Former IEP student establishes teacher award in memory of his American host mother

Carol Williams Kisch, ESL instructor from UCR Extension, with Dr. Jian-Zhong Lin.

Dr. Jian-Zhong Lin, English professor at Eastern Connecticut State University, has established an annual excellence award for teaching in International Education Programs to honor his American host mother and IEP teacher Jan Pauw.

Jan, who opened her home to Jian-Zhong for more than three years while he earned his master’s and doctoral degrees at UCR, died July 4, 2007.

"I was traveling in China from university to university when mom (Jan) passed away," Jian-Zhong said. "I missed the opportunity to say goodbye to Jan."

Jian-Zhong established the fund for the Jan Pauw Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence to remember his American host mother, whom he affectionately calls "Mom." Since then, Alan Pauw has also contributed to the fund.

On April 9, the Pauw family and Jian-Zhong gathered at UCR Extension to remember Jan and recognize IEP teacher, Carol Kisch. Kisch is the first recipient of the Jan Pauw Memorial Award for Teaching Excellence.

Jian-Zhong met his host mother shortly after his arrival to America from China in 1980. When Jian-Zhong landed in Riverside, it was clear he was an outsider. He wore a traditional Chinese "student suit." He was one of about 500 Chinese citizens living in the U.S. at that time. The lifestyle difference between the two countries was striking.

"My parents in China earned a combined income of $25 a month," Jian-Zhong said.

Within six months of his arrival, Jan, wife and mother of six children, asked Jian-Zhong to move in with them. He lived there for five years. The Pauws never asked him for a dime.

"We just clicked," Jian-Zhong said. "I dedicated my dissertation to my two sets of parents."

That relationship blossomed into a 27-year friendship. Family and friends of Carol Kisch and Jan Pauw and IEP teachers and administrators gathered to celebrate that at the memorial luncheon.

"This is about family," said Sharon Duffy, interim dean of Extension and Summer Sessions. "Extension is family in every sense of the word. We’re here to celebrate that remarkable sense of family."

"This is a very beautiful occasion," said Alan Pauw, Jan’s husband. "Our son, Lin, arranged the Jan Pauw Memorial Fund. That was beautiful. This event is beautiful and it was certainly merited by Jan."