(Mandarin translation follows)

SMITHFIELD, R.I. –  Bryant University has welcomed its historic first entering class of 160 Chinese students at Bryant Zhuhai, located in Guangdong Province, China. Bryant has created this unique program with Beijing Institute of Technology Zhuhai (BITZH) to educate both Chinese and U.S. students. The new four-year undergraduate program will prepare Bryant students with the global perspective that is essential for success in today’s international business world. 

"China has been a cornerstone of our international strategy."

The academic program in Zhuhai has been designed to mirror Bryant’s nationally recognized curriculum vigor and quality of faculty and will be taught in English. The graduating students will receive a Bryant University degree. 

Bryant Zhuhai is the first private joint program where both institutions are privately run. In addition, Bryant:

• becomes the first and only American university with a presence in Zhuhai;
• is the first university to establish a partnership with a private institution in China;
• offers the only U.S.-China joint four-year undergraduate business degree program in China.

A strategic international gateway

Guangdong Province, the site of Bryant Zhuhai, is a very important area for China’s economy, providing 10 percent of China’s total GDP and the location for many of China’s innovative manufacturing operations. A 32-mile-long bridge is under construction; when completed in 2017 it will be Hong Kong's first connection to mainland China and will link Hong Kong to Zhuhai and Macau.

“China has been a cornerstone of our international strategy,” says Bryant University President Ronald K. Machtley. For more than a decade Bryant has advanced forward-looking education initiatives between China and the United States. Since 2005, Bryant University's U.S.-China Institute and the Confucius Institute, under the leadership of Vice President for International Affairs Hong Yang, Ph.D., have led the development of education and cultural programs between China and the United States. Global engagement is a cornerstone of Bryant’s strategic plan, Vision 20/20: Expanding the World of Opportunity.

Bryant University has a number of international articulation agreements with schools including University of Geosciences in Wuhan, but this is the University’s first physical school located in mainland China. Classes are taught in English and an accredited Bryant University degree will be awarded upon successful completion of four years of study.

David Lux, Ph.D., formerly Dean at Bryant’s Smithfield campus, has been appointed Academic Dean for Bryant Zhuhai. Lux will oversee a full complement of predominantly United States faculty, augmented by several Chinese faculty members. The school will also allow Chinese students the opportunity to study at Bryant's Rhode Island campus.

Admitted students in top 20% of Gaokao

The students in Bryant Zhuhai’s entering class were selected from among the top 20 percent of all Chinese students taking the Chinese college entrance exam known as Gaokao (高考, The National Higher Education Entrance Exam) at the end of high school. Approximately 10 million Chinese students took the grueling exam this spring.

Ground was broken in March 2015 for a new 107,000-square-foot facility in China. Expectations are that the first phase of the facility will be finished for occupancy by March 2016, the beginning of the second semester. In the interim the students will use adjacent classrooms located on the BITZH campus. On the approximately 800 acres now owned by BITZH, Bryant Zhuhai within three years will develop and build the full campus of Bryant Zhuhai.

A leader in international education, Bryant’s decision to establish China as a priority of its international strategy began in 2005. The U.S.-China Institute at Bryant has forged academic, business, and cultural partnerships that have provided students and faculty with broad global experiences. The University is also home to a successful Confucius Institute that has educated Bryant students and those in the neighboring high schools in both Mandarin language and Chinese culture. More than 300 Bryant students, faculty, and staff have visited China through the Sophomore International Experience since that program was created at Bryant in 2007. 

Bryant Zhuhai’s official Convocation will take place on Sept. 29 in Zhuhai. President Machtley, Vice President Yang, Trustee David Weinstein, who has chaired the Board of Trustees' China Committee, and other officials from the University will attend. They will be accompanied by Jorge O. Elorza, Mayor of Providence, R.I., who will continue discussions with officials of the Zhuhai Municipal City regarding a Cooperation and Friendship Agreement that will lead to the two as sister cities, dedicated to exploring cultural and economic opportunities for cooperation. 

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布莱恩特大学重视中国的世界强国地位

在中国珠海的合作办学项目迎来首批新生

美通社罗德岛州史密斯菲尔德2015年9月25日电    布莱恩特大学（Bryant University）位于中国广东省珠海市的合作办学项目迎来了首批160名中国新生。布莱恩特大学与北京理工大学珠海学院的独特合作办学项目招收中美两国学生。此为期四年的全新本科项目致力于培养具有国际视野的人才，帮助他们在当今的国际化商业环境中取得成功。

此合作办学项目结合了布莱恩特大学全美闻名的顶尖课程以及强大的师资力量，并实行全英文教学。学生毕业后将获得布莱恩特大学的学位。布莱恩特大学史密斯菲尔德校区前文理学院院长David Lux博士已经被任命为珠海校区的学术院长，负责管理合作办学项目的师资团队。师资团队主要由来自美国的专职人员以及少数中国教职员工组成。中国学生也将有机会前往布莱恩特大学本校区学习。

布莱恩特大学珠海项目是在中国首个由两所中外私立（独立）院校携手开展的合作办学项目。布莱恩特大学是首个也是唯一一所在珠海设立办学项目的美国大学，是首个与中国独立院校合作的美国大学，也是唯一在中国广东省开展中美合作四年制本科商业课程办学项目的大学。

布莱恩特大学校长Ronald K. Machtley表示：“中国已经成为我们国际化发展策略的基石。”十多年来，布莱恩特大学一直致力于促进中美两国之间具有前瞻性教育项目的发展。在国际事务副校长杨洪（Hong Yang）博士的领导下，布莱恩特大学的美中研究所和孔子学院自2005年起就成为中美教育文化合作项目发展的先行者。国际化是布莱恩特大学长远战略规划“Vision 20/20: Expanding the World of Opportunity”的核心。

布莱恩特大学珠海项目的2015级新生是从中国高考成绩排名前20%的学生中甄选出来的。

目前布莱恩特大学珠海项目在占地近800英亩的北京理工大学珠海学院校区内开展。布莱恩特大学珠海项目将在三年内建造自己的校区。一栋占地107000平方英尺的全新教学楼已经破土动工，一期项目将于2016年3月投入使用。

作为国际化教育的领导者，布莱恩特大学早于2005年就决定将中国列为其国际化战略的重点。布莱恩特大学美中研究所致力于建立各种学术、商业以及文化合作关系，为全校师生提供广泛的国际体验。布莱恩特大学设立的孔子学院也极其成功，为本校师生以及周边中小学的学生学习汉语和了解中国文化创造了优良的学习条件和环境。自布莱恩特大学2007年启动大二学生国际体验项目以来，已有300多位布莱恩特大学学生和教职员工通过该项目访问了中国。

布莱恩特大学珠海项目的正式开学典礼将于9月29日在珠海举行。布莱恩特大学校长Ronald K. Machtley、国际事务副校长杨洪、中国事务委员会主席兼校董事David Weinstein、其他学校领导以及罗德岛州普罗维登斯市长Jorge O. Elorza将出席开学典礼。届时Jorge O. Elorza市长将继续与珠海市政府官员探讨达成友好合作协议，以便让两座城市缔结为友好城市，并寻求各种文化和经济合作机会。

位于罗德岛州史密斯菲尔德市的布莱恩特大学是一所文理商科兼容的综合性私立大学，建校于1863年。约3700名在校生来自美国32个州和全球66个国家。以国际化教育闻名的布莱恩特大学经常名列《美国新闻和世界报道》、《彭博商业周刊》、《福布斯》和《Barron》的顶尖大学排行榜。请浏览：www.Bryant.edu 。