For seventeen consecutive years, a volunteer teaching team from Tianjin University has journeyed from the Haihe River basin to Shangnami Village in Daxing Township, deep within the Aba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan Province.
The initiative, known as "Embrace Nami," represents one of the most enduring university-led rural education assistance programs in modern China. It has quietly reshaped the aspirations of an entire mountain community whose children once knew only the snowmelt river and the towering peaks of Xuebaoding.
Shangnami sits along a river fed by snowmelt from Xuebaoding, the 5,588-meter main peak of the Min Mountains, where Tibetan and Qiang families have lived for generations.
On This Page
During the Red Army's Long March, the First, Second, and Fourth Front Armies operated and stayed in Aba for sixteen months, crossing snowy mountains and grasslands.
Local children grew up hearing Long March stories and often asked what lay beyond the mountains, a question that eventually found its answer through education.
In 2010, Sangjie Dengzheng, the first college student from Shangnami, met Tianjin University student Cui Yuanyuan at a public-interest forum, and together they launched the "Embrace Nami" teaching project.
What began as an improvised summer school in a villager's home has matured into a structured, multi-generational educational bridge. This analysis examines the program's origins, its operational evolution, its measurable impact, and the enduring spirit that sustains it.
TL;DR The "Embrace Nami" volunteer teaching program, run by Tianjin University students for seventeen years in Shangnami Village, Sichuan, has transformed a remote Tibetan and Qiang community's relationship with education. From eight volunteers in 2010 to a 31st team of 27 members teaching at the Daxing Township government site, the initiative has sent fifteen former students to university. It blends Long March heritage with modern rural revitalization, expanding into social research and development services while painting murals that symbolize the mountains and seas embracing.
The Origins and Mission of the Embrace Nami Teaching Program
The "Embrace Nami" project was born from a chance encounter that carried profound consequences for an isolated mountain village. Sangjie Dengzheng, the first college student from Shangnami, understood intimately the chasm between village life and the wider world.
When he met Cui Yuanyuan at a public-interest forum, the two recognized a shared conviction that education could bridge that gap. Their partnership transformed an abstract ideal into a concrete, recurring commitment.
The program's name itself carries symbolic weight, invoking an embrace that reaches across geographical and cultural distance. Volunteers travel from the Haihe River area of Tianjin to a village nestled along a snowmelt-fed river beneath Xuebaoding.
This journey of over two thousand kilometers mirrors the emotional distance the program seeks to close. Each teaching period lasts roughly twenty days, yet its effects ripple across years and generations.
Early trips were arduous by any measure, requiring volunteers to gather in Chengdu by train before enduring a seven-hour bus ride to Songpan County.
After one night of rest, villagers drove them more than seventy kilometers along treacherous mountain roads. The first team of eight members stayed in Sangjie Dengzheng's home and lacked even basic desks, chairs, and teaching materials. That children from nearby villages still came to learn encouraged the volunteers profoundly.
Over more than a decade, successive teams confronted altitude sickness, temperatures plunging to minus twenty degrees Celsius, and rough, muddy roads. These physical hardships became a rite of passage that bonded volunteers and villagers alike.
The program's mission evolved from mere instruction to something more ambitious: opening a window for children to see possibilities beyond the mountains.
The Historical and Cultural Context of Shangnami Village
Shangnami's identity is inseparable from the Min Mountains and the Long March history that courses through the region. The village sits along a river fed by snowmelt from Xuebaoding, the 5,588-meter main peak that dominates the landscape.
Tibetan and Qiang people have inhabited this terrain for generations, developing traditions attuned to altitude, isolation, and seasonal extremes. Their children inherited stories of endurance long before they encountered formal schooling.
During the Red Army's Long March, the First, Second, and Fourth Front Armies operated and stayed in Aba for sixteen months, crossing snowy mountains and grasslands.
