Albany, NY - Twenty two campuses of the State University of New York’s (SUNY) 64-campus system are opening their doors for the next year to 150 Chinese undergraduate students—including 17 to be hosted at Buffalo State College—from the Sichuan Province of western China, site of a massive earthquake in May. The majority of these students come from 40 counties around Wenchuan, the center of the quake.

The students, primarily sophomores and juniors, will study for two semesters as full-time students at SUNY state-operated and community college campuses this fall. The goal is to build a team of young leaders based on their common experiences in the U.S.

When they return to China these talented men and women from diverse Chinese ethnic groups will help re-build the local economy and infrastructure in the region earthquake impacted. Each student has committed to return to China upon completion of the program in May/June 2009 and to a period of national service in Sichuan to help with the rebuilding effort.

SUNY students and faculty will benefit from the presence of the Chinese students, who will contribute to the growing global presence of the State University and lead to long-term friendships and important connections between communities in New York and China.
“On behalf of all New Yorkers, we are pleased to welcome these students to our State University system and to ensure that there is no interruption in their college studies despite the tragic natural disaster that hit Chengdu in May,” said New York Governor David Paterson. “SUNY will provide these students with valuable leadership training which will help prepare them to return to China to assist with rebuilding efforts and the aftermath of the Earthquake. SUNY’s deep educational ties with China allow our state university campuses to play a global role – and to be at the forefront of international educational experiences.”

“The State University of New York has a long and mutually productive relationship with a number of Chinese Universities, particularly in Jiangsu Province,” said Carl Hayden, Chairman of the SUNY Board of Trustees. “This initiative further strengthens SUNY’s ties to China even as it provides desperately needed humanitarian support for students from Sichuan Province displaced by the devastating earthquakes of last May. It enjoys support at the highest levels of both the Chinese government and our own.”

“We see this program (the SUNY China 150 Program) not only as a way to grow educational cooperation and exchanges with SUNY, but also as a critical first step in helping to expand mutually beneficial economic and commercial relations between Sichuan Province and New York State,” said Wang Fengxiong, Vice Director of the Education Department of Sichuan Province.

“SUNY has been collaborating with Chinese universities for more than 25 years,” said Interim Chancellor Dr. John B. Clark. “I commend Governor Paterson for his support of China 150 and thank each of the SUNY campuses for their participation in this most important international initiative.”

“Broadening our international relationship with China benefits SUNY and New York state, as it will benefit the rebuilding effort in the Sichuan province,” said Dr. Denis Simon, provost at SUNY’s Neil D. Levin Graduate Institute of International Relations and Commerce in New York City and one of the organizers of the initiative. “Using education and partnership in response to such a disaster seemed a natural for SUNY.”

The 22 SUNY Host Schools
SUNY – Farmingdale, 19
SUNY- Cobleskill, 18
Buffalo State College, 17
Herkimer Community College, 11
Clinton Community College, 10
Genesee Community College, 8
Universityat Albany, 6
Stony Brook University, 6
SUNY – Plattsburgh, 6
College of Technology at Canton, 6
SUNY – Potsdam, 5
Jamestown Community College, 5
Alfred Ceramics, 5
University at Buffalo, 4
SUNY – Delhi, 4
SUNY - Maritime, 4
SUNY – Brockport, 4
SUNY – Oswego, 4
Monroe Community College, 3
Alfred State, 2
Binghamton University, 2
SUNY – New Paltz, 1

SUNY has consistently engaged in productive and mutually beneficial educational exchange and research collaborations with China and is confident this initiative will increase the connections between New York state and Sichuan Province (a province of 90 million people) and with China overall, leading to economic, educational, and cultural benefits.

Strong Support from all Quarters
The State University has undertaken a fundraising drive so this initiative will not result in any costs to New York State taxpayers.

This unique SUNY initiative enjoys the strong support of the U.S. Department of State, which, thanks to the leadership of Deputy Secretary John Negroponte, has facilitated the visa process. SUNY has worked with both the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu (Sichuan). The program is under the overall coordination of University Counsel and Vice Chancellor for Legal Affairs Nicholas Rostow, who also serves as University Fellow at the Levin Institute and formerly was General Counsel of the U.S. Mission to the United Nations.

At the highest levels of the Chinese Government Premier Wen Jiabao has personally endorsed the program, and State Councilor Liu Yandong and Minister of Education Zhou Ji (who holds a Ph.D. from the State University of New York at Buffalo) helped shape the initiative to ensure the students are competent in English and otherwise prepared for the adventure of two semesters of U.S.-based college education.

Diversifying the Educational Experience
There currently are more than 2,316 Chinese students studying at SUNY schools—42 percent of the overall Chinese student population in New York state (5,532). In addition, there are exchange agreements between 15 SUNY campuses and more than 30 Chinese universities.

The participating students include 53 men and 97 women and there are about 10 percent who are Chinese minorities, meaning they are from the Zang (Tibet) and Qiang ethnic groups. Among those living in the earthquake affected areas, the Zang and Qiang minorities suffered a great deal. SUNY asked that in addition to gender balance and a focus on Sichuan natives, the Chinese also include minority participants. The authorities in Sichuan were very sensitive to that request.

Students Carefully Matched
The 150 students were chosen after a careful review of their academic performance as well as English language testing conducted by a team of eight experienced English language teachers from across China.

The selected students had to be Sichuan residents and were selected from four national universities under the leadership of the Ministry of Education in Beijing and from among several local/provincial colleges and universities in Sichuan. Students were assigned to various SUNY campuses through a sorting process that involved a team of experienced academic administrators. Assignments were made on the basis of student interests as well as the ability of the respective campuses to accommodate additional students from abroad in currently available spaces. There is no impact to current student enrollment or fall applications.