Then NASA astronaut Mark Kelly joined the Young Leaders Forum in 2003, where he met his future wife, fellow program participant and then Arizona State legislator Gabrielle Giffords. Kelly once called his experience with YLF, which connects exceptional Chinese and Americans under 40, "one of the absolute highlights of my life, second only to flying in […]
In 1968, NCUSCR executive director Cecil Thomas and other Committee members briefed President Lyndon Johnson on ways to improve U.S.-China relations. Today, we continue our discussions with administration officials and share our Track II consensus papers with them.
The National Committee first worked with Yang Jiechi in 1977, when, at age 27, he accompanied a Chinese People's Institute of Foreign Affairs delegation as its interpreter. Rising through the foreign affairs ranks, Yang has continued to be involved in our programs, as Chinese Ambassador to the U.S. (2001-05), Foreign Minister (2007-13), and now State […]
After Tiananmen, in 1989, many questioned whether the U.S. should be dealing with China at all. The Committee believed — and continues to believe — that at a time of crisis, maintaining open lines of communication between the citizens of both countries is more critical than ever, and forged ahead with activities such as our Scholar Orientation Program, ultimately […]
One of the venues for the NCUSCR-sponsored tour of the Shenyang Acrobats in 1972-73 was the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. The flag of the Republic of China hung in the Center's entryway, next to the flags of all other governments officially recognized by the United States. Looking to avoid any diplomatic flaps that the […]
We conservatively estimate that the hundreds of teachers who participated in our Teachers Exchange Program (which ran from 1996 to 2014) collectively taught more than 142,000 students in Chinese and American classrooms, promoting better foreign language skills and deeper cross-cultural understanding.
Two former U.S. Secretaries of State — Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright — have served on our board. (Dr. Kissinger continues to be one of our board's vice chairs.) Two others joined us for their first visits to China before taking that job: Cyrus Vance in 1975 and Condoleezza Rice in 1988.
The National Committee has been involved with U.S.-China educational exchange for longer than the two countries have had diplomatic relations. In 1973, we sent the first group of American teachers to the People's Republic and welcomed back a group of Chinese language teachers. The following year, we sent the first group of American university and college […]
From the '70s to the '90s, National Committee staffers escorting Chinese delegations around the States lugged a separate suitcase stuffed with electric kettles so that our Chinese visitors could make tea in their hotel rooms. The advent of in-room coffee makers was warmly welcomed!
The National Committee's first benefactor was John D. Rockefeller III. In 1966, he gave a personal gift of $20,000. Later that year the Rockefeller Brothers Fund pledged $300,000 over three years. This early Rockefeller association lent critical legitimacy — and prestige — to our fledgling organization.