Iowa State University. Dept. of Sociology and Anthropology.

The State of Iowa established a Sister State Relationship with Hebei (Ho-pei) Province of the People's Republic of China in the early 1980s. Hebei Province is at approximately the same latitude as Iowa with similar climate, soils, and agriculture. Because of these similarities, educational exchanges were proposed.

The study of sociology in China ceased with the founding of the People's Republic in 1949. In 1984 Iowa State University set up a teacher training program to reintroduce the study of sociology as an academic discipline. The intent was for Chinese students to come to Iowa State University and enroll to pursue graduate degrees in sociology. Dr. Gerald Klonglan and Dr. Chang of ISu first visited China (PRC) in 1984. During the 1980s other ISU faculty traveled to China to lecture and train their Chinese counterparts. In approximately 1990 the first Chinese students began graduate coursework at Iowa State University.

...