Our Team

Bob Holden

Gov. Bob Holden

Chairman and CEO

Gov. Bob Holden

Bob Holden served as Missouri’s 53rd Governor, 2001-2005. Prior to being elected Governor, Holden served two terms as Missouri State Treasurer and three terms as a Missouri State Representative.

Bob Holden has been in public service his entire adult life. In addition to holding elective office, Holden worked for State Treasurers James I. Spainhower and Mel Carnahan, United States Senator Thomas F. Eagleton, and Congressman Richard A. Gephardt.

During Governor Holden's term in office, he chaired the Midwest Governors Association; opened Missouri’s first trade office in China; created Missouri’s first Hispanic Outreach Committee; moved Missouri from 41st to 5th in terms of women in leadership positions; appointed over 200 African Americans to prominent leadership roles; established the state's first Youth Cabinet; and built the first LEED certified state office building in Missouri.

Bob Holden is currently the Missouri Co-Chair for the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, and is an Executive Board member of the Missouri State NAACP Chapter. After leaving office in 2005, Holden founded the Holden Public Policy Forum and was a professor at Webster University for ten years. While at Webster University, he helped bring the first Confucius Institute to Webster University, St. Louis, Missouri.

For over 40 years, Bob Holden has been an active participant in the American Legion Missouri Boys and Girls State Program. He led efforts to bring the first delegations of Chinese students to be participants in this historic program. Since that first delegation to Missouri Boys and Girls State, he has lead the efforts to continue these student delegations of Chinese students to Missouri and Missouri students to China with plans to initiate delegations from other states.

Bob Holden believes that long term economic success for the United States and China must be built on mutual respect, clear understandings and honest dialogue. This can be achieved by expanding our cultural ties, creating more educational partnerships, and creating bridges of opportunities for successful business in both countries.

About Gov. Holden
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Min Fan

Executive Director

Min Fan

Min Fan was born in China and studied at Peking University before immigrating to the United States. Continuing her education at the University of North Carolina she earned a B.A. in Art followed by an M.B.A. at the Kenan-Flagler Business School.

Min went on to a successful career in the corporate world culminating in her role as the leader of the Ideation and Innovation Practice at Hewlett Packard (HP) Global Corporate Services. Upon leