STUST held a homecoming event, sponsored by the Ministry of Education on November 13, to celebrate the 12th anniversary of the “Friendly Taiwan: International Students Homestay Family Project." The event invited Special Committee Member Su-Miao Liu from the International and Cross-Strait Education Department of the Ministry of Education, along with representatives of 15 host families at the same time, to bring international students back to their home to recall the memories of the past, looking back at the passions over the twelve years.

[STUST held a homecoming event, sponsored by the Ministry of Education on November 13, to celebrate the 12th anniversary of the “Friendly Taiwan: International Students Homestay Family Project." Invited to the event were Special Committee Member Su-Miao Liu (middle) from the International and Cross-Strait Education Department of the Ministry of Education, STUST Vice President Hong-De Chang (fourth from right), and host families and international students.]

The event kicked off with a wonderful dance performance by the international students of STUST. In addition to the beautiful traditional dance performed by Vietnamese students, the "World's Only" dance performance by students from the Philippines, Indonesia, and India was even more dynamic. They led the audience to swing their bodies, bringing great heat and light to the gathering.

[Special Committee Member Su-Miao Liu from the Department of International and Cross-Strait Education of the Ministry of Education came to give guidance to the gathering.]

Special Committee Member Liu stated in her speech that, in addition to actively expanding the recruitment of international students and building an international brand image for studying in Taiwan, the Ministry of Education also attaches great importance to the care and service of international students who come to Taiwan to study. The Ministry of Education has organized the "Friendly Taiwan: International Students Homestay Family Program" to promote the atmosphere of hosting families, so that Taiwanese people can be more exposed to diverse cultures, while at the same time international students can have a deep understanding of my country’s society, humanities, and environment, increasing the interaction between the people of both sides. Understanding and friendship have the positive meaning of allowing Taiwan to go out and the world to come in." Since the project was promoted, 4,642 families have completed the training and were successfully matched 6,640 international students from 106 countries and regions with 3,645 host families. With the warmth and free reception of Taiwanese families, many international students have regarded Taiwan as their second home.

[STUST Vietnamese students at the opening performance of "Friendly Taiwan: Foreign Students Host Family Project," sponsored by the Ministry of Education]

During the event, Indian student Dandage Harshad Kumar, who shared his experience in the "warm teaser," said in Chinese on the stage, "When I first met my host family, they gave me a very warm hug. I deeply felt that Taiwan’s friendliness was far more enthusiastic than what I had learned from books. As we get along, they always treat me like their family. From my school to my work, I am very grateful to my parents in Taiwan. I share with them my feelings no matter when I feel sour, sweet, bitter, or spicy in my life." Ms. Yan-Hua Huang from the host family said, "You never know what a different life story will be with the students from various countries." Counting the 11 years of reception, Ms. Huang has taken home students from 19 countries, such as India, Croatia, France, and Vietnam. She has watched how students who came to Taiwan study, graduate, and work. Now some students have even been married and have had their own children. She has been promoted from a mother to a grandma in reception, and she has a deep understanding of her relationship with those students. Their friendship is far more precious than cultural exchanges. She will continue to bring warmth to the hearts of more international students with her reception, and she hopes that the students will often "return to their parents' home." Taiwan will always be their home.

[The host family of Pang-Jia Tseng took a group photo with the international students of STUST from India and Turkey.]

The event ended successfully with the laughter of the host families one after another. Looking at the TV wall with carousel photos on the sidelines, they knew that each frame of photo and each record, page after page, told of the trajectory of their life together and the good time they have had with international students. It fully demonstrates the friendliness of the Taiwanese people and their warmth for the students from all over the world. At the same time, they have established a closer international friendship!

[The host family Yan-Hua Huang took a group photo with the international students of STUST.]

[The host family took a group photo with Indian students from STUST (first and second from left) and Belizean students from Yishou University.]

[The host family of Wen-Zhi Tsai took a group photo with the Vietnamese students of STUST.]