Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
The Chinese course needs to be remained!
Learning Chinese is a step towards understanding the culture. It’s a fact that the Chinese is spoken in a lot of areas. There are many people who use this language – one fifth of the global population speaks Chinese as their native language. It will be easier for students to communicate with the locals and cover a fair bit of the whole world by learning the language. It not only helps students on travels throughout the country, but also open eyes to a range of literature and art.
China is the second largest economy in the world and one of the largest trading partners of the United States. Many US companies do business in China and have long-term investments. International businesses prefer to hire people who speak more than one language. For those who desire to improve their competitive edge in the job market, a Chinese course will give them an advantage. Many students have inquired about the possibility of more Chinese courses. China is a wonderful country in which to teach English while developing students' language and cultural skills.
The Chinese courses will move the College’s strategic plan forward. It will add to diversity on our campus through its promotion of mutual understanding between the US and Chinese cultures, and help increase the awareness of cultural diversity and communication. The Chinese course will contribute to GAC’s reputation regionally, nationally, and internationally. GAC will be more attractive for the students who are interested in Chinese, Asian culture, and diversity across the nation and abroad. It will involve internalization by promoting study abroad and exchange programs in mainland China, Hong Kong, and other Asian countries. It will also develop and strengthen collaborations and partnerships with educational institutions in China.
More like this
USciences (中文班) Chinese Course Petition
Add Chinese Program in Sylvania Schools
Updates
March 18, 2018
I have been reading through the comments from students who are terrified of losing this essential gateway to their futures. My own path was shaped by these classrooms and seeing the administration push toward cutting them feels like a personal erasure of our history and our potential.
March 18, 2018
Seeing this groundswell of support has been overwhelming because I know how much this program means to my own future and the heritage of so many students here. This momentum shows that our campus truly values the depth that these language courses provide. We have a real path forward now.
Reached 100 supporters
March 18, 2018
25 Comments
This is an important culture to Gustavus and by cutting this program, it means cutting a culture off from Gustavus. Gustavus prides itself on community and has been trying to raise the diversity gap but by cutting this program off, we are regressing and not progressing. This also means that they have the authority to cut off other similar programs if it comes to it.
I would love to get the chance to take the Chinese language course and I have already had Chinese set to be the language I will be taking at Gustavus before I came here.
I am very proud of my students for their willingness in learning about a new culture/language which is radically different from their own. Furthermore, I feel equally proud of their courage in challenging a "challenging" decision.
China is the most populous country in the world, and one day they are going to own most of the US's debt. They have stated that they would like to be the world's currency (supplanting the dollar) by 2025. I don't raise these points to be fear-mongering, only to point out that we *must* have more Chinese speakers in this country so that we can engage with this emerging economic powerhouse.
The Chinese language and culture are extremely important. They should not be taken out of the curriculum. China has a big influence in the world and economy, so it is extremely important to learn about this culture. After taking 4 years of Chinese in high school, I learned so much about China and its culture, which allowed me to interact with international students better and understand more about the world.
The Chinese course needs to be remained for the good of students, the college, and society.
China is the 2nd largest economy in the entire world. Chinese is important now and it will grow even more so in the future. Don't do your students a dis-service by canceling the Chinese Department. Your college will fall behind every other institution that teaches and embraces Chinese culture.
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Status: Closed — this petition is no longer accepting signatures.
Final supporters
The Chinese course needs to be remained!
Learning Chinese is a step towards understanding the culture. It’s a fact that the Chinese is spoken in a lot of areas. There are many people who use this language – one fifth of the global population speaks Chinese as their native language. It will be easier for students to communicate with the locals and cover a fair bit of the whole world by learning the language. It not only helps students on travels throughout the country, but also open eyes to a range of literature and art.
China is the second largest economy in the world and one of the largest trading partners of the United States. Many US companies do business in China and have long-term investments. International businesses prefer to hire people who speak more than one language. For those who desire to improve their competitive edge in the job market, a Chinese course will give them an advantage. Many students have inquired about the possibility of more Chinese courses. China is a wonderful country in which to teach English while developing students' language and cultural skills.
The Chinese courses will move the College’s strategic plan forward. It will add to diversity on our campus through its promotion of mutual understanding between the US and Chinese cultures, and help increase the awareness of cultural diversity and communication. The Chinese course will contribute to GAC’s reputation regionally, nationally, and internationally. GAC will be more attractive for the students who are interested in Chinese, Asian culture, and diversity across the nation and abroad. It will involve internalization by promoting study abroad and exchange programs in mainland China, Hong Kong, and other Asian countries. It will also develop and strengthen collaborations and partnerships with educational institutions in China.
Updates
March 18, 2018
I have been reading through the comments from students who are terrified of losing this essential gateway to their futures. My own path was shaped by these classrooms and seeing the administration push toward cutting them feels like a personal erasure of our history and our potential.
March 18, 2018
Seeing this groundswell of support has been overwhelming because I know how much this program means to my own future and the heritage of so many students here. This momentum shows that our campus truly values the depth that these language courses provide. We have a real path forward now.
Reached 100 supporters
March 18, 2018
25 Comments
What baffles me regarding the language department at Gustavus is how students and professors are willing to put in the extra time and (sometimes uncompensated) effort to get a program (especially majors/minors in linguistics) running and will receive no legitimate reason for cuts to the program! As a member of the crossroads program and honestly as someone with friends whose first language is not English... I can say it makes a big difference to the college atmosphere for people to learn about other languages and cultures than their own... We have even laid out this value in our graduation requirements--so Chinese--one of the most important languages of commerce and communication should NOT be cut.
This is an important culture to Gustavus and by cutting this program, it means cutting a culture off from Gustavus. Gustavus prides itself on community and has been trying to raise the diversity gap but by cutting this program off, we are regressing and not progressing. This also means that they have the authority to cut off other similar programs if it comes to it.
I would love to get the chance to take the Chinese language course and I have already had Chinese set to be the language I will be taking at Gustavus before I came here.
I am very proud of my students for their willingness in learning about a new culture/language which is radically different from their own. Furthermore, I feel equally proud of their courage in challenging a "challenging" decision.
China is the most populous country in the world, and one day they are going to own most of the US's debt. They have stated that they would like to be the world's currency (supplanting the dollar) by 2025. I don't raise these points to be fear-mongering, only to point out that we *must* have more Chinese speakers in this country so that we can engage with this emerging economic powerhouse.
The Chinese language and culture are extremely important. They should not be taken out of the curriculum. China has a big influence in the world and economy, so it is extremely important to learn about this culture. After taking 4 years of Chinese in high school, I learned so much about China and its culture, which allowed me to interact with international students better and understand more about the world.
The Chinese course needs to be remained for the good of students, the college, and society.
China is the 2nd largest economy in the entire world. Chinese is important now and it will grow even more so in the future. Don't do your students a dis-service by canceling the Chinese Department. Your college will fall behind every other institution that teaches and embraces Chinese culture.
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What baffles me regarding the language department at Gustavus is how students and professors are willing to put in the extra time and (sometimes uncompensated) effort to get a program (especially majors/minors in linguistics) running and will receive no legitimate reason for cuts to the program! As a member of the crossroads program and honestly as someone with friends whose first language is not English... I can say it makes a big difference to the college atmosphere for people to learn about other languages and cultures than their own... We have even laid out this value in our graduation requirements--so Chinese--one of the most important languages of commerce and communication should NOT be cut.