About Georgetown University English Learning Center

The mission of the English Language Center (ELC) is to promote global understanding and education through programs and services that enhance English language proficiency, language teaching, and intercultural understanding. Through applied and practical methods, the ELC promotes academic excellence in teaching and learning that is guided by a commitment to diversity and tolerance, and respect for the individual.

Located in the heart of Washington, D.C., the English Language Center (ELC) at Georgetown University is nearly 60 years old with a rich history and tradition of English language and teacher training. ELC faculty and staff engage with a wide range of language backgrounds and learning styles through dynamic and innovative courses designed to meet the needs of today’s diverse student population. There are over 20 countries represented with students from every corner of the world.

Georgetown is one of the world’s leading academic and research institutions, offering a unique educational experience that prepares the next generation of global citizens to lead and make a difference in the world. Established in 1789, Georgetown is the nation’s oldest Catholic and Jesuit university. English Language Center students are encouraged to participate in the communities and neighborhoods around the D.C. area. The unique location in the nation’s capital provides the ideal backdrop for immersive language training as well as personal and cultural development.

About “Clear Heart” International Philanthropic Cultural Communication and Research Program

In 2017, DaoFeng and Angela Foundation and Georgetown University English Learning Center launched the cooperation to support Nonprofit leaders from China to join in the ELC Intensive English Program at Georgetown University, aiming to strengthen these nonprofit leaders’ international leadership by improving English communication skills, participating in community activities, and communicating with NPOs in the DC area. As of the end of 2019, a total of 25 students from Chinese nonprofit organizations participated in the project (more information, please see the survey report).

In 2020, Dao Feng and Angela Foundation (formerly known as Daofeng & Angela Foundation) decided to upgrade the project with increased funding and gave a new project name – The “Clear Heart” International Philanthropic Cultural Communication and Research Program (hereinafter referred to as the “Program”) .

Dao Feng and Angela Foundation has a solid Chinese philanthropic background and has an emotional connection with philanthropy in China. This is the major driving factor why we invest in this project. We believe that cross-cultural communication and research activities are significant to promote the development of civil society, and the target group selected by the project will be the critical force that will influence the development of China’s third sector in the future. Therefore, the investment of this group is an issue worth supporting.

• Program activities and outputs

The “Clear Heart” Program is not an solely intensive English learning program, but also a communication and research program.

The Program selects outstanding applicants from philanthropy and the media industries in China and sends them to the United States to participate in a 16-week intensive professional English training, as well as a series of cross-cultural philanthropic public value courses.

The program provides scholarships to support the course expenses of selected students during their study period. Through the combination of course teaching and learning by doing, the program aims to develop three dimensions of outputs as follows:

1. The program enhance the students’ international leadership by expanding the their international horizons, deepening their thinking and understanding of the deep public value of philanthropy, and cultivating the holding forces of philanthropic public value in China.
2. The second output of this program is a collection of community research the students conduct during the study. Besides the courses, the program requires applicants to participate in community public affairs research activities and communicate with local philanthropic organizations to explore solutions to social issues.
3. A long-term research aimed at the students participating in the project (100 people in 5 years), to observe how participation in international learning can benefit non-profit leaders, and what kind of changes would happen in their practices when they return to their respective nonprofit organizations or media in China.

• Scholarship funding scope

The program has two semesters separately in spring and autumn each year, with 5-15 trainees in each semester, 20 trainees per year, and a total of 100 trainees are planned to be trained during the program.

The project will offer a scholarship (16-week tuition fee) of USD 9,936 to each trainee approved by the review committee. Due to the exchange rate and other reasons, the initiators pay the scholarship directly to Georgetown University when the student enrolls in the university. In addition, the project will spend USD 1,500 per trainee to organize a series of cross-cultural philanthropic public value courses, eastern and western community public affairs comparative research activities, and communication with local philanthropic organizations, and this fee will be paid directly to the organizer of the event in the United States or other related parties as appropriate. Trainees shall bear any other expenses, including application fee, visa fee, transportation fee, living expenses in the United States, etc.

• Scholarship funding standard

Applicants are expected to have a certain degree of social experience, precipitation, in-depth reflection on current public value, philanthropy industry problems, and social pain points, eager to seek truth at the level of truth and “Tao” rather than skills, and are willing to learn from this project for China’s philanthropy cause to contribute to the development and international exchanges and cooperation, the following conditions must be met at the same time:

1. The organization the applicant currently serves is a non-profit organization or media legally registered in China, and the applicant is a full-time employee of the organization, and the organization supports the applicant to participate in this project;
2. Applicants are key leaders of their organizations or are responsible for critical positions and have influence and decision-making power for the organization’s development. Applicants from media should be editors at the senior level of the media, including traditional media and new media;
3. Applicants are expected to have social experience between 30-45 years old, bachelor degree or above, non-English major, and no experience of studying abroad in English as the main language of instruction;
4. Applicants should have basic English listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills, be good at communication and sharing and have a strong sense of teamwork;
5. Applicants and their organizations have a long-term concern about social issues, and believe that a cross-cultural perspective is helpful to the future development of this issue;
6. Applicants should commit to devoting enough study energy during the visit, live in a homestay to participate in community public activities without bringing family members and friends with them, and complete the learning tasks as required by the project.