This period imprinted itself on local memory, and children grew up hearing Long March stories as part of their cultural inheritance. They often asked what lay beyond the mountains, a question that reflected both curiosity and the limits of their known world.
The 90th anniversary of the Long March victory in 2026 gave these stories renewed resonance.
The village's remoteness shaped its educational trajectory, with Shangnami producing its first college student only in the person of Sangjie Dengzheng. His return as a catalyst for the teaching program illustrates how individual achievement can seed collective transformation.
The community's gradual shift from viewing study as useless to believing children must study well represents a profound cultural reorientation. Tourism and agricultural development further altered villagers' economic horizons and educational expectations.
This convergence of historical memory, ethnic heritage, and emerging opportunity created fertile ground for the "Embrace Nami" initiative. Volunteers did not arrive into a vacuum but into a living community with deep narratives of perseverance.
The program's success depended on honoring those narratives while gently expanding the realm of the possible.
The Founding Partnership Between Sangjie Dengzheng and Cui Yuanyuan
The partnership between Sangjie Dengzheng and Cui Yuanyuan exemplifies how serendipitous encounters can generate durable social institutions. Their meeting at a public-interest forum in 2010 was not orchestrated but proved catalytic.
Sangjie Dengzheng brought intimate knowledge of Shangnami's needs and children, while Cui Yuanyuan contributed the institutional resources of Tianjin University. Together they designed a teaching model that respected local rhythms while introducing outside perspectives.
Their collaboration established a template that subsequent teams would refine rather than replace. The decision to house volunteers in Sangjie Dengzheng's home during the first year signaled a commitment to immersion rather than distant charity.
This proximity allowed volunteers to understand the community's daily realities and adjust their teaching accordingly. It also created bonds of trust that no formal agreement could have secured.
The founders recognized that sustainable impact required continuity, not one-off interventions. They therefore structured "Embrace Nami" as an annual commitment that would outlast any individual volunteer.
This long-term vision attracted students who could see themselves as part of an ongoing story. It also encouraged villagers to invest emotionally in each new cohort.
Over time, the founding partnership evolved into a broader network encompassing Tianjin University's School of Architecture and local government entities. The social practice base unveiled at the Daxing Township People's Government site represents the institutionalization of what began as a personal friendship. Yet the original spirit of mutual learning continues to animate every teaching period.
Early Logistical Challenges and Volunteer Resilience
The first team's journey to Shangnami required a sequence of transports that tested commitment before teaching even began. Volunteers gathered in Chengdu by train, then endured roughly seven hours by bus to Songpan County.
After resting one night, they were driven more than seventy kilometers on mountain roads by villagers. This final leg, over rough and sometimes muddy terrain, introduced them to the physical isolation they would inhabit.
Upon arrival, the eight-member team discovered an absence of basic educational infrastructure. There were no desks, no chairs, and no teaching materials prepared for their use. They improvised, using whatever surfaces and resources the village could provide.
That children from nearby villages still traveled to attend their lessons became a powerful source of motivation.
Altitude sickness afflicted many volunteers, and temperatures as low as minus twenty degrees Celsius made daily life physically demanding. Rough, muddy roads complicated even simple errands and supply runs.
These conditions persisted across more than a decade of teaching cycles, becoming part of the program's collective memory. Each cohort inherited stories of hardship that prepared them psychologically for their own service.
Resilience became a defining characteristic of "Embrace Nami" volunteers, who learned to adapt rather than complain. They discovered that discomfort could coexist with profound meaning and that teaching children hungry for knowledge outweighed personal inconvenience.
This ethos of perseverance would later connect naturally with the Long March spirit invoked by team leaders.
Evolution of Teaching Methods and Community Engagement
Over seventeen years, the program's pedagogical approach evolved from basic instruction to a more holistic model of community engagement. Early teams focused on foundational subjects and classroom activities, constrained by limited materials and space.
