Saturday, February 28, 2009 - A few MORE thoughts….this time from Christ’s College in Taipei Taiwan

Interesting isn’t it that Handong is home to “God’s University” while Taipei is home to “Christ’s College.” Hmmmmm….
Enjoyed a wonderful breakfast this morning in the simply magnificent dining area of the Grand Hotel…overlooking city below and mountains beyond! Breathtaking….. Lots of chinese breakfast food….delicious no doubt. But I opted for a fresh omelet, delicious papaya, cranberry juice, very good lean ham, a slice of swiss cheese, and TWO slices of the freshest tastiest softest crispiest French bread I’ve had in 3 weeks. Mmmmm good.

Kevin Pei picked me up at 10am, and after quick introductions at Christ’s College (20 minute drive away) Julie Shen and Kevin gave me a tour.
The campus is beautiful….an oasis in the midst of the city. 5-6 nice buildings, including a beautiful chapel, two new dorms, the Billy and Ruth Graham building housing faculty apartments. The founder, Dr. Graham, had actually taught Billy and Ruth at Wheaton. The burial ground next to the chapel with several life-long missionary graves was moving for me. I was reminded of Lucille Damon and Mairipora in Brasil. What courage, what vision, what patience, what trust. When I also visited this afternoon at the site of the first missionaries to Formosa (Dutch for Beautiful Island) the tribute to Dr. George MacKay was again moving. These people changed this nation. Do any of us have this vision, this confidence, this purpose, this passion? I wonder.
Christ’s College has suffered significant enrollment decline. Perhaps as much as 50% in the past 5 years. At one time they were at 900…and now are between 350 & 400. It wasn’t altogether clear what the reason is for this. Among the candidates were: decline in the birth rate (like Korea!), questions among constituents about Christian focus, ongoing ambiguity about the government registration issue, financial challenges.

As I met for several hours with Judy Alexander, Becky White (English head), Kevin, Ann Wiley (PCA missionary), Vincent Lin (Mgmnt head), Julie, and Jennifer Lee (Interim VP for Spiritual Affairs….and student affairs from what I can tell)…..along with Quentin, it became apparent that the overriding issue for everyone is the frustrating challenge of figuring out which of two ways to move ahead in registering with the government. One way is to register as a private college. But this brings restrictions that are unpalatable….not the least of which is that chapel cannot be required. To register as religious institution however, brings equally unpalatable restrictions….including a cap on enrollment of 200! Some have even wondered out loud if it’s time to resist the government on this.
About 1/3 of the students are Christian coming in…and the thinking is that about 2/3 are Christians when they graduate. The faculty sign a statement of faith. The English department has 200 of the students majoring in their area. Sadly, the government, in assessing them for registration focuses on inputs, like Ph.D.s, facilities, library books. This is plainly an “old” way of doing things. But this puts them in another bind…how to allocate scarce resources between the demands of the government like these and THEIR priorities for student development kinds of things. (Becky made this point). Ironically, while the culture is calling for more accountability and character the government priorities focus on inputs. Julie shared three concerns….things that “keep her awake.” 1. Her passion for Christians in her profession of Mass Comm. She made the point that Taiwan has the best media in the Chinese world. So the potential impact of Christians can be huge. She is a former journalist with a national paper….the only Christian in 200 others in her role. 2. They need resources….grant writing eg. They need TV studios and don’t have them. 3. They feel they are fighting the government alone. Being able to show that Christian liberal arts IS being done with legitimacy elsewhere would be a big help.
To address these three items it seemed that workshops in Mass Comm by an outside Academic SWAT team would help, that a workshop in grant writing would also help, and that perhaps the informal academic audit/review/accreditation proposed by UCL in Quito might help too.
After she spoke and Vincent added his plea for exchange students, it struck me that CC really DOES have something unique to offer. Taiwan may not only be the best Chinese media….but CC may well be the only place to combine BOTH a thorough understanding of Chinese culture AND Christian faith. Given the prospects of a century of Chinese domination, they could be sitting on the best source for Christians to impact this century. They have already launched a program in Chinese language, culture, and mission for expats….if it is marketed aggressively and broadened to include business so it attracts non-Christians, it could be a huge money maker AND force for Christian influence. But as Bill Gates proved, it’s not about having the best product, it’s about marketing. You can build a better mousetrap….but the world will NOT beat a path to your door. And your mousetrap can be inferior, but with the right marketing they will beat that path. Sad but true I think. I hope CC can recognize and capitalize on this huge asset they have.
Several thought the idea of a CCCU “Summer Camp” in the US to teach English would be great. It would be good for the US hosting school as a way to recruit, and would be an attractive recruitment tool for the international school too.

