News Article

College of the North Atlantic’s Director of China Projects, Dr. Daniel Wong, has been honoured with the title of Dongchu Scholar by Hubei Polytechnic University in China.
 
The honour is in recognition of the development of dual-diploma programs between the two institutions and is comparable to emeritus academic status in North America.
 
“The college has been operating in co-operation with post-secondary Chinese institutions for the last 13 years and we are fully committed to our work in China,” said Dr. Wong, explaining that the honour bestowed on him signifies an even greater duty and responsibility to contribute more to this project. “We will continue to work with the faculty and staff of Hubei Polytechnic University to further their professional development and also seek more opportunities to work together as a team on other scholarly activities.”
 
In 2002, the project’s first graduating class of 50 students in China was presented with a diploma in Engineering Technology based on College of the North Atlantic’s curriculum. Currently, more than 1,100 students enroll in CNA certified programs at Hubei Polytechnic University and seven other universities and institutions throughout the country each year. The project has also allowed a number of Chinese faculty members to participate in professional development initiatives at CNA’s Prince Philip Drive campus, where they have explored new technologies and instructional practices.
 
“I am very proud of Dr. Wong’s commitment and his work with our partners in China, and what that relationship has meant to the graduates and faculty members since the project’s inception,” said Ann Marie Vaughan, president and CEO of College of the North Atlantic. “Being recognized by his peers is a significant achievement for Dr. Wong - it is also a testament to the calibre of our leadership team and their ability to strengthen the college’s reputation worldwide. His outstanding service has been invaluable and I look forward to future contributions with our work overseas.”
 
Hubei Polytechnic University (HBPU) is a multi-disciplinary university with faculties in engineering, natural science, economics, management, medicine, literature, education and arts. HBPU has 15 schools and two departments with a full-time student body of more than 20,000 and approximately 6,000 long-distance education students.
 
Elsa Guo, divisional director of International Exchanges and Cooperation, Hubei Polytechnic University, says Dr. Wong’s contributions have been invaluable throughout the partnership.
 
“Through this collaboration with CNA we have introduced many advanced education concepts, courses, teaching methods, and learning and evaluation methods, which improves the employability of our registered students,” Ms. Guo stated in an official announcement. “In the past seven years, our two institutes have collaborated with each other on the basis of honesty and integrity. Dr. Daniel Wong has contributed a great deal to facilitate the operation of the dual diploma programs between our two institutes. His contribution for the success of the programs is well recognized by the board, the teaching staff, and the students in the school of international education.”
 
Among the many accomplishments Dr. Wong and College of the North Atlantic have facilitated is being named an approved partner under the Student Partnership Program (SPP) with China through the Association of Canadian Community Colleges (ACCC). This status fast tracks the visa application and processing time with the Canadian Immigration office to provide students with a more streamlined and timely application process. The college has also facilitated a Canadian Immigrant Integration Project (CIIP), in conjunction with the ACCC, which is a federally funded program that prepares newcomers for economic integration while still in their country of origin.
 
Most recently, College of the North Atlantic developed and finalized a new institutional partnership with Guangdong Ocean University in Guangdong Province, in response to an identified need for diploma programs for local students in that region.
 
College of the North Atlantic is Newfoundland and Labrador’s public college. The existing partnerships with Chinese institutions enable the college to expand its geographic interaction to Asia and provide a formal platform for the college to recruit Chinese students. To learn more about CNA visit www.cna.nl.ca.