As the program's reputation grew, volunteers began incorporating art, music, and broader cultural exposure into their curriculum. The mural titled "Mountains and Seas Embrace, Love in Daxing" exemplifies this creative expansion.
Team leader Chen Bowen and others painted the mural to depict snow mountains, volunteers, villagers, and children looking into the distance. This visual narrative symbolized the program's core aspiration: connecting the isolated village with the wider world.
It also transformed a public space into a shared statement of hope and reciprocity. Villagers could see their own children represented as agents of future possibility.
Community engagement deepened as volunteers recognized that teaching children alone could not transform educational outcomes. They began engaging parents and grandparents, addressing the belief that study was useless.
Wang Ning, a teacher at Wenzhou University and member of the 11th teaching team, returned after ten years to witness this shift firsthand. She observed that villagers' views on education had fundamentally changed.
The 31st team taught at the Daxing Township People's Government site to serve more nearby villages, reflecting the program's geographic expansion. Tianjin University's School of Architecture unveiled a social practice base there, formalizing the university's commitment.
Team instructor Wang Zihe said the program would continue education assistance and expand into social research and rural development services.
We Also Published
Measurable Impact and Educational Outcomes
The most tangible measure of "Embrace Nami's" success lies in the fifteen students who participated in its courses and subsequently entered university. Each of these young people represents a life trajectory altered by sustained educational intervention.
Their achievements validate the program's core premise that exposure to possibility can overcome geographical isolation. They also inspire younger children who see familiar faces achieving what once seemed impossible.
Beyond university admissions, the program has shifted community attitudes toward education in ways that resist simple quantification. Villagers who once viewed study as useless now believe their children must study well.
This transformation required years of patient engagement with parents, grandparents, and community leaders. It also depended on visible role models like Sangjie Dengzheng, whose own journey demonstrated education's transformative power.
Wang Ning's return after ten years provided a longitudinal perspective on these changes. As a teacher at Wenzhou University and member of the 11th teaching team, she could compare her early impressions with current realities.
She noted that tourism and agricultural development had altered the village's economic landscape. These changes, combined with educational advocacy, created new expectations for children's futures.
The program's influence extends beyond individual students to the broader community infrastructure. The social practice base at the Daxing Township People's Government site institutionalizes the university's presence.
It enables teaching to reach more nearby villages and supports expanded research and development activities. This evolution from informal volunteerism to structured partnership signals maturation and sustainability.
Fifteen Students Who Reached University
Fifteen students from "Embrace Nami" courses have entered university, a figure that carries immense symbolic and practical weight. In a village that produced its first college student only in Sangjie Dengzheng, this number represents a generational leap.
Each university admission validates years of volunteer effort and community sacrifice. It also creates a pipeline of role models for younger children to emulate.
These students did not simply benefit from classroom instruction but from sustained relationships with volunteers who returned year after year. The continuity of the program meant that children could grow up within its orbit, progressing from early learners to university candidates.
Volunteers became familiar figures rather than transient visitors, deepening trust and aspiration. This relational dimension distinguishes "Embrace Nami" from short-term charitable interventions.
The university students who emerged from the program may themselves become future volunteers or advocates for rural education. Their personal experience of transformation equips them to speak credibly about education's value.
Some may return to Shangnami or similar communities to continue the cycle of assistance. The program thus generates not only individual success but also a reservoir of social capital.
Measuring impact solely by university admissions risks overlooking other forms of educational progress. Children who did not attend university may still have gained confidence, curiosity, and broader horizons.
The program's aim to open a window for children to see possibilities beyond the mountains encompasses many pathways. Fifteen university students represent the most visible peak of a broader landscape of change.
Shifting Community Attitudes Toward Education
The transformation of villagers' views from seeing study as useless to believing children must study well constitutes a profound cultural shift. This change did not occur overnight but accumulated through seventeen years of consistent engagement.
Volunteers engaged parents and grandparents, addressing doubts with patience and evidence. The visible success of former students provided the most persuasive argument.
