Bradley D. Roberts, class of 2011, from Hilliard, Ohio, and Erica T. Davis, class of 2013, from Mount Vernon, Ohio, recently earned Senior First and Junior Second Places, respectively, at the 2nd "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students in Eastern United States, April 23. The regional competitions leading up to the national one on April 23 drew more than 100 students from 10 eastern 
states. Following those rounds, Roberts and Davis joined the top one fifth of student participants in qualifying for the final competition in New York City. The two were then selected from 27 contestants representing such institutions as Princeton University (home to the other Senior First Place winner) Columbia University and Brown University.
According to the Gov.cn, the Chinese Government's official web portal, "the competition include[d] a prepared speech in Chinese, a Chinese art and cultural show including Chinese calligraphy, Chinese brush painting and Kung Fu show, etc. and a Chinese cultural quiz."
"Learning Chinese has become more and more popular in the United States," said Morgan Jones, one of the judges and a representative of the New York City Mayor's Office. This competition serves "as a bridge to promote understandings between people from China and the U.S.," he added as part of his remarks on Gov.cn.
As the Senior First Place winner, Roberts, a self-designed Chinese major, will now represent the United States in competing with more than 120 students from more than 60 countries at the 10th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students in China in July. He was recently interviewed by reporters, including the official CCTV (China Central Television) and New China News Agency.
"I entered into the Chinese Bridge Competition as both an academic pursuit and a desire to make my professors at Wittenberg proud," Roberts said. "Coming in second place at the regional competition at Ohio State University was already a crowning achievement; being able to compete at the national level against other outstanding universities was unbelievable. Speaking honestly, competing at any level would have been impossible without the support of the various departments and faculty at Wittenberg University. Dr. Howard Choy, Dr. Shelley Chan, Professor Shih-Ming Li Chang and countless others had a direct hand in my success, and I thank them for all of their hard work and dedication. I just hope that I will be able to continue making my professors and everyone at Wittenberg proud."
Both Roberts and Davis, also a self-designed Chinese major with a second major in East Asian Studies, will receive one-year scholarships to study in China in 2012.
"When I started college at Wittenberg, I never imagined myself where I am now," Davis said. "If it weren't for a chance comment from Dr. Shelley Chan, I wouldn't even be in the Chinese program. All of my Chinese teachers have made studying Chinese part of my future....This competition has really given me a chance to test my abilities, and maybe even more important, has given me an even higher goal to aspire to."
The "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students in Eastern U.S. is sponsored by the Office of Chinese Language Council International, known as "Hanban," and organized by the New York Service Center for Chinese Study Fellows.
