Cross Cultural Exchange

English major and Search for Education, Elevation, and Knowledge (SEEK) student Jaquasia Barrett was the recipient of a grant for the 2019 Summer China-US Rising Star Study Tour. As a Rising Star, Barrett spent two weeks visiting Beijing, Xi’an, and Chengdu, China.  Along with other American students, she participated in field trips and intensive study in the host cities. Barrett said the experience is one she will not soon forget.

Leaving was bittersweet because of how connected I became with the other participants as well as for the experiences that I could not have had anywhere else, Barrett added, One of the most memorable experiences had to have been visiting The Great Wall. As American students, we learn about it so often, but to be able to see it was beyond exciting.

The China – U.S. Rising Star Student Study Tour is a student exchange program, offered by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU), under the framework of the China – U.S. High-level Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE) in the sector of vocational education. The program provides students with lodging, meals, and transportation while in China.  Students are responsible for their own round-trip airfare to China. Dr. Keming Liu, chair of the English Department and Director of the Confucius Institute for Science and Humanities at Medgar Evers College, recommended Barrett apply for the program. Liu said Barrett showed her she was the perfect candidate for this program while enrolled in her Linguistics course in spring 2019.

When she participated in field trips and contributed to discussions on cross-cultural exchange, Asia showed her singular tenacity to explore the world, said Liu.

I am beyond grateful to have networked with Dr. Liu and for her to have found this program and trusted me enough to recommend me and have me represent Medgar Evers College, said Barrett.