Project Pengyou Chapters in the News: UTK praised by the Daily Beacon
Project Pengyou, University of Tennessee-Knoxville (UTK) Chapter kicked-off the academic semester with a bang, receiving endorsements from many leaders in their school and even piloting an exciting new program: the Luminary Scholars program.
The Daily Beacon, a local news organization at UT interviewed Jianyin Roachell, our Project Pengyou Leadership Fellow and UTK Chapter Founder and Tristen Callis, leadership team member and new Leadership Fellow. The two expressed in the interview that with international friendship as a core value, the Chapter plans to expand their network and seek mentors on campus to help young Chinese and American leaders grow. George Drinnon, executive director of undergraduate programs at the Haslam College of Business, said:
“It doesn’t matter if a student plans to work for a huge multinational corporation or work for their small family business back home, the ability to forge relationships across national and cultural boundaries is critical…Project Pengyou represents an opportunity to gain the skills and the experience necessary to compete at every level, not just in the context of China but in any environment where one has to understand different perspectives.” Suzanne Wright, chairwoman of UTK Asian Studies Program, also praised the work of the UTK Chapter, stating in a meeting with the Chapter leaders that: “Project Pengyou provides opportunities for UT students to educate themselves about China’s place in the world, from connections with others who have studied and worked in China, to study or intern in China themselves, and to develop leadership capabilities through the Luminary Scholars Program.”
“We don’t want to be another Chinese culture organization,” Roachell said. “We develop leaders in US-China relations.” Great work UTK Pengyous! We are excited to see the developments of your newly launched Luminary Scholars Program, and we have faith that your Chapter will continue to do great things this year.