Wang Ning's observation that the village had changed through tourism and agriculture contextualizes this attitudinal shift. Economic development created new opportunities that required educated participants. Families began to see education as a pathway to participation in a changing economy. The program's message aligned with these emerging material realities.
Community attitudes also shifted because volunteers respected local culture while introducing new possibilities. They did not dismiss Tibetan and Qiang traditions but built upon them.
The Long March stories that children grew up hearing became a bridge between heritage and aspiration. Volunteers framed education as a continuation of the perseverance their ancestors had demonstrated.
This attitudinal transformation may prove more durable than any single cohort's achievements. When a community collectively believes in education, it creates an environment that supports all children.
Parents invest in schooling, children aspire to learn, and teachers find receptive audiences. The fifteen university students are both products and proof of this new belief system.
Expansion to Daxing Township and Institutional Partnerships
The 31st team's decision to teach at the Daxing Township People's Government site marked a significant geographic expansion. This move allowed the program to serve more nearby villages beyond Shangnami.
It also signaled that the initiative had outgrown its original single-village model. The new location provides more space and infrastructure for larger cohorts of children.
Tianjin University's School of Architecture unveiled a social practice base at the site, formalizing the university's long-term commitment. This institutional partnership elevates "Embrace Nami" from a student-led project to a recognized university program.
It also opens avenues for interdisciplinary collaboration beyond education. Architecture students, for example, might contribute to rural design and planning initiatives.
Team instructor Wang Zihe articulated the program's expanded vision: continuing education assistance while expanding into social research and rural development services. This dual focus acknowledges that education alone cannot address all community needs.
Research can inform better interventions, while development services can improve material conditions. The integration of these strands reflects a mature understanding of rural revitalization.
Institutional partnerships also enhance the program's sustainability by embedding it within university structures. Student volunteers graduate, but the university persists and can recruit new cohorts. Formal agreements with local government entities create accountability and continuity.
The social practice base thus represents both a physical location and an organizational commitment.
Longitudinal Perspectives from Returning Volunteers
Wang Ning's return after ten years exemplifies the longitudinal perspective that returning volunteers bring to the program. As a member of the 11th teaching team and now a teacher at Wenzhou University, she embodies the long-term engagement that sustains "Embrace Nami."
Her observations about the village's transformation carry authority earned through sustained relationship. She witnessed changes that no single visit could reveal.
Returning volunteers like Wang Ning also inspire current team members by demonstrating that the experience endures. They show that teaching in Shangnami is not a fleeting episode but a formative chapter in a longer life.
Their continued connection to the program creates a network of alumni who can support future efforts. This network extends the program's reach beyond any single teaching period.
The 31st team included 27 members, a substantial increase from the original eight, reflecting growing interest among Tianjin University students. This expansion allows for more specialized teaching roles and broader subject coverage.
It also creates a richer volunteer community that can share insights and strategies. The presence of returning volunteers helps transmit institutional memory across cohorts.
Longitudinal perspectives reveal that "Embrace Nami's" impact unfolds over years and decades rather than weeks. A child who attended early courses may now be a university student or young parent.
Volunteers who served in early teams may now be professionals contributing in other ways. The program's true timeline extends far beyond any individual teaching period.
- 01
- 02
- 03
- 04
The Long March Spirit and Contemporary Rural Revitalization
The year 2026 marks the 90th anniversary of the Red Army's Long March victory, a coincidence that imbues the 31st teaching team's service with special significance.
After completing their teaching period, team members visited the Red Army Long March Monument Park in Chuanzhusi Town, Songpan County. This pilgrimage connected their educational service to a broader narrative of perseverance and sacrifice.
Team leader Chen Bowen articulated the connection explicitly, stating that the Long March spirit showed difficulties are part of growth.
