At 8:30 a.m., doors fly open as dozens of half-conscious Tars lug themselves down the hall and, despite a lack of awareness, pack themselves neatly into the elevator and shuttle down for breakfast. As they find their seats, many of them pick up their cellphones to contact home, wishing parents and friends a pleasant end to their evenings, as their own mornings have just begun. The students are not filing out of their dorms and into the CC; they are, approximately 7816.32 miles away from Tars Plaza, inside a hotel located on the foothills of Mount Tai, or 泰山, the holiest mountain in all of China.
21 students embarked on a two week long field study, headed by Professor Jingyue Liu and Professor Jie Yu, from December 31 to January 15, across northern China—the first program to China conducted by Rollins College since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and the following  since the measures were lifted by the People Republic of China (PRC) in . December of 2022.
“Before COVID-19, our college had a semester long program in Shanghai. At least 12 to 15 students from Rollins enrolled in the Shanghai program yearly. But do you know the number of Rollins students enrolled in such a Shanghai program after COVID-19? Zero,” said Yue.
“Due to the pandemic, all these connections to Chinese universities got cut off. So, this field study is an opportunity to reboot the connection,” said Prof. Liu.
The rebuilding of relations between Rollins College and the Chinese academic community was a critical goal of Professor Yu’s and Professor Liu’s mission for the field study, officially titled “a Journey of Culture Through China.” The element of culture referenced in the program title is also an important bridge between not just Rollins and Chinese academia but the United States and PRC.
“Under this special political atmosphere, misconceptions are building up. So, this field study is a good way for students to see China by themselves, so they have a tangible feeling of what China really is. It is different from the images built by social media, political media. Only when you see China and the culture with your own eyes, you will know which is the right perception and which is the misconception,” said Liu.
To combat any sources of cultural misconceptions of the PRC, Professor Yu, Professor Liu, and the program’s host institution, Shandong First Medical University, curated an itinerary which featured what Professor Yu called “authentic cultural experiences.” This included activities highlighting the heart and soul of Chinese life and history rather than the outward facing “tourist” understanding of local culture.
Students experienced in-depth lectures taught by experts in their fields, not simply visiting museums or viewing a demonstration of cultural practices but cultivating a true direct understanding of the breadth and personal impact of local culture. Students even had the opportunity to be used as an example for a class of medical students at Shandong First Medical University.
“A genuine cultural experience occurs not in your visit to a museum or in just observing those physical but dead artifacts of history and culture but when you have the opportunity to watch the Traditional shadow puppet show, make the puppets with your peers, and then perform with them, and when you have the opportunity to weigh the soaked soy beans with traditional Chinese scales to make tofu, using the most traditional recipe for thousands of years,” said Yu.
The experiences had a worldview-changing impact on some students who felt as though their time in China had dispelled some of their preexisting misconceptions and left them feeling better equipped to counter negative stereotypes.
“I didn’t recognize that I had implicit preconceptions about China, but I expected things to be very busy all the time,” said Sophie Trisler (’28). “In reality, it was a lot more peaceful than I thought it would be. I think that that’s a big reason why I came to China: to see what it is like outside of the realm of politics and history. The trip really gave me a lot of that insight.”
“Nowadays, our world has been flattened into a global village, and the depth of cultural diversity is lost. I believe this China program can give our students the opportunity to be immersed into the depths of Chinese culture, philosophy, and history and to experience a meaningful life in this global village,” said Yu.
Professor Yu and Professor Liu are anticipating the approval of new field studies to China in the future. Students can find information regarding field studies by contacting the Rollins Office of International Programs.
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