basis.”
Exchanges will be for summer sessions or a semester of
classes and could also occur for the entire academic year.
Dr. Tunheim and Ryan
will make a reciprocal visit to China in October to further the
relationship.
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