A grant for China education

Walter and Shirley Wang have been actively seeking to improve relations between China and the United States for the past decade, and their latest philanthropic endeavor has brought them to UCLA, Shirley Wang’s alma mater.

The couple, who reside in Bel Air, donated $1 million to the Asian American Studies Center on Friday to establish the country’s first endowed academic chair focusing on U.S.-China relations and Chinese American studies and to create a program to educate the public on related issues.

Wang said she and her husband are interested in this issue because they want to change the misconceptions between the two groups, which she said stem from cultural differences.

“In every situation, there’s multiple views to everything. People look at what China’s doing as not good for the U.S. … I think there needs to be more understanding,” Shirley Wang said. “I hope U.S. and China will have better relations. It’s a lofty goal, but I hope this money gets the ball rolling.”

Half of the money will go directly into the establishment of an endowed chair, who will be a tenured faculty member. The money would be used to support the chair’s research, teachings, and public and professional service, said Don Nakanishi, head of the Asian American Studies Center.

The chair would also have graduate students working to research with him or her.

“(We) would use these funds to support graduate students ““ to work on projects with them, to mentor and train another generation of scholars and leaders in their particular area of expertise,” Nakanishi said. “Its benefits are beyond those of one professor.”

The second half of the donation will go into establishing a program called “The U.S.-China Media & Communications Resource,” which will include an informational Web site, a media and policy handbook, and a database of experts about Chinese American issues in an effort to educate the public, policy-makers and journalists.

Wang said this aspect of the project was especially interesting for her because it fused her Chinese culture with her communication studies degree from UCLA, and she said it will be a good tool for those who need an expert’s view on these topics.

From product recalls to human rights issues, Nakanishi said issues relating to the U.S. and China are constantly in the limelight and those seeking more information on these issues can get help from the program.

“U.S.-China relations have come to occupy the nation’s attention particularly in the past 10 years, and there are probably hundreds of stories written about U.S.-China issues almost every day,” Nakanishi said.

The Wangs discussed their philanthropy ideas with staff from the Asian American Studies Center throughout the course of the year to select a program that would work well for both parties.

For Shirley Wang, an important part of this was to foster understanding in all areas of U.S.-China relations, ranging from people’s ideas to their cultures and languages. She said that sometimes these barriers exist because many have not visited China.

“They are all humans ““ all have families and needs and wants,” she said. “We’re all the same, and we need to get along with each other.”

Wang is the CEO of Plastro, a manufacturer of fiberglass doors and home products. Her husband, Walter Wang, is the president and CEO of JM Eagle, the world’s largest plastic pipe manufacturer.

Over the last decade, the couple has participated in many philanthropic efforts to create understanding of the Chinese culture.

They have donated $1.5 million to help finance “Becoming American: The Chinese Experience,” a PBS series. They also support the China AIDS Initiative, which helps China accelerate its response to HIV/AIDS, and they are members of the Committee of 100, a national organization of Chinese American leaders.

“We are very passionate about fostering an accurate understanding of the role Chinese Americans have played in our nation’s history, and we are honored to support the center’s mission,” Walter Wang said in a press release.