The Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies is pleased to announce that three students have completed the Master of Arts degree in Chinese Studies. The new LRCCS alumni are:

Tessa Raymond
Thesis: Policing the People’s War on Drugs: A Tool for State Building in Contemporary China
Advisors: Professors Mary Gallagher and Pär Cassel
“My two years at U-M have been adventure-filled years. Among my most memorable experiences included my summer spent at National Taipei University studying Chinese as a FLAS fellow. I also had the pleasure of attending the 2019 AAS Conference in Denver. Following graduation, I intend to pursue a career in international education.”

Chad Westra
Thesis: Mediating Modernity through Tradition: Cultural Conservatives in China's Vernacular Movement
Advisors: Professors Pär Cassel, Emily Wilcox, and Nico Howson
“The program was full and rewarding. Highlights include a summer internship in Taiwan, starting a Chinese book club, gaining knowledge of classical Chinese, attending weekly LRCCS Tuesday lectures, mahjong get-togethers with my cohort, and presenting my research to faculty and peers at an LRCCS interdisciplinary workshop. After graduation, I plan to explore opportunities in international business with tentative plans to complete a PhD in modern Chinese history or literature in the future.”

Siyin Zheng
Thesis: Young Nationalists Abroad: Does the Age of Relocation Matter?
Advisors: Professors Mary Gallagher and Xiaohong Xu
Siyin Zheng completed her thesis on Chinese international students' nationalism. During the summer of 2019, she joined the Ford School for Public Policy annual two week trip to China, where she had a chance to explore Chinese NGOs and some governmental organizations. She returned to Detroit for the summer internship with a non-profit organization, Michigan-China Innovation Center, where she practiced her knowledge about the U.S.-China subnational relations. In 2020, she participated in Innovation in Action, an interdisciplinary U-M student competition, with a group of students from public policy and public health. Their team, Contractor Connection, won the third place and poverty solution award. After graduation, she will continue her dual masters in computational social science at the School of Information.

Although we were unable to celebrate our graduates in person this year, the commencement speech and details about LRCCS and other graduates of the International Institute can be found here.