TERRE HAUTE — A weekly Chinese language school is slated to open in Terre Haute this fall.
The idea for it came from Curt DeBaun III, whose family and other area families have adopted Chinese children or have direct ties to China. They were interested in bringing a form of Chinese education for their children and anyone interested in learning the language and culture. Preliminary meetings were conducted last fall.
A meeting will occur at 7 p.m. Friday in Bethany United Church of Christ in West Terre Haute to get the opinions of the public and explain the school’s mission.
Almost a year after the initial gatherings, DeBaun’s plan is beginning to come into fruition. They have reserved space at United Campus Ministries at Indiana State University for classes that will occur once every weekend. Qi Cui is a professor at Liaoning University in the city of Dalian in Liaoning Province, China, who has agreed to teach for the school. Cui will be an ISU doctoral student in the fall while teaching at the school. Other employees will be added, according to enrollment.
DeBaun said his four adopted daughters, two from China and two from Korea, sparked his initial interest in providing the school.
“I’m particularly interested in them and other adopted children from China learning the Chinese language and being exposed to Chinese customs,” DeBaun said. “First and foremost, I want them to learn the language, but an offshoot would be to develop some type of dialogue with the Asian community at large.”
As the owner of DeBaun Funeral Home and Crematory, DeBaun knows his way around Terre Haute business circles. He said there is a reluctance among citizens to allow change because they have lost jobs to foreign countries.
“Being a local businessman,” DeBaun said, “I have seen businesses mainly go and very few come. Terre Haute has always been a labor-oriented town and I know there’s been backlash with some of our jobs going over to China. The fact is, China is quickly becoming the largest consumer country in the world. And we can sell to them, as well as buy from them.”
He also stated there is interest from ISU, as he has received support from Karen Liu, early education coordinator, and others.
“Here at ISU, you’ve got a lot of Chinese students and teachers already,” DeBaun said. “So, it’s a perfect fit and a lot of them would like to see something happen as well.”
Another person involved in the school is Vigo County Judge Chris Newton. Newton is fluent in Chinese, as he served as a missionary in Taiwan from 1979 to 1981 and returned to teach Chinese while attending ISU from 1981 to 1984. He said he will be involved with the school in some sense, because of his experience.
Chinese is taught in other cities within Indiana. Indianapolis has three schools, including the Chinese School of Chinese Community Church of Indianapolis, which is where DeBaun visited for tips. Similar institutions exist in Bloomington and Lafayette. Newton said Terre Haute shouldn’t be trailing these cities.
“It’s such a vast market that the opportunities are endless,” Newton said. “We in Terre Haute should be at the forefront. This is something we should be leading with our institutions of higher learning. We should be on the cutting edge, not lagging behind.”
DeBaun went on to say Chinese should be offered in the Terre Haute education in some fashion, stating that the language skills will lead to a better future.
“Chinese should be offered in the school system here,” DeBaun said. “The more we can do to equip our kids to deal with the Asian market, the better off Terre Haute’s going to be.”
DeAntae Prince can be reached at (812) 231-4214 or deantae.prince@tribstar.com.
Local & Bistate
Chinese language school to open
Space reserved for classes at United Campus Ministries at ISU
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