The Long March's presence in Aba is not merely historical but living, woven into local memory and identity. The First, Second, and Fourth Front Armies operated and stayed in the region for sixteen months, crossing snowy mountains and grasslands.
Children grew up hearing these stories, which framed hardship as a prelude to triumph. Volunteers who came to teach found themselves participating in a continuing story of endurance.
Daxing Township Party Secretary Nan Yu observed that the team was carrying forward the Long March spirit on a new-era path. This framing positions volunteer teaching as a contemporary expression of the same values that animated the original marchers.
Education becomes a form of crossing snowy mountains, a patient ascent toward a more expansive future. The metaphor resonates because it honors local history while pointing toward transformation.
The program's expansion into social research and rural development services extends this spirit into new domains. Volunteers now contribute not only to children's education but to the community's broader development.
This holistic approach recognizes that sustainable change requires attention to multiple dimensions of village life. The Long March spirit thus informs a comprehensive vision of rural revitalization.
Commemorating the 90th Anniversary of the Long March Victory
The 90th anniversary of the Long March victory in 2026 provided a powerful context for the 31st team's service. Team members visited the Red Army Long March Monument Park in Chuanzhusi Town, Songpan County, after finishing their teaching.
This visit connected their educational work to the sacrifices of earlier generations. It also reinforced the program's identity as a continuation of historical struggle.
Commemoration took multiple forms, from the monument visit to the mural painted by Chen Bowen and others. The mural, titled "Mountains and Seas Embrace, Love in Daxing," depicted snow mountains, volunteers, villagers, and children looking into the distance.
It visually linked the Long March's mountainous terrain with the program's educational mission. The image of children looking outward echoed the question local children had long asked about what lay beyond the mountains.
The anniversary also invited reflection on how the Long March's values translate into contemporary action. Chen Bowen said the Long March spirit showed that difficulties are part of growth.
Volunteers would pass on that spirit and their teaching experience to future cohorts. This transmission ensures that the connection between historical memory and present service remains vital.
Commemoration is not merely backward-looking but generative, inspiring new commitments and expanded visions. The 31st team's service, occurring in the anniversary year, became itself a form of commemoration.
Their teaching, mural, and monument visit enacted the Long March spirit in a new era. The program thus participates in the ongoing life of historical memory.
Chen Bowen's Vision and the Mural's Symbolism
Team leader Chen Bowen articulated a vision that connects the program's modest daily activities to profound long-term effects. He noted that each teaching period lasted about twenty days but had a subtle effect on local villagers.
This acknowledgment of subtlety reflects a mature understanding of how change actually occurs. Transformation rarely announces itself but accumulates through countless small interactions.
The mural Chen and others painted, "Mountains and Seas Embrace, Love in Daxing," embodies this vision in visual form. Snow mountains represent the village's majestic but isolating geography. Volunteers and villagers appear together, signifying partnership rather than charity.
Children looking into the distance evoke the program's aim to open a window to possibilities beyond the mountains.
Chen said the program aimed to open a window for children to see possibilities beyond the mountains. This metaphor of the window is apt because it suggests revelation rather than imposition.
Volunteers do not tell children what to become but show them that more exists than they knew. The children themselves choose how to respond to what they see.
The mural's title, invoking both mountains and seas, captures the program's bridging function. Tianjin, home of the volunteers, sits near the sea, while Shangnami nestles among mountains. The embrace between these geographies symbolizes mutual transformation. Volunteers bring the sea's wider horizons; villagers offer the mountains' enduring strength.
Expanding into Social Research and Rural Development
Team instructor Wang Zihe announced that the program would continue education assistance and expand into social research and rural development services. This expansion represents a strategic evolution from a teaching-focused initiative to a comprehensive community partnership.
Social research can generate knowledge that informs better interventions. Rural development services can address material conditions that affect educational outcomes.
The social practice base unveiled by Tianjin University's School of Architecture provides institutional infrastructure for this expansion. Architecture students and faculty can contribute expertise in rural planning, design, and construction. Their involvement broadens the program's disciplinary scope beyond education.
