The Daoli district of the city of Harbin, Heilongjiang province saw the opening of a community college that caters to people in the neighborhood, on June 29, according to a local news portal, which notes that it covers more than 20 subjects, including Russian language, cooking, tea ceremony, sand painting and micro-film, lessons on dance, piano, and Chinese stringed instruments, or reading magazines and books, with 16 classrooms.


Russian instructor in a language course in Daoli district community college, Harbin, on June 29. [Photo/my399.com]

A local woman named Liu, who works at a travel agency, said she was the first person to apply for the Russian language course and that she thought it was useful since there were frequent exchanges with Russians in Harbin. There are also taekwondo, Latin dance and piano courses for children.

The first group of 500 students from the district have begun their 4-month courses, paying only 200 yuan ($32) in tuition. People from low-income families or the live-alone elderly and people at 80 or older can study free of charge. The college even offers some courses designed especially for the disabled to give them certain skills. It expects to train about 3,500 people by year’s end.

In commenting on the new service, Meng Xiangwei, head of the district office, said, “All the teachers are from regular colleges and universities and from various fields, including adult education, vocational training and high-quality, personalized education for youth.”

This is the province’s first school of its kind and got sponsorship from the local district and help from social organizations.