I shared the various ideas I have heard from others and they were uniformly well received. I think CCCU must do these…regardless of grant money.
CCCU web site changes….
1. Retirees and sabbaticants listed.
2. SWAT teams identified and listed for consulting both online and onsite
3. Uniform pages for each member….to facilitate identifying partners for exchange and for ideas
4. Peer contacts to facilitate the communication when potential partnerships are seen.
5. Shared courses or code-sharing…perhaps with mychurch.com or oneplace.com
6. Personal networking perhaps through Facebook
Non-web ideas….
7. A position in DC to focus on international affiliates
8. Informal academic audits available to affiliates
9. Regional coordinator….but perhaps NOT conferences since IAPCHE seems to do this regionally and well.



After a great lunch in their “Sky Room” (my name) overlooking the entire city and river…..I mean a “MILLION DOLLAR VIEW”….
Julie and Kevin gave me a fabulous tour of the tourist district along the river. I was the only Caucasian I saw….did I SEE myself?.....for 3 hours. Julie is a little crazy about trying new foods, so I tried new foods! The helical garlic potato chips were the most familiar! Stinky tofu was ok….but I left them for Kevin to finish! They not only bought various wonderful tidbits of food, but a cool finger puppet….Tzu ge Lian….the only one that supposedly uses his brains not his weapon to fight his battles.Also bought me 2 acupuncture torture devices! At least they LOOK artsy! Kevin and Julie spoiled me all afternoon...buying so many different kinds of food, and little curios. They wouldn't take money. It was a great break for me....the first real sightseeing since Hans Hamoen toured me in Ede....and Yohan detoured me for 5 minutes through the fish market in Pohang. Thanks SO much Kevin and Julie for a GREAT afternoon of laughing that I'll not soon forget. You were both so very gracious to me.
This is called chinese milk tea....with pearls....actually a nice tea, with sweet milk, and small "gummy bear balls" one sucks up into one's mouth with a large straw...large enough to pass these dark colored balls...see them in the cup?! Very strange! But tastes good!


Traffic was heavy coming back even via the shortcut….and motorscooters dominated the sidelanes. But it was a wonderful time. Kevin and Julie are in a Bible study together daily and I could see their friendship in Christ has been a sustaining influence in their lives.

Saturday, February 28, 2009 - Just a few thoughts….

