Good Morning! Pioneering Harris-Stowe State University students head to China today. NEWS For Immediate Release Contact: Pier Scott at scottp@hssu.edu<mailto:scottp@hssu.edu> or (314) 340-3391 or (314) 504-1386 cell HARRIS-STOWE LAUNCHES STUDY ABROAD PROGRAM, TWO STUDENTS HEAD TO CHINA'S NINGBO UNIVERSITY ST. LOUIS, MO (March 4, 2016) - Harris-Stowe State University (HSSU) is proud to announce that two of its students - Zackary Davis and Darius Terrell - will make history today as the university's first scholars to participate in a study abroad program. Both are 22-year old juniors pursuing bachelor's degrees via the university's Anheuser-Busch School of Business. To get from Harris-Stowe in St. Louis, MO to Ningbo University in the Jiangbei District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, China, the students will take three flights, cross several time zones and travel more than 7,000 miles. There are more than 45,000 students enrolled at Ningbo University, which has a business school ranked among the top three in China. Terrell, an accounting major, visited Ningbo last summer as one of eight HSSU students in an early delegation as part of the China Education Association for International Exchange (CEAIE) and Historically Black Colleges and Universities program. "Through this experience I believe I will grow morally, spiritually and socially. I look forward to accepting other peoples and their cultures and respecting how they define themselves," said Terrell during a bon voyage gathering at the Business School on Thursday. "We're globalizing as a world and as a people... we ought to be more accepting of one another's culture and that's the message I want to deliver when I go to Ningbo." During the next several months the students will be immersed in taking business classes (in English) and studying Mandarin. Initiated by the HBCU-China Scholarship program and spearheaded by Dr. Fatemeh (Fara) Zakery, dean of the Anheuser-Busch School of Business, Harris-Stowe has entered into a five-year agreement with Ningbo University. The program supports up to four students per year, who can choose to study for a semester or participate in a year-long study abroad experience. Each student will get a full ride, including room and board, tuition, airfare and insurance. "The partnership between Harris-Stowe State University and the HBCU-China Network is extremely important to the University as it serves as a major opportunity to expose Harris-Stowe students to education abroad and to engage in global citizenship," said Dwaun Warmack, president, Harris-Stowe State University. "For the first time in Harris-Stowe's 159-year history, our students will study abroad for academic credit. The success of these two pioneering students will serve as a pathway for Harris-Stowe State University to offer a world-class experience, while producing future global leaders," he added. There are a small number of American students who participate in study abroad programs and of those, few are minority students. The HBCU-China Scholarship program facilitates collaboration between universities and creates the financial support for minority students to study abroad. There will be approximately 500 international students studying at Ningbo University. "This will be my first time traveling out of the country and I'm excited, nervous...but, looking forward to a cultural and educational experience of a lifetime," said Davis, who is majoring in finance. "I have an uncle who studied in Shanghai, he's an entrepreneur and he's encouraged me make the most of this opportunity." Terrell and Davis are the first two students heading to China and they will remain through June. During the fall 2016 semester, four more Harris-Stowe students are expected to participate in the study abroad program. About Harris-Stowe State University Harris-Stowe State University (HSSU), located in midtown St. Louis, is a fully accredited four-year institution that offers 31 majors, minors and certificate programs in education, business and arts & sciences. In 2014, HSSU ranked No. 1 in the state of Missouri and No. 47 in the nation in granting degrees in mathematics and statistics to African Americans according to Missouri Department of Higher Education and Diverse: Issues In Higher Education, a news magazine that has ranked institutions conferring the most degrees to minority students for the past 30 years. Harris-Stowe also ranked No. 28 among the 2016 Top HBCUs in the country according to Niche, an online content provider of reviews and insight on more than 1,100 colleges nationwide. The University, which has origins dating back to 1857, offers the most affordable bachelor's degree in the state of Missouri. Visit www.hssu.edu<http://www.hssu.edu> for more information. Pier Scott Director of Communications & Marketing Office of Institutional Advancement Harris-Stowe State University 3026 Laclede Ave. St. Louis, MO 63103 o (314) 340-3391 or c (314) 504-1386 scottp@hssu.edu<mailto:scottp@hssu.edu> www.hssu.edu<http://www.hssu.edu/>