It also creates opportunities for research that benefits both the university and the community.
Expansion into social research and rural development responds to the recognition that education alone cannot solve all challenges. Children learn better when their families have stable livelihoods and communities have adequate infrastructure.
By addressing these broader conditions, the program enhances the context in which education occurs. This holistic approach reflects lessons learned over seventeen years of engagement.
The expansion also creates new roles for volunteers with diverse skills and interests. Students from architecture, agriculture, economics, and other fields can contribute meaningfully. This diversification strengthens the program's capacity to address complex rural challenges. It also enriches the volunteer experience by offering varied forms of service.
Sustainability and the Future of Volunteer Teaching
Sustainability remains a central question for any volunteer program, and "Embrace Nami" has addressed it through institutionalization and continuity. The program's seventeen-year history demonstrates that student-led initiatives can endure beyond individual founders.
The social practice base and university partnerships provide structural support for future cohorts. The growing network of alumni volunteers creates a reservoir of experience and commitment.
The program's expansion to the Daxing Township People's Government site enhances sustainability by serving more villages and attracting broader support. Local government partnership adds resources and legitimacy that a purely student-run effort might lack.
The involvement of Tianjin University's School of Architecture brings faculty expertise and research capacity. These institutional anchors help ensure the program survives leadership transitions.
Financial sustainability, though not detailed in available information, likely depends on a combination of university support, local government contributions, and possibly philanthropic sources. The program's growing reputation may attract donors interested in rural education and development.
Its integration with university structures may also unlock funding streams unavailable to independent initiatives.
The future of volunteer teaching in Shangnami and beyond will depend on continued adaptation to changing conditions. As the village develops through tourism and agriculture, children's needs and aspirations will evolve.
The program must remain responsive to these shifts while preserving its core commitment to opening windows of possibility. Its seventeen-year history suggests a capacity for thoughtful evolution.
Lessons for Rural Education and Volunteer Programs
The "Embrace Nami" program offers transferable lessons for rural education initiatives and volunteer programs worldwide. Its seventeen-year longevity demonstrates that sustained commitment, rather than episodic intervention, produces meaningful change.
The program's evolution from basic teaching to comprehensive community partnership shows the value of adaptive learning. Its integration of local history and culture into educational practice provides a model for culturally responsive programming.
Continuity emerges as perhaps the single most important factor in the program's success. Children who encountered volunteers year after year developed sustained relationships that shaped their aspirations.
Volunteers who returned after years away brought longitudinal perspectives that enriched the program. This continuity distinguishes "Embrace Nami" from short-term service trips that may inspire but rarely transform.
Cultural responsiveness also proved essential, as volunteers honored Tibetan and Qiang traditions and Long March heritage rather than imposing outside values. The mural's imagery of snow mountains and children looking outward resonated because it grew from local experience.
Education became a continuation of local narratives rather than a rejection of them. This approach built trust and made learning feel like an extension of identity.
Institutional partnerships provided sustainability that individual volunteers could not guarantee. Tianjin University's School of Architecture, the Daxing Township government, and other entities contributed resources and legitimacy. These partnerships allowed the program to expand its scope and reach. They also created accountability structures that helped maintain quality over time.
Continuity as the Foundation of Transformative Education
Continuity distinguishes transformative educational programs from well-intentioned but fleeting interventions. "Embrace Nami's" seventeen-year history allowed children to grow up within its orbit, progressing from early learners to university candidates.
Volunteers who returned year after year became familiar figures whose expectations mattered. This relational depth created conditions for genuine aspiration rather than momentary excitement.
The program's annual rhythm, with each teaching period lasting about twenty days, established predictable presence. Children knew that volunteers would return, that lessons would continue, that someone cared about their progress.
This predictability countered the instability that often characterizes rural educational environments. It also allowed for cumulative learning rather than repeated introductions.
