Applications:
- Submit your application through this form.
- January 15 – February 15: Open Application
- February 16 – February 21: Review Applications
- February 22: Announce the Results (We will have a waitlist. Those on the waitlist will be notified of our final decision after March 31, should any accepted students choose not to participate.)
- March 31: Accepted students must confirm acceptance, submit required documents (e.g., proof of insurance, all kinds of waivers), and pay a $100 refundable deposit. (This $100 becomes non-refundable if a student chooses not to participate after May 1st.)
About the Program:
The 2025 Penn-STARTALK Chinese Program: Experiential Learning at China Folk House, developed by the University of Pennsylvania, invites 20 students in grades 9-12 for a dynamic 3-week immersive session from July 7 to July 26, 2025.
- It’s a tuition-free program.
- Classes on Penn’s campus will run from Monday, July 7th, 2025, to Friday, July 18th, 2025. Free lunch will be provided, and students can leave the Penn campus around 3 PM every day. No classes are held on Friday afternoons or weekends.
- The China Folk House Retreat in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, is scheduled from Monday, July 21st, 2025, to Saturday, July 26th, 2025. Free shuttle service and meals will be provided. Students will stay in tents or bunkhouses for the week.
This innovative program combines rigorous Chinese language instruction at the esteemed Penn campus with a distinctive “China Folk House Retreat.” China Folk House provides a culturally rich environment reflecting the folkways of rural China, with an authentic Yunnan farmhouse complete with household furnishings, tools, and productive gardens, all relocated on a 1,500-acre Quaker nature preserve connecting the Appalachian Trail on the Blue Ridge mountains with the Shenandoah River in historic Harpers Ferry, West Virginia. China Folk House has hosted hundreds of college and high school students for hands-on experiential learning programs and works closely with Chinese-American community groups in the greater Washington, DC area. As a unique cultural exchange center, CFH has attracted media attention in China and the U.S., including a podcast profile by the National Committee on US-China Relations and a documentary film broadcast on Yunnan TV. It is an ideal site for learning by doing and for having summer fun in a beautiful natural setting.
Click here for more photos about the China Folk House.
