ABSTRACT
The Hopkins-Nanjing Center for Chinese and American Studies, which occupies the northwest corner of Nanjing University, was founded in 1986 as a joint venture between Nanjing University and the Johns Hopkins University. Its founding program issues a certificate to graduate students who study at the Center for a full academic year, and since 2006 some students have earned a two-year master’s degree that both universities recognize. The vision that animated the Center ranges well beyond educating students, however. In a formulation often repeated by Chinese and American faculty, students, and staff, the Center’s website proclaims: ‘The ultimate vision was that one day, the U.S. Secretary of State and the Chinese Foreign Minister will find that they are both graduates of the Hopkins-Nanjing Center for Chinese and American Studies.’ 1 Beyond this mutual interest in improving cultural understanding as a way to mitigate political conflict, the Chinese made a conscious decision to draw on American expertise as they sought to modernize their system of higher education, while many of the Americans involved over the years brought their own visions of a modern society.
