In a ceremony at Denny International Middle School Monday April 26 the opening of the new Confucious Institute was celebrated by students, faculty, school administrators and dignitaries from China. Confucius Institutes are a non-profit initiative of the Hanban, the executive body of the Chinese Language Council International, a non-governmental and non-profit organization affiliated with the Ministry of Education of China. Over 250 Confucius Institutes have been established around the world, with 60 in the United States.

CLICK ON IMAGE ABOVE TO SEE MORE PHOTOS FROM THE EVENT

Here for the event in a rare visit was Madame Xu Lin, Director-General of Hanban/Confucius Institute Headquarters who spoke at an assembly at Denny joining a large group of officials from our area including Dr. Maria Goodloe-Johnson, Superintendent of Seattle Public Schools, Dr. Stephen Hanson, Vice Provost of Global Affairs for the University of Washington, Karen Kodama, International Education Administrator, Seattle Public Schools, Superintendent of Public Instruction Randy Dorn, Seattle School Board Directors President Michael DeBell, Chief Academic Office for Seattle Public Schools Dr. Susan Enfield, Steve Sundquist Seattle School Board member and other members of the Confucius Institute.

Sealth Principal Boyd said, "When Chinese President Hu Jintao visited Washington State he made an agreement with Governor Gregoire that they would establish this Confucius Institute...It's basically a hub for chinese language instruction and history and culture. We'll have 5000 pieces of material to be able to lend out to educators across the state. We'll be holding professional symposiums in the evenings and on weekends to teach language and culture. We'll organize exchange programs from China to Seattle."

The program thus far is not expensive said Boyd, "Right now we're working with guest teachers from China provided by Hanban and through the college board. We're going to house it and we're working with the business community in Seattle to hire the director so there's very little cost associated with it for the Seattle School District."

Boyd studied Chinese himself and currently has two daughters studying the language.

During the assembly a plaque for the Institute was unveiled by Dr. Johnson and Madame Lin.

The event was also attended by students from Sealth, Denny, and Beacon Hill elementary who are all engaged in Chinese language studies and who demonstrated their language skills throughout the ceremony and who in a large group sang a popular Chinese folk song called Mo Li Hua (Jasmine Flowers).

Following the assembly a group of chinese musicians, dancers and acrobats (some in colorful lion costumes) led a march down Thistle Street to the site of the still under construction Sealth International High School. The Chief Sealth Marching band was on the street too, providing a musical soundtrack for the march. The students in costume were from Franklin High School.

Once onsite at Sealth the dignitaries were given a short walk through the school and shown the future home of the Institute (temporarily housed in Room 109 at Denny). The facility inside Sealth has a complete kitchen, and even a Chinese garden adjacent to it. That's where Madame Xu Lin and others took turns with ceremonial golden shovels as a large bamboo was planted.

After a few closing remarks, Madame Lin gave Sealth Principal Boyd a Chinese Tapestry for his office wall as a parting gift.

According to the Washington State Chapter of their website:

“Confucius Institutes devote themselves to satisfying the demands of people from different countries and regions in the world who learn the Chinese language, to enhancing understanding of the Chinese language and culture by these peoples, to strengthening educational and cultural exchange and cooperation between China and other countries, to deepening friendly relationships with other nations, to promoting the development of multi-culturalism, and to construct a harmonious world.”