Continuity extended to the volunteer community, as returning members transmitted institutional memory to new cohorts. Wang Ning's return after ten years exemplified this intergenerational transmission.
She could compare her early impressions with current realities and share insights with newer volunteers. This continuity of volunteers paralleled the continuity of service to children.
The program's institutionalization through the social practice base further strengthened continuity by embedding it in durable structures. Even as individual volunteers graduated and moved on, the university and local government maintained their commitment.
This structural continuity ensures that the program survives leadership transitions and changing circumstances. It represents the maturation of a student initiative into a sustainable institution.
Cultural Responsiveness and Local Partnership
Cultural responsiveness was not an afterthought but a foundational principle of "Embrace Nami's" approach. Volunteers entered a community with deep Tibetan and Qiang heritage and Long March memory.
They honored these traditions rather than treating them as obstacles to modernization. The program's name, "Embrace Nami," itself signals respect for local identity.
Local partnership, exemplified by Sangjie Dengzheng's founding role and ongoing involvement, ensured that the program reflected community priorities. Villagers drove volunteers on the final leg of their journey, literally carrying the program into existence.
Sangjie Dengzheng's home housed the first team, embedding volunteers in village life. These partnerships created trust that no external organization could have manufactured.
The mural "Mountains and Seas Embrace, Love in Daxing" emerged from this partnership as a collaborative expression of shared aspirations. It depicted local landscapes and people alongside volunteers, symbolizing mutual respect.
Children looking into the distance represented the community's own hopes for its future. The mural became a public statement of partnership rather than a unilateral declaration.
Cultural responsiveness also meant engaging with the Long March stories that children grew up hearing. Rather than dismissing these narratives as irrelevant, volunteers connected them to educational perseverance.
The 90th anniversary commemoration provided an opportunity to honor this heritage explicitly. Education became a new chapter in a continuing story of endurance and hope.
Scaling Impact Without Losing Intimacy
Scaling impact while preserving intimacy presents a persistent challenge for successful small programs. "Embrace Nami" grew from eight volunteers serving one village to twenty-seven volunteers serving multiple villages.
This expansion increased reach but risked diluting the close relationships that made the program effective. The decision to teach at the Daxing Township People's Government site reflects an attempt to balance these tensions.
The program's expansion into social research and rural development services represents another form of scaling. By addressing broader community conditions, it multiplies the pathways through which it can create change.
Yet this expansion also requires new skills and partnerships that differ from classroom teaching. The program must integrate these new dimensions without losing its educational core.
Maintaining intimacy at scale may depend on preserving small-group interactions within larger structures. Even as the 31st team included twenty-seven members, teaching likely occurred in smaller clusters that allowed personal connection.
The mural project, involving team leader Chen Bowen and others, created opportunities for collaborative intimacy. Future cohorts will need to design similar mechanisms deliberately.
The program's growing alumni network offers another resource for scaling without losing intimacy. Former volunteers who remain connected can mentor new cohorts and preserve institutional memory. Former students who entered university can inspire younger children and model possible futures. This network extends the program's relational fabric beyond any single teaching period.
Measuring Success Beyond University Admissions
University admissions provide a clear and compelling metric, but "Embrace Nami's" success extends beyond this single indicator. Children who did not attend university may still have gained confidence, curiosity, and broader horizons.
The program's aim to open a window for children to see possibilities encompasses many pathways. Measuring success solely by university admissions risks overlooking these broader effects.
Community attitude change represents another dimension of success that resists simple quantification. Villagers' shift from seeing study as useless to believing children must study well transforms the environment for all children.
This attitudinal change may prove more durable than any individual achievement. It creates a cultural foundation that supports educational aspiration across generations.
Volunteer transformation constitutes a third dimension of success, as Tianjin University students who serve in Shangnami carry the experience into their subsequent lives. They develop skills in teaching, cross-cultural communication, and community engagement.