A few thoughts that have been bouncing around in my head since Korea….
I have always known the desire of many overseas to learn English and study in the US. It was true in Brasil in 1965. It was certainly true among my students and virtually everyone in Africa in the late ‘80s. But I have never before been made quite so much aware of the nearly obsessive (and I don’t use that term loosely) degree to which people seem to want to learn English here in Asia. One might be tempted to think that people would rather want to learn Chinese as this seems to be the century of China. But English seems to be perceived as the key to future prosperity. Taken together with the focus on prestige and success….it becomes the trump card in almost every educational plan.
Earlier in my blog I commented on how much I’ve noticed the diversity of Christian higher education. At the same time I’ve become aware over the past three weeks of the near homogeneity of culture. In a way it’s a sad thing to move through more than 13 countries so far and to feel that every looks and feels pretty much the same. Is this me? Am I just blind to differences? Oh, of course I notice the differences in language, the difference in neatness and cleanliness, the differences in which side of the road is used to drive…..but somehow, despite it all, they all begin to look alike. Every major city has large department stores…maybe different names but in most ways they look alike. All cities have overpasses, all airports look alike or try to look alike. The cars are all mostly the same…despite the HUGE number of bikes in parking lots in Holland and the HUGE number of motorbikes in parking lots here in Taiwan. Yes the souvenir stores have somewhat different wares. And I’m sure that in rural areas things differ more….tho even there, as I’ve travelled by train through both Holland and Korea, the differences are not as large as one might expect. I told someone yesterday….the variations seem so small as to make the world “boring.” Now that’s a pretty jaded statement to make…and obviously hyperbolic. But there is a sense in which it is sad to see the disappearance of distinctive cultures……and even distinctive smells. I have noticed no significant differences in the smell of Coimbatore, Vienna, Seoul, Taipei, or even Santa Cruz. That’s REALLY amazing. Some of my strongest memories of Sao Paulo Brasil in 1963 are SMELLS! Oh well..maybe I’m wrong about this….isolated in air travel and jumping from nation to nation in 24-48 hours. But it’s been a perception.
Also fairly high on the scale of cultural generalizations….I thought you’d be interested to know that I noticed that Korean bath towels are decidedly smaller than everywhere else. Though this is also probably an anomaly based on the fact that my overnights in Korea were ALL in dormitories, while elsewhere I’ve stayed in hotels…the fact is that I never had a bath towel larger than a hand towel in Korea. Now that’s really interesting right?

February 27, 2009 - Arrived Taiwan

Now in Taipei Taiwan......Here are the mountains of Hong Kong as we rolled down the runway.....

And here is the view from the H.K. terminal....

And downtown Taipei as we crossed the bridge...

And the Grand Hotel....classic Chinese style...

Beautiful lobby.....what a pleasure to stay here!

Quentin Nantz met me at the airport....former missionary kid....then Indiana, then Florida....had a great dinner...good food. Christ's College's (300-400 students) chief concerns besides finding qualified faculty to teach is working with the Taiwanese government to be accredited. Doing so as a 4yr school is both difficult and constraining...so it seems the best path is as a religious school...but that limits the enrollment to 200...so they will need to find other ways accomodate other students in connections with other schools and with extension programs.

