SCS Undergraduate Wins First Prize in Chinese Language Competition

Byron SpiceTuesday, April 1, 2014

Qiansheng Chang, Education Consul of the Chinese Consulate General in New York, presents first prize award to SCS undergraduate Will Crichton.

Will Crichton, a sophomore computer science major who is considering a double major in Chinese studies, won first prize of the junior level group in the 5th Annual “Chinese Bridge” Eastern USA Competition March 30 in New York.    

Crichton competed in the Chinese Proficiency Competition against other 24 finalists who were selected from preliminary competitions in ten Northeastern states, including Pennsylvania.  As the first prize winner of the junior level group, he can apply for a full scholarship to study in China for six-to-twelve months and a free trip to Beijing to observe the Grand Final Chinese Bridge Competition. The scholarship is sponsored by Hanban, the Chinese National Office for Teaching Chinese as a Foreign Language.

Organized by the Confucius Institute at Pace University, the competition celebrates the talents and accomplishments of college students who are learning Chinese language and culture. The contestants were required to give a speech in Chinese and present a Chinese cultural talent.

Crichton gave a speech on “The Rhythm of My Life” and demonstrated a traditional Chinese performance art, Kuaibanr (bamboo clapper).  He was advised by Yueming Yu, teaching professor of Chinese in the Department of Modern Languages, and Chinese instructor Haixia Wang.

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Byron Spice | 412-268-9068 | bspice@cs.cmu.edu