Jynne Stowe (right) and the Chinese students she gave
Erskine t-shirts to during her last trip to China

Erskine Graduate to Teach in China

Eight weeks ago Jynne Stowe of Gastonia, N.C., graduated from Erskine. She left Due West after the May commencement exercises with her Athletic Training degree in hand, and big plans for her future.

Unlike most recent college graduates, Stowe has not spent her summer searching for a job.

She has spent time visiting with family and friends, and preparing for her yearlong commitment to teach on the other side of the globe.

For the third time in her life, Stowe will travel to China to teach English.

In 1998 Stowe spent six weeks teaching with Camp China, a program run by the English Language Institute China (ELIC).

ELIC is an organization that sends Christian teachers to China, Mongolia, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Myanmar (Burma).

"After my freshman year at Erskine, I went to Camp China for the first time," said Stowe, "and my priorities in life were reevaluated and adjusted.

"I was drawn to the people, the culture, and the loving reception my students gave me," said Stowe, "and I knew I had to go back."

Last summer Stowe did go back, along with four other Erskine students, for another six-week teaching period.

During this visit, she found "a sense of God’s will" for her future, and experienced His "everlasting faithfulness."

On August 6, Stowe will leave the East Coast and head to Los Angeles, Calif., where she will meet her China Teaching Fellowship (CTF) teammates for the first time during ELIC’s training and orientation. She is the fourth Erskine student to participate in the CTF program.

The team is composed of Stowe and four other recent college graduates from around the U.S. They will spend three weeks training with their team leader before heading to Tai Yuan, China, on August 22, to begin their year of teaching.

"I hope the team is unified," said Stowe, "and that through our actions the students we teach will see a difference in our lives–a difference that they will desire for themselves.

"I am excited about meeting new people, forming life-changing relationships with my students, and eating Chinese food again, but at the same time I am terrified of being away from the people I love for a year, especially during holidays, and of getting sick from eating green garlic vegetables!

"Overall, the excitement outweighs the fears," she concluded.

"Jynne is gifted in the classroom," said Wendy Edgar, Director of Development for Erskine College, and former Director of Camp China and CTF under ELIC. "She will earn the respect of her students through teaching with excellence.

"The most important thing she will do is be a big sister to her students and give them love through hugs, stories, and other universal signs of love that know no language barrier."

"God has put China on Jynne’s heart in a significant way," said Bob Edgar, Director of Partnerships for ELIC.

"Her dedication is evident in the fact that she is the only person ELIC has sent to participate in two summer sessions of Camp China as well as the year CTF program."

ELIC is interested in working with college students and graduates as well as mid-career and retired people. There are numerous opportunities available for anyone from 19-75 years of age who has the desire to change lives while growing in every aspect.

ELIC offers many programs for teaching; a six-week program during the summer for college undergraduates (Camp China), an eight-week Summer Teacher Training Program, year-long programs in Mongolia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar as well as the two-year, China University Teaching Program. Participants in two-year programs may obtain a tuition-free Master’s Degree while serving on the field.

This summer four Erskine students are participating in Camp China. Rising Senior Carrie Rodeffer, rising Juniors Tiffany Mast and Martha Peake, and rising sophomore Elaine McChesney are teaching in China for the first time.

"I would recommend going to China with ELIC for a year to anyone who has the chance and feels prepared to go," said Stowe. "It is a good way for young people graduating from college to ease themselves into the real world."

For more information on how you can be involved with ELIC’s teaching program, contact Bob Edgar at 1-800-809-4637 or bedgar@erskine.edu.