The Executive Education Program at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, Syracuse University, is pleased to be providing in-person training programs for Chinese universities following a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Executive Education hosted 12 master of public administration and 13 master of business administration students from the faculty of economics and management at East China Normal University (ECNU) from Oct. 4 to Oct. 10 for the program, public management and leadership.

It’s a partnership that is beneficial to both nations, said Xueyi Chen, director of partnerships at Executive Education.

“We have been working with Chinese universities, governments and NGOs for decades,” she said.

While the pandemic may have temporarily halted in-person programs, Executive Education continued to partner with Chinese educators, hosting two online-training programs for the College of Public Administration at Huazhong University of Science and Technology.

“The primary goal of the program is to expose students to diverse perspectives, governance models, and innovative leadership approaches,” Chen explained.

During their visit to Syracuse, ECNU participants engaged in a wide range of topics, including the political, legal, regulatory and institutional frameworks with which the United States government operates; inter-government relations; business-government relations; social welfare policy; environmental challenges; AI, big data and governance; research methods; recent trends in the U.S.-China trade relationship; and ethical leadership.

The participants from ECNU came from both the public and private sector and are pursuing advanced degrees on a part-time basis.

“Academic/educational exchanges are beneficial for both universities and countries, and we hope to see more in the future,” Chen said. “Maxwell has a long and rich history of working with Chinese institutions. We eagerly anticipate the continuation and expansion of partnerships in the coming years.”

Chen added that the Chinese students were inquisitive and quite engaged in every session.

Speakers included Eunkyu Lee, professor of marketing and associate dean for global initiatives of the Whitman School of Management, Colleen Heflin, chair, professor and associate dean of public administration and international affairs, and other Maxwell faculty members. Hamid Ekbia, director of the Autonomous Systems Policy Institute, spoke of the challenges and limitations faced by AI in practical applications, along with the current situation and future of AI from the perspective of experts, and how the media shapes the public’s understanding of AI.

As with most public management and leadership programs, Executive Education provides off-campus experiences to create a more robust experience.

Those trips included a visit to nearby Cazenovia, where students enjoyed a lakeside visit and gourmet lunch, along with a presentation by Kristi Andersen, a former Cazenovia town councilor who is also a Chapple Family Professor of Citizenship and professor emerita of political science at Maxwell.

The group also took a trip to the New York State Capitol, toured downtown Syracuse, and visited New York City and Washington, D.C., during their visit to the U.S.