Daily Pioneer News

Left to right: Vice Dean of the Confucius Institute and Dean of the Department of International Cooperation & Exchange at SCUN Ruan Zhijian; Deputy Director of the Education Section of the State Committee on Ethnic Affairs for the PRC Mr. Zhang Jingze Li Buhai, the president of South-Central University for Nationalities in Wuhan, China; Provost & Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs at UWP Dr. Carol Sue Butts; Dean of the Confucius Institute & Associate Vice Chancellor at UWP Dr. David Van Buren; Director of the Confucius Institute & Director of Continuing Education at UWP Ms. Marian Maciej-Hiner

PLATTEVILLE - Colors whirled as brightly clad dancers from the South-Central University for Nationalities performed Saturday, April 12 at the grand opening for the Confucius Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville.

Carol Sue Butts, vice chancellor and provost, started the celebration off by declaring that today was "truly a great day for the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, University of Wisconsin System, tri-state region, and state of Wisconsin." Butts continued by defining the role of a Pioneer as those who take lead and pave the way for others.

"The Confucius Institute at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville is the result of two visionary leaders, Chancellor David Markee, and Li Buhai, president of the South-Central University for Nationalities," Butts remarked.

President Li led a delegation including administrators from SCUN, press from China's second largest newspaper, and representatives from the central government of China to participate in the celebration. Li recognized that the "efforts we have made help us to cherish this event."

David Van Buren, UWP associate vice chancellor and dean of the Confucius Institute, remarked on the importance of this cultural bridge.

"This Confucius Institute is established with support from the Chinese Ministry of Education and the Office of Chinese Language Council International. The first Confucius Institute was established four years ago, in South Korea. There are more than 200 Confucius Institutes in the world with 42 of those in the USA. The basic missions of the Confucius Institute are to promote a better understanding of Chinese culture; develop friendly relationships between China and other countries; accelerate the development of multiculturalism at the international level; and increase global peace and harmony," said Van Buren.

Twenty students and their faculty leader from SCUN, one of only six universities in China that serve the ethnic nationalities of China, performed as part of the celebration. The dances and songs that they performed were representative of several of the different ethnic minorities of the Chinese people.

Also present was the Advisory Board of the Confucius Institute. The Confucius Institute Advisory Board advises the administration of the Institute in general matters of development, programming, curriculum and instruction, and strategic planning related to the Confucius Institute. The general management and operations of the Confucius Institute at UW-Platteville are the responsibility of the dean, vice-dean, and director.

The ceremony concluded with the presentation of the Confucius Institute plaque. Ms. Marian Maciej-Hiner, UWP director of continuing education and director of the Confucius Institute; Dr. Carol Sue Butts, UWP provost & vice chancellor for academic affairs; and Dr. David Van Buren, UWP associate vice chancellor and dean of the Confucius Institute, stood with Mr. Zhang Jingze, Deputy Director of the Education Section of the State Committee on Ethnic Affairs for the People's Republic of China; Mr. Ruan Zhijian, SCUN dean of the Department of International Cooperation and Exchange and vice-dean of the Confucius Institute; and President Li as the plaque was unveiled.

"This is only the beginning," Director Ruan said.

The Confucius Institute at UW-Platteville is part of an international network. The only Confucius Institute approved for the state of Wisconsin, it will serve the people of Southwest Wisconsin, the tri-state region, and the state of Wisconsin with high quality workshops and seminars in Chinese language and culture - for community members, businesses and schools.

The Confucius Institute will be housed on the first floor of Royce Hall. Two professors from SCUN, Wang Xiaojun and He Ganjun, will staff the institute.

"I am so excited for people here to begin learning Mandarin Chinese," Professor He said. "I really think this program will attract a lot of participants."

The Confucius Institute will focus on providing information, educational programming and consultative services concerning Chinese language, education, culture, economy, history and society. The Confucius Institute at UWP will develop and deliver Mandarin Chinese language courses for various populations; offer seminars and workshops on Chinese business practices and culture; promote research about contemporary China; coordinate student and scholar travel to China; establish local facilities to hold the HSK examination, a Chinese language proficiency test; train teachers to deliver Chinese language instruction and provide them with Chinese language teaching resources; and implement procedures for the certification of Chinese language teachers.

The Confucius Institute is a collaborative project including the University of Wisconsin-Platteville, Office of Chinese Language Council International of the Chinese Ministry of Education and South-Central University for Nationalities in Wuhan, China.

Anyone interested in learning more about the Confucius Institute at UWP may contact Daus at (608) 342-1282 or daus@uwplatt.edu.

Contact: Barb Daus, special assistant to the chancellor, (608) 342-1282, daus@uwplatt.edu Prepared by: Nicole Eggebeen, UWP Public Relations, (608) 342-1194, eggebeen@uwplatt.edu