The international collaboration between Arizona State University and Hainan University (HNU) in southern China has some milestones to celebrate this year.

The Hainan University–Arizona State University International Tourism College (HAITC) received a prestigious award from the Chinese Ministry of Education as it honored its first cohort of master’s degree recipients in late May. In June, ASU and HNU also agreed to renew their joint administration of HAITC for a new five-year term.

HAITC, which offers degrees in tourism management and parks, recreation and sport management, as well as in public service and public policy, was named among only 20 international joint programs by the Chinese Ministry of Education on its inaugural list of Excellent Cases of Chinese-Foreign Cooperatively-Run Schools.

Kelly Bricker, HAITC director and professor in the School of Community Resources and Development in the Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions, said the Excellent Cases award is a huge honor for HAITC and ASU. “The word is getting out. It’s the excellence of our program content, supported by a high-quality faculty and staff,” she said.

This year marks the first time the Excellent Cases designation was issued, the ministry said in a statement, “marking a milestone and providing a powerful reference for society to understand Chinese-foreign cooperative education comprehensively and objectively. This groundbreaking evaluation initiative will promote the development of Chinese-foreign cooperative education to a higher and deeper level, injecting new vitality into China's high-level education and opening up to the outside world.”

Bricker said HAITC, established in 2017, is the newest program among the 20 to be recognized. She said the award is an affirmation from the Ministry of Education that HAITC is a high-quality program.

HNU officials were in Tempe on June 13 to join ASU Executive Vice President Chris Howard, chief operating officer of the university’s Academic Enterprise, in signing an agreement pledging to extend the two universities’ relationship for a new five-year term.

The agreement also calls for both institutions to support future academic programs and research development and renew both parties’ commitment to excellence in instruction and program design, said Bricker, who also is a Watts College associate dean.

The universities also agreed to begin developing a program originating in ASU’s Thunderbird School of Global Management. New students would start enrolling in the program in fall 2025.

New master’s degree alumni

Bricker said HAITC students earned master’s degrees for the first time this spring.

The college honored 12 new master’s degree alumni at a May 24 ceremony in China that also celebrated students earning bachelor’s degrees, where Bricker and Watts College Dean and President’s Professor Cynthia Lietz were in attendance. Seven students are receiving Master of Public Administration degrees from ASU this year, while five are receiving Master of Science degrees in tourism management.

HAITC’s spring 2024 cohort of 262 bachelor’s degree recipients is larger than the spring 2023 cohort of 255, according to ASU statistics. Bricker said HAITC’s bachelor’s and master’s degrees will be officially conferred later in June.

This fall, HAITC expects to welcome 30 new master’s degree students, and more than 70% of HAITC’s bachelor’s degree recipients have applied to graduate school, Bricker said. “A very high percentage of them got in.”

“It’s really a true testament to the quality of education our faculty is giving to our students. I’d be remiss if I didn’t recognize the amazing faculty and staff. Without them, none of it would be possible,” Bricker said. “It’s a testament to their dedication to excellence and high quality.”

Credit is also due to the quality of collaboration between the two institutions, Bricker added.

“We have such a dedicated faculty and staff at ASU and HNU, who collaborate to make this work,” she said. “Patience, concern, kindness, inspiration and knowledge peppered with a willingness to be innovative and create something very special with our students is what makes this work. It takes a village, actually two very large villages, dedicated to excellence, to make this happen. We are very fortunate to be a part of this uniquely situated program and partnership.”

Lietz agreed, saying, "It was an absolute pleasure to be able to recognize the graduates of our HAITC program in person this year. I was so impressed by their poster presentations, and celebrating with them on stage was truly an honor. I am grateful for this impactful partnership and cannot wait to return next year to recognize our next group of graduates.”