Michigan State University held a Zoom meeting with parents of Chinese international students Feb. 23, focusing on some of the college’s ongoing works and updates on the resources MSU can provide to international students.
MSU Police Department, Office of International Students and Scholars, and the office of China programs were present. The issues families of Chinese students focused on were the safety of the dormitories, the university’s response, and the psychological counseling of international students.
Daniel Munford, sergeant of the MSU Police Department responded to questions from Chinese parents about the safety of campus dorms after the shooting and whether students can bring equipment to protect themselves.
“We cannot block off all the dorm buildings because MSU is a public university and people visit every day, and in addition, some of the dorm buildings are used for courses as well,” said Munford, “MSU students are not allowed to bring any equipment to campus, except for the spray type.”
Counseling and Psychological Services outreach counselor Zhenshan (Zen) Zhong shared emergency distress calls to Chinese parents, and highlighted the resources MSU has provided 24/7 counseling for international students.
“We will help when your child is having psychological problems, but when there is an emergency, I would recommend calling the emergency number or the police,” said Zhong, “We are providing psychological counseling in Chinese.”
Krista McCallum Beatty, Director of Office for International Students and Scholars, and Jennifer Wargo, Deputy Director of Office of China Programs also both spoke in the meeting to make Chinese parents aware that OISS and Office of China programes are providing resources to ensure international students are helped.
The office of China programs was responsible for promotion of the meeting and made parents aware that MSU offers both emergency access and friendly activities.
Chaoyue Feng is a member of the China Program Office and vice president of MSUWe54, the Chinese Student Association. Feng promoted the Zoom meeting on her social media accounts and spoke about access to information for Chinese international students and how the Chinese Student Association did after the shooting.
“I think the main way to get information is WeChat, Twitter, and Instagram,” said Feng, “To ensure the safety of Chinese students, the activities planned by the Chinese Student Association were postponed and only online meetings were arranged for communication.”
The MSU Police Department, OISS and the office of China programs did not disclose any information about the Chinese student injured in the shooting during this meeting, in order to ensure the basic privacy of the injured student.