2014 Faculty Advisor of the Year

Jing Zhang, instructional assistant professor of Chinese studies

Jing Zhang, instructional assistant professor of Chinese studies, has been named the 2014 Faculty Advisor of the Year by the Division of Students Affairs and Enrollment Services.

Presidents of on-campus organizations nominate their faculty advisors for this annual recognition.

“I am honored and blessed to receive this recognition,” said Zhang.

For the past several years, Zhang has served as a faculty advisor for a number of student organizations on campus. In that role, she helps the organizations build operational infrastructures and create project calendars that include cultural events and festival activities.

Currently, she serves as advisor for the University of Houston Chinese Student Association (UHCSA), whose mission is to help its members make a smooth transition to life at UH, work as a culture community to organize relevant events, and to collaborate with other student associations on campus and in the community.

“UHCSA wants to provide its members with opportunities to prepare for employment after college,” she said. “The organization also encourages students to build life-long friendships, and offers students meaningful ways to learn outside the classroom.”

In addition, she advises the university’s Chinese Students and Scholars Association, an organization that provides help and services to the university’s growing number of Chinese students, scholars, and their spouses.

She also serves as the advisor for the Chinese/American Language and Culture Organization (CALCO).

“CALCO coordinates a variety of activities with the Chinese Language Department throughout the semester in order to promote the understanding of the Chinese culture, history, and language through tutoring workshops and cultural immersion activities,” she said.

In addition to this honor, in the past Zhang has been nominated by her students for excellence in teaching and service awards at the college and the university levels. Zhang also recently received a certificate of acknowledgement for significant contributions in teaching Chinese and coaching students from the Education Office of the General Consulate of Peoples Republic of China.

Zhang has been teaching Chinese language courses at all levels at UH since 1999. Prior to joining the CLASS faculty, Zhang spent 14 years working as a higher education administrator and an academic advisor for both undergraduate and graduate programs in the Department of Western Languages and Literatures at the Peking University. She has actively participated in the faculty-led Chinese Study Abroad Program at UH, and twice served as a resident director of the program.