庚子新春，一场突如其来的新冠肺炎席卷中华大地，疫情引起社会广泛关注。面对着来势汹汹的疫情，国通学院迅速行动起来，把师生生命安全和身心健康放在第一位，以最大努力、最严措施、最快速度，全面落实疫情防控举措。国通的外籍教师们也心系每一名同学，并送上寄语，鼓励大家坚定信心、共克时艰、安心学习，携手打赢这场疫情防控狙击战。

Harold P. Sjursen and Kathryn Sjursen

Professor or Coach Katie and I left China before the viral outbreak to spend the holidays with our children and grand children. We expected to return on February 22 to be with all of you for the Spring semester. The events have made this plan impossible, and we are not sure when we will next see you face to face. But although we are many kilometers distant we are thinking about you everyday. Living now, as you must, isolated from each other is a challenge and hardship leading to feelings loneliness. But we have learned of your courage and the many creative activities you’re undertaking, turning your enforced solitude into an opportunity for personal enrichment. The response of SGE students in this crisis is an inspiration that gives us all a sense of pride and re-awakens the realization that in your hands the world can become a better place. Keep up the good work. When this is over and normal patterns return once again you will be stronger and more aware of your inner resources. We are proud of you and so glad we have the chance to know you and work with you.  

Lueny Morell

Life is About Change and How We Address It

Dear SGE students,  

Nothing in life remains the same. We are born, we grow, we turn old, we die. All through these phases we undergo change, many changes. We may face easy roads or obstacles and barriers – little or big – along the way. Some of these pathways we welcome, some we definitively don’t. Some we plan, some we don’t. They appear suddenly without notice or warning. But that precisely is what makes life such a wonderful, rich and diverse experience! If we take the good and the not so good times in our lives, it is these which shapes who we are, who we choose to be. It is how we manage changes, obstacles and successes that prepares us for life and future changes. If we choose to lament and become frustrated, sad and depressed when difficult moments arise, that’s how we will live. If instead we choose to reflect, accept and learn from them, then the outcome will be much more agreeable to our hearts and minds. It is refreshing to understand that, with several exceptions, changes are not perennial. They never stay for the rest of our lives – they evolve and may bring other alterations to our routine. In addition, the level of responsibility and control of some of these changes is out of our reach and human condition. It is also good to know that we are responsible for our efforts not for the efforts’ outcomes. We may try hard, but if it does not turn out the way we wanted because out of our control situations, the best to do is to accept the outcome and learn from it. In the process we may worry a lot, not at all, or just a little and that is OK. But it is what we can do with what we have what counts.

What China is undergoing these days with the corona virus, many civilizations in the world have faced before. One might think of the black plague in Europe during the Middle Ages, or the AIDS virus in the USA more recently. History tells us about the way people reacted to these kinds of challenges. But in all cases, everybody learned – a lot! And the world is a better place today than it was before these challenges because of the learning experiences. It is a very difficult situation where not only China is affected, but the whole world is.

So, how does this affect your personal life and as a student at SGE? How can we manage the big changes in our daily lives the situation brings? Well, first I think what is going on is a tremendous learning experience for students and faculty! There are several skills you may reflect upon and learn that come to mind:ADAPTABILITY, RESILIENCE AND RESOURCEFULNESS. You will learn to adapt to the situation making the best out of it. Hey, it’s a short vacation from study and enjoy family! All of you are very young, so taking 1-2 semesters off will not affect your desired plans and outcomes (my life example!). Resilience is the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness. In material science, resilience is the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; the elasticity. Therefore, when everything comes back to normal you will have to get back on your feet quickly, recover. And you will need to find all the resources needed for that – internally and externally. Start planning now for when that happens.

So, dear students, chai o! Live life at the fullest every minute at a time. And time will take care of everything!

Kainam Thomas Wong

                                              Transform Crisis into Opportunities

Life is full of unexpected events. How you affront them could open new opportunities to you.

Now is the time to develop self-learning skills that would be essential throughout your subsequent professional career. Think: when you work for a boss, s/he would NOT  spend much time teaching you the details, yet s/he would expect you to achieve results for her/him and for the work group. You yourself would thus need to identify what to learn and how to learn, ... and to learn them, all through your own independent efforts, with little outside help.

A piece of "good news" about the coming semester is that you would not entirely be on your own, but you would be guided long-distance through lecture notes, videos, emails, and real-time web-conferencing, say, for my course on "probability and statistics".

Several of you are pursuing independent research with me to buttress your CV for master's admission to a more excellent university and/or to raise your chances for a scholarship. Now, transform your "home alone" time into productive research sessions.

That is, turn these unusual circumstances into opportunities to acquire self-learning skills and to be productive academically, instead of any harmful anxiety or unproductive boredom. 优胜者化危机为机遇 ... and you are a winner.

Looking forward to see you soon at SGE.

Abdelkader El Kamel

 May the Force be With China and With All of You!  

Our dear students, I wanna share with you these moments in this tough period of virus and uncertainty.

First of all, we all love China! We all pray for China! China is a great nation which will overcome this difficult period and eradicate the virus very soon! Keep confident in your marvelous country, in your skills, in your open-mindedness... for sure you'll succeed. All faculty members are keen to helping you, to listening to you, to accompanying you... Feel free to contact us anytime! Personally, I'll be happy to help as much as I could! You're not alone, no, no, all China friends and lovers are supporting you and are ready to come back to continue our wonderful mission, teaching you, supervising you, accompanying you... MAY THE FORCE BE WITH CHINA AND WITH ALL OF YOU!