top of page
151222645_640.jpg
Capture Top 9 Photo Clear_edited.png

Richard Dekold


2018 Student of Honor
2016 Project GO in Taiwan Participant
2017 Internship at the Pudong Institute in Shanghai
The Second Battalion Commander

"By growing up in a community with a sizable Chinese migrant population, I gained an intimate appreciation for Chinese culture that inspired me to signup for the Mandarin program at The Citadel. The complexity of the spoken tones and written characters made learning Mandarin seem equivalent to climbing a mountain. Dr. Tsai and the professors in the program were personally invested in my development  and encouraged me to apply to a Department of Defense program to study Mandarin and Chinese/Taiwanese culture at Soochow University in Taipei. My close friendships with students at Soochow gave me opportunities to develop the foundation in Mandarin I built at The Citadel, and my interest in studying Mandarin grew into a passion. The next summer, I interned at the Pudong Institute in Shanghai -a prominent Chinese government think tank- where I researched the security of Chinese  investments in Shanghai used my Mandarin to form closer bonds with my coworkers. One of the greatest challenges (and the most fun) I had learning Mandarin was living with a Chinese family in Shanghai who spoke almost no English. At first, I used hand motions to signal what I wanted, but after a month of speaking nothing but Chinese I was able to communicate effectively and blend into the family. Currently I am enrolled in Chinese Cinematography, where I watch classic Chinese films to practice my listening comprehension and study the social and political undercurrents in the films that deepen my broader understanding of China and its people."

bottom of page