Michelle at the Amber Fort, near Jaipur, India (Photo credit: Misha Clasby)
Dear Westridge School China Program Participants:
I began studying Chinese in preparation for a move to Taiwan with my family when I was twelve years old. I had no idea then how much time in Asia would direct the rest of my life. I have now been speaking Mandarin and spending time in Asia for almost thirty years. After graduating from high school in Taipei, I spent a year studying at Fudan University in Shanghai, China. My graduate work was done in the field of International Education, with my field work focused on the plight of Tibetan refugees.
Over the past decade International Education has been my personal and professional focus. I have planned and led high school and/or gap year programs to China/Tibet, Thailand, and India. I have also taught Asian and Global Studies courses (including Chinese Language & Culture and Tibetan Studies at a high school level). I have very much enjoyed networking with people to plan the Westridge program over the past year which will expose you to fascinating learning opportunities in several regions of northeast China.
Global LAB’s Westridge China program will integrate language practice opportunities and cultural learning opportunities and explore some ancient traditions including Martial Arts and Buddhism, while also witnessing the modern side of a rapidly changing China. Westridge students will build personal connections with local Chinese students and will also have the chance to visit some of the world’s most impressive historic monuments in and around Beijing and Xian. The program will be an intense combination of experiences which will give all of you a strong sampling of the many faces of China in the 21st century as well as some glimpses into her ancient history.
I believe there are few opportunities available that make a bigger impact on helping youth develop a sense of who they are, what their role might be in the world, and how diverse and amazing a planet we live on then spending time abroad. Time in China will develop in each of you a new level of awareness of the challenges and struggles that are faced in so many places in our world: political, environmental, and cultural. You are at stages in your lives where you can go abroad, witness both the amazing and the difficult and then come home to figure out what your role will be in the future of our world.
One of my former students (who went to China with me in 2001) became concerned about environmental problems she observed there and chose Environmental Studies as her college major. She is now living and working on environmental issues in the Philippines. Another student became so interested in Tibetan Buddhism after our trip to Tibet that he chose to attend Naropa University (a Buddhist institution) and graduated last spring with the goal to secure work helping people resolve conflicts using a Buddhist psychological perspective. You never know how time abroad will impact you, but it will: deeply. I went to Taiwan unwillingly as a twelve year old (moving with my parents), but now I go back to Asia eagerly. Every time I return I learn and understand more and yet each visit raises more questions as well.
I am eager find out how your experiences in China will influence each of you in the years to come.
Sincerely,
Michelle Bos-Lun
Director of China Programs, Global Learning Across Borders
michelle@global-lab.org
