200 students from China’s Sichuan Province visit Rice

200 students from China’s Sichuan Province visit Rice

BY FRANZ BROTZEN
Rice News staff

Some 200 middle and high school students from China’s Sichuan Province visited Rice University July 22 as part of their two-week stay in Houston. They toured Mary Gibbs Jones College, Herzstein Hall, Anne and Charles Duncan Hall, the Humanities Building and Fondren Library before eating lunch at the Grand Hall in Rice Memorial Center (RMC).

	TOMMY LAVERGNE
	University Representative Y. Ping Sun talks with two of the Chinese students visiting Rice July 22.

Y. Ping Sun, university representative and wife of Rice President David Leebron, spoke to the students in the RMC. “I was pleased to have an opportunity to welcome 224 Chinese middle school and high school students and 24 teachers from Sichuan Province, where a devastating earthquake took place in May,” she said. “These students are very energetic and full of questions about life in America. I hope many of them will serve as ambassadors to spread the word about Rice in China, and perhaps we will even be able to welcome some of them as freshmen at Rice in a few years.”

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The students’ trip was sponsored by the Sichuan Department of Education. All those selected for the trip came from around Chengdu, the provincial capital, said Willie Xu, a Rice undergraduate who is one of the program managers. They went through rigorous testing, with a special emphasis on English-language skills, Xu added.

The Chinese Student Association helped to organize the visit to Rice. Rice welcomed the visitors as part of its Vision for the Second Century goal to strengthen international ties with China.

The students were organized into more manageable groups of about 30 for their campus tours. Simon Wu, a Rice undergraduate who served as a guide for one of the groups, said some of the members of his group asked about the amount of the tuition for Rice and the availability of scholarships.

TOMMY LAVERGNE
Rice undergrad Simon Wu points out details of the elaborate ceiling of Duncan Hall to some of the students visiting from China’s Sichuan Province.

Fei Xu, a graduate student in mathematics, was the Rice tour coordinator. “They were interested in learning about everyday life of Rice students,” she said. “They asked about how much homework we have and what we do for fun.”

While they also visited cities on the East and West coasts, the students are spending the bulk of their time in Houston. The program is in its fifth year, but this is the first time it included a stop in Houston. The Chinese Civic Center of Houston organized the Houston segment of the students’ trip. Houston was chosen in part because of its strong Chinese community, Xu said.

The students are staying with American families while in Houston and attending classes at the campus of the Second Baptist Church.

The students also visited the office of Mayor Bill White and the Houston City Council as well as the Chinese Consulate. Other field trips involve NASA, the Port of Houston and a Houston Astros game.