They also gain perspective on their own privileges and responsibilities. Many become lifelong advocates for rural education and development.
Institutional development, including the social practice base and university partnerships, represents a fourth dimension. These structures outlast individual volunteers and create capacity for future work.
They also signal that rural education is a legitimate focus for university resources and research. Measuring success must therefore include these institutional achievements alongside individual outcomes.
The "Embrace Nami" program stands as a testament to what sustained, culturally responsive, and institutionally anchored volunteer teaching can achieve. From eight volunteers in Sangjie Dengzheng's home to a 31st team of twenty-seven teaching at the Daxing Township government site, the initiative has grown without losing its intimate connection to community.
Fifteen former students have entered university, and villagers' attitudes toward education have fundamentally shifted. The mural "Mountains and Seas Embrace, Love in Daxing" captures the program's essence: a bridge between distant geographies and a window onto broader possibilities.
As the 90th anniversary of the Long March victory reminds us, difficulties are part of growth, and perseverance across generations yields profound transformation.
The volunteers who cross snowy mountains and muddy roads to reach Shangnami participate in a continuing story of endurance and hope. Their teaching opens windows that children may one day step through into futures their grandparents could not have imagined.
The Long March spirit lives on in every classroom, every mural, and every child who dares to ask what lies beyond the mountains.
From our network :
- University Language Proficiency Exams: Why Institutional Tests Demand Different Preparation Than IELTS and TOEFLDiscover why university-specific language proficiency examinations differ fundamentally from IELTS and TOEFL, and learn strategic preparation approaches for institutional assessment success.
- The Final Descent: How ESA Retired the Legendary Cluster Constellation After 24 Years of Space Weather ScienceAfter 24 years mapping Earth’s magnetosphere, ESA’s Cluster mission concluded with a precisely controlled reentry over the South Pacific. This analysis explores the scientific legacy, engineering decisions, and debris mitigation principles behind one of space exploration’s most responsible retirements.
- Committed Mediterranean Precipitation Decline: Why Emissions Cuts Alone Cannot Restore Winter RainsNew NOAA research reveals that Mediterranean winter rains may decline irreversibly even with emissions cuts. Explore the science of committed climate change and regional impacts.
- The Hidden Cost of AI Convenience: Why Over-Permissioned Agents Are a Security Time BombDiscover why AI agents with excessive permissions create dangerous single points of failure, and learn how implementing least privilege principles can protect your organization from exploitation.
- Live Online English Classes for Kids: Do They Actually Reduce Anxiety?A ten-week study reveals that synchronous online English classes can significantly reduce child language anxiety while improving listening and reading skills. Discover what makes these programs effective and how parents can select the right one.
- CISA’s Ten-Advisory Wave: Why Generic Patching Fails in OT and How to Build Product-Specific PlaybooksCISA released ten ICS advisories in one week, exposing critical infrastructure risks. Generic patching fails in OT. Learn to build product-specific remediation playbooks.
- Forbidden Matrix Patterns and Visible Lattice Points: A Geometric DictionaryExplore how multidimensional 0–1 matrices encode geometric truths, linking forbidden patterns to visible lattice points and hypergraph theory, with applications in combinatorics and computational geometry.
- Mobile Learning and VR in English: What Global Evidence Reveals About Effective Language TechnologyA systematic review across 14 countries reveals which language-learning technologies genuinely work. Mobile learning, AI, and VR show measurable benefits when pedagogically integrated. This evidence-based guide helps educators and learners select technology that delivers real return on investment.
- How AI Agents Will Change the Way We Manage Personal FinancesExplore how AI agents are transforming personal finance through automated budgeting, bill payment, and investment management, while examining the critical security protocols and governance frameworks required for safe deployment.
RESOURCES
- Resources will be updated soon.
- 01
- 02
- 03
- 04
- 05
- 06
- 07
- 08
0 Comments