A burst of education pleasure-新东方前途出国

   文/萧明颢

    　　Day 3: Tuesday, September 3, 2013

    　　Days Left: 27

    　　Current Location: Santa Rosa, California

    　　Let’s start with a visualization exercise.

    　　Step 1: Close your eyes...do it really.

    　　Step 2: Take a deep breath...and then take another one.

    　　Step 3: Relax and clear your mind.

    　　Step 4: Now think about the following question.

    　　Question: What images or words come to mind when you think or hear the phrase‘community college’ (社区学院)?

    　　a. Do you think of ivy-covered brick buildings?

    　　b. Do you think of a 100-acre campus or a nearly 100 year school history?

    　　c. Do you think of walking on campus with thousands of American students?

    　　d. Do you think of one-on-one attention with advisors and faculty, often leading to higher degrees at leading global institutions such as UC Berkeley?

    　　I will tell you that I don’t think of many of these things when I hear the words ‘community college’.

    　　But after yesterday, I eat my words.

    　　On Tuesday, my colleagues, Sidney Yu (俞仲秋), Zhi Wang (王执), and I visited Santa Rosa Junior College located 1 hour north of San Francisco in Sonoma County, also widely known for its sprawling wineries similar to its sister region, Napa Valley.

    　　Certainly, my impressions were tested, and my paradigms changed.

    　　Founded in 1918, Santa Rosa Junior College is a two-year community college with a 100 acre campus with ivy-covered brick architecture modeled after Stanford University. Most of its buildings are less than 10 years old, with state-of-the-art classrooms, a library, student activities' facilities, and a comfortable and welcoming environment for its 20,000+ student population. Its history of close ties with Stanford and UC Berkeley are reflected not only in the architecture and its mascots (the Bear Cubs closely linked to UC Berkeley’s Bears mascot).

    　　Students, mostly Americans ( out of nearly 100 students that I saw walking around, only about 2-3 were Asians – not sure if they were Chinese students from the mainland or potentially American born/raised or from a different Asian country). Overall, out of over 20,000 students on campus, there are less than 100 international students.

    　　The opportunities are abound here - and organized in a way that makes students feel that they are not at a community college, but at an educational institution and preparing them for future pathways. What a warm welcome and visit...a nice jewel tucked away in the heart of Santa Rosa and Sonoma County.

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