Wuhan University–Seton Hall University Exchange Program: Call for Participation

The Wuhan University–Seton Hall Exchange Program invites faculty to participate in a visit to Wuhan University, China, for lectures or research in summer 2025. Seton Hall will cover travel expenses, while Wuhan University will provide room and board. Sponsored by the College of Arts and Sciences, this program annually hosts a scholar from Wuhan University to conduct research at Seton Hall and sends one or two Seton Hall faculty members to Wuhan University for short-term teaching or research each summer. Over the past 30 years, this exchange has greatly benefited numerous colleagues from both institutions.

Faculty members from Seton Hall University who have visited Wuhan University represent a variety of disciplines from the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences. The most recent participant, Fanli Jia, associate professor of psychology, visited Wuhan in summer 2019. During his stay, Jia collaborated with Yanyan Zhang from the School of Foreign Languages and Literature on a research project exploring the acculturation process of international students in Wuhan. Their study was later published in the International Journal of Intercultural Relations. Currently, Jia is co-authoring articles with two of Zhang’s doctoral students, focusing on ESL learners’ understanding of sarcasm and their judgments of accents respectively.

Jianing Tang, a professor in the School of Foreign Languages and Literature at Wuhan University, visited Seton Hall from February 2023 to January 2024. Hosted by the Department of Psychology, she and Jia collaborated on a project aimed at improving cross-cultural communication and adaptation for international students in the U.S. Their research focused on identifying common language and cultural barriers faced by these students and developing strategies to address them. Additionally, Tang, Jia and Jessica Cottrell from Seton Hall’s Department of Biology co-authored a paper reflecting on the Wuhan lockdown during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic. Published in Healthcare, this study offered insights into that challenging period and served as a source of shared inspiration.

Eligible participants for this program include full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty, faculty associates and lecturers from the College of Arts and Sciences. Seton Hall participants, known as "Wuhan Scholars," are responsible for pursuing their research projects, engaging in cultural exchanges, submitting a final report to the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, sharing their experiences with students and colleagues, assisting in recruiting future Wuhan Scholars and helping to host visiting Wuhan faculty. To apply, please submit a 3–5 page project proposal, budget, 2-page CV and an endorsement from your department chair to Dongdong Chen, director of the Wuhan Scholar Committee. The application deadline is February 15, 2025.

Categories: Education