CCLE Hosts La Salle High School Delegation in Nine-Day Cultural and Educational Exchange Visit
Maxwell Koenen
May 26, 2024
From Sunday, May 26 to Monday, June 3, the Chinese Language Flagship Center and the Center for Chinese Language Education at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa hosted a group of students and staff from La Salle College Preparatory high school in Pasadena, California, to help introduce the students to the Chinese Language Program at UHM as well as various cultural, natural and historic sites around Oahu.
UHM began its relationship with La Salle in 2023, when La Salle’s President Perry Martin,having searched through the thirteen then-existing Chinese Language Flagship programs, settled on the program at UHM. To this end he contacted Flagship Director Dr. Song Jiang. After discussing the possibility of a visit at some point in the future with Dr. Jiang, it was decided that La Salle students would visit in the summer of 2024.
The visiting group, comprised of ten students and three staff touched down in Honolulu on the evening of May 26, where they were received by Doctors Song Jiang and Cynthia Ning, as well as Graduate Assistant Max Koenen. The students and staff then assembled at Kapiolani Seafood Restaurant, where they enjoyed a wide variety of Chinese dishes and got acquainted with the UHM student assistants and staff that would be accompanying them at various points throughout the nine-day excursion.
TECO is the de facto diplomatic mission of the Republic of China, more commonly known as Taiwan. In addition to consular services, it also serves to promote study and investment in Taiwan.
UHM began its relationship with La Salle in 2023, when La Salle’s President Perry Martin,having searched through the thirteen then-existing Chinese Language Flagship programs, settled on the program at UHM. To this end he contacted Flagship Director Dr. Song Jiang. After discussing the possibility of a visit at some point in the future with Dr. Jiang, it was decided that La Salle students would visit in the summer of 2024.
The content of the trip was primarily educational, with the subject matter pertaining to either the history and culture of Hawai’i with a special emphasis on UHM, and knowledge of the Chinese language, with a particular emphasis on what UHM has to offer.
A variety of excursions dealing with Hawai’i’s history were provided over the nine-day period.
These excursions included a visit to Honolulu’s historic Chinatown district, an excursion to Oahu’s famous North Shore and Waikiki areas, the capital historic district, Magic Island Beach and Makapu’u Point. The students also had the opportunity to visit Hawai’i’s Plantation Village, a living museum that provides insight into the sugar plantation economy of Hawai’i’s yesteryear and is often left out of tourist itineraries. Perhaps the most pleasant surprise came during the Pearl Harbor visit, which, due to an opening for a Chinese language tour, allowed the students to enjoy the special opportunity of visiting the USS Missouri, a tour that is highly sought after and is usually incredibly difficult to book.
Activities were held on the UHM campus as well. These activities were led by La Salle staff, including Tina Wang, Nathan Housman and Jialing Sun, as well as UHM faculty and students, Dr. Song Jiang, Dr. Cynthia Ning, Jing Wu, Max Koenen, Jacob Algrim, Molly Wolyn, Kimberly Batson and Hsin-Tzu Jen. Their efforts made the activities fun as well as educational. The activities themselves were mainly divided into recapitulations and lessons that took place after excursions, or various cultural activities that were better suited to take place on campus. The first of these activities was a tour of the UHM campus that included a detailed explanation of the diverse tropical plant life lovingly kept by Harold Lyon and Harold St. John, that lines the walkways and adorn the parks of the UHM campus. In addition to this, the students enjoyed learning mahjong, making Chinese handicrafts and viewing Chinese media. Furthermore, after each excursion, the students were taught a lesson that provided relevant Chinese vocabulary necessary for them to express what they experienced in Mandarin.
The excursion ended with a banquet at Chongqing Hot Pot, in which the students and staff reminisced about the past week. At the conclusion of the banquet, the La Salle students and staff presented the UHM staff with cards showing their appreciation for a successful and informative excursion.
The staff and student assitants at CCLE were absolutely delighted to host the students and staff from La Salle and hope to see the La Salle students at UHM in the coming academic year.