Thursday, February 26, 2009 - Handong University in Pohang Korea

As I sit in the oddball Guest House in a skyscraper near Seoul Incheon airport, I’m struck by the health AND diversity of Christian higher education in Korea. Their facilities are amazing, their faculty credentials are impressive, their passion and vision is remarkable, and their enrollments are exploding. My day at Handong only confirmed this. They are perhaps the most enthusiastic about their institution of any I’ve seen. Their energetic president Kim rallies them to great passion…even posing for pictures with the phrase “NEEEEW BUILDING” instead of “CHEESE.” His recent appointment as chair of the national Korean Science and Technology Commission testifies to his reputation. His having been jailed as part of the launch of Handong in 1995 is part of the legend. The buildings at Handong are magnificent…including the massive (I mean HUGE) new Law School/International Building due for completion in August.
Handong is clearly the most like a traditional US liberal arts college of any I have seen in Korea….and perhaps of any I’ve seen elsewhere so far. Even LCC in Kaipeda while emphasizing liberal arts, has more commuters. Virtually all of Handong’s 3600 students are in residence. 30% of the faculty are expats, and a significant number of courses are taught in English…perhaps 40%. Among the distinctives is the EDISON Academy….of which George Kim is perhaps the most passionately outspoken. He says it’s the “Officer Candidate School of Handong.”
My day began with breakfast with Abraham, George, Kyu, and Youn-Sik. In fact Abraham did much of the cooking when Mom’s Place needed some help to get ready for us. Good conversation about liberal arts and integration. They really do seem interested in this….especially Youn-Sik who has just been appointed Dean of the EDISON Academy. Their upcoming (June) 4th conference with Calvin and even a few Taylor people shows they care about integration of faith and learning enough to promote it. But of course as George Kim points out this means there is a tension in faculty minds between commitment to the liberal arts and to their disciplines. I said this tension is true in the US too! It’s good that Youn-Sik and George (both in the sciences/engineering) would be the ones with such passion. They believe that other Korean Christian schools are following Handong’s lead on the English international school concept or at least following the residential wholistic (“liberal arts”) idea. They would like to see a CCCU base in Asia on their campus.
Their three entire majors in English are: Law, Business, and I.T….each with sub-departments. There are 45 majors in Korean…and ALL students are REQUIRED to do DOUBLE majors! ALL departments have 30-70% of their courses in English. All students to graduate must test in UNIX, or C++, or Visual Basic, AND Chinese characters, AND English. They have become so selective that they are now taking only the top 6% of SAT takers nationally.
In my brief chat with Provost and AVP Younsup Kim, he said getting English speaking faculty and students were his top ideas for CCCU partnerships.
A couple of new ideas emerged in a late morning talk in the main admin building with George, Abraham, Youn-Sik, and Kyu. One is to improve PERSONAL networking…..perhaps using existing web tools like Facebook for this. Also, George would like to see a fund created for investment in entrepreneurship projects that would let students SEE how their education works. Abraham believes there is a need for course sharing…on the airline “code sharing model.” When I said I thought that would require a big capital outlay, he mentioned two existing web based operations that already manage these kinds of things. It is certainly worth exploring these…perhaps as one of the assignments for staff hired with grant money. Mi Ja Wi could do this….:-)
I had an impressive walking tour…again I say their buildings are magnificent, and the fact they are in the countryside, with large open quadrangles, makes them feel like a large traditional US residential campus. Their chapel with large tower cross looks like a mega-church. Having students around for their orientation gave some real life to campus…especially near the large covered space/dining commons with TV trucks and organized groups running around.
Visiting the law school also was impressive….ran into a new faculty member David just arrived from D.C. leaving a decade of practice there in product liability to bring his whole family here….And Patrick, another US attorney (Regent grad) who brought his family and is teaching. The university provides beautiful free housing in units adjacent to campus with beautiful views of the valley and a great English speaking school for the children. I was even more impressed with the caliber of teaching staff as I thought about these two attorneys and walked the halls looking at the number of Ph.D.s indicated on faculty doors.
I appreciated the huge amount of his time Abraham gave me….and the help his assistant Yohan Park gave me in rearranging my ticket. We swapped my Daegu to Incheon air flight for tomorrow for a Pohang to Gimpo flight tonight. It worked smoothly…… In fact Yohan managed to order 100 business cards for me at 2pm and we picked them up enroute to the airport….amazing how they did that….logo and all. The drive was 30 minutes…this is a BIG city! I caught the flight with 5 minutes to spare…from a beautiful airport. Arrived in Seoul 45 minutes later at Gimpo. The AREX train is cheap and easy…and probably the cleanest newest nicest subway/train I have ever seen. I am amazed at how efficient transportation seems to be in Korea. Once at Seoul Incheon I couldn’t help think this may be one of the most MAGNIFICENT airports I’ve seen. Even Madrid’s fancy new one where I stopped last spring may not compare in size….. The info booth girl called the Guest House and politely asked me to be seated with 15-20 others watching TV and she would call me when the driver arrived. Sure enough, only 10 minutes later, the driver approached me, and within 5 minutes we were at an odd skyscraper where on the 9th floor there was a single open door with a man and woman who took my credit card, gave me a key and a towel and pointed me to the 12th floor. It all works just fine…and for half the price of the Best Western ($50) I am not complaining.
While at times the formality of Korean protocol can seem heavy, I have been inspired by the quality and passion of what I have seen here.