Opportunity to volunteer in Taiwanese school strikes a chord with Centre student

Rising senior Kylin Jia paired two of his passions while studying abroad in Taiwan.

A double major in Chinese studies and business, Jia is one of four Centre College students attending National Taiwan University (NTU) in 2024-25. He’s also spending time with elementary students, volunteering his time with Project LET’S Go! (PLG).

“I was captivated by the idea of learning about Taiwan from the perspective of grade school students, because, in my experience, children are more open to talking about what matters to them,” Jia said. “The PLG program added a layer of stability and purpose that allowed me to truly focus on building relationships with the volunteer teachers and students instead of getting bogged down by the logistics of travel.”

Jia is participating in NTU’s prestigious International Chinese Language Program (ICLP). He’s working at Dong’ao elementary school, a rural school attended by members of the Atayal tribe. Jia said there were days when students taught the teachers — he learned about their use of traditional bows, smoking of flying fish and using weaving looms.

At the school, Jia taught art — an opportunity for him to socialize with students and create lesson plans. He joked that his name in Chinese (麒麟)sounds like “ice cream,” giving him the nickname “ice cream teacher” (冰淇淋老师) in class.

“My favorite lesson plan was one where students decorated paper airplanes and then flew them to different countries posted on the walls of the classroom,” Jia said. “Each country corresponded to a volunteer teacher’s home country, and students were encouraged to ask them questions about their home. To me, this lesson provided a situation where learning about culture felt organic and students were genuinely interested.”

Jia, a Danville, Kentucky native, has a passion for art as well: Prior to his time in Taiwan, Jia volunteered at Carving Studio and Sculpture Center in Vermont.

“Centre has developed my sense of self confidence and willingness to take social and academic risks,” he said. “My time in Taiwan has felt like a sort of wholistic capstone project for all the unwritten skills that I have cultivated while at Centre.”