Registration underway for low-cost Chinese culture courses

Contact: Margaret von Steinen
Confucius Institute logo.

Registration now open for summer classes.

KALAMAZOO—The Confucius Institute at Western Michigan University is accepting registrations for 2013 summer I Chinese culture courses that begin the week of May 6.

The low-cost courses are taught by instructors from Beijing Language and Culture University and are open to the public. They are taught in English and offered to adults age 18 or older for personal enrichment, rather than academic credit. All are being held on WMU's main campus in Kalamazoo.

A half-price tuition discount is offered to those age 55 and older, WMU part-time faculty and staff members, and WMU students. WMU full-time faculty and staff members pay no tuition. Some courses charge all participants a fee for materials, and those with low enrollment may be canceled.

Summer I course offerings

  • Basic Chinese Language—6 to 7:30 p.m. Mondays, May 6 through June 17, 2037 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70.
  • Chinese Calligraphy—6 to 8 p.m. Mondays, May 6 through June 17, 2048 Brown Hall. Tuition: $60. Materials fee: $20.
  • Basic Tai Chi—6 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays, May 7 through June 18, KIVA Room, Faunce Student Services Building. Tuition: $60.
  • Business Chinese—6 to 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays, May 7 through June 18, 3017 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70.
  • Basic Chinese Painting—6 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays, May 7 through June 18, 3048 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70. Materials fee: $30.
  • Chinese Life and Culture—6 to 8 p.m. Wednesdays, May 8 through June 19, 2048 Brown Hall. Tuition: $60.
  • Intermediate Chinese Language A—6 to 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays, May 8 through June 19, 2037 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70.
  • Intermediate Chinese Language B—6 to 7:30 p.m. Thursdays, May 9 through June 20, 3017 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70.
  • Intermediate Chinese Painting—6 to 8 p.m. Thursdays, May 9 through June 20, 3048 Brown Hall. Tuition: $70. Materials fee: $30.

Course instructors

  • Huaming Wang is a painting instructor from Guilin, China. His award-winning work has been included in national exhibitions, and he is a member of the Guangxi Artists Association in China.
  • Shengang Wang, a Chinese language instructor, is from Shandong Province. He has taught Chinese language classes at Beijing Language and Culture University since 2002.
  • Yin Long teaches tai chi, calligraphy and Chinese life and culture courses. She is from Chongqing, China, and a graduate student at Beijing Language and Culture University, majoring in Chinese and English translation and interpretation.

For more information about Chinese culture courses or to register, visit the Confucius Institute at wmuconfucius.org or contact the institute at wmu-confucius-cc@wmich.edu or (269) 387-3784. Direct questions to Yu Zhang at yu.50.zhang@wmich.edu or (269) 387-3784.