Taiwan and South Carolina Sign MOU Continuing 17 Years of Education Cooperation
Ms. Ellen Weaver, State Superintendent of Education of South Carolina, and Dr. Rebecca Gunnlaugsson, Chief of Staff, visited Taiwan from September 22 to September 27, 2025 at the invitation of Taiwan’s Ministry of Education. On the morning of September 26, they attended a ceremony for the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the South Carolina Department of Education and the Ministry’s Department of International and Cross-strait Education. This MOU continues long-standing cooperation between South Carolina and Taiwan at the primary and secondary education level. A main focus is on sharing educational expertise and resources to support and facilitate programs for the teaching of the Chinese language in South Carolina and programs for the teaching of the English language in Taiwan, but it provides for cooperation in other areas of common interest and benefit.
This latest MOU continues to promote the South Carolina - Taiwan Visiting Teacher Program for bringing experienced, suitably qualified Taiwanese teachers to classrooms in public schools in South Carolina. It also continues to facilitate School to School Activities, for schools and their students in Taiwan to interact with schools and their students in South Carolina, and share educational programs and resources.
Speaking at the signing ceremony, Dr. Joyce Yu-Jiuan Lee, Director-General of the Department of International and Cross-strait Education mentioned that Taiwan and South Carolina began working together to facilitate primary and secondary education in 2008. This international cooperation was broadened to include higher education, when the Department signed an MOU with the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education in 2022.
Superintendent Weaver said that she was impressed by how technical and vocational education in Taiwan is strongly integrated with industry, and that the signing of this MOU will inject more resources and momentum into Chinese language education and STEM education in South Carolina. This will further deepen the state’s educational partnership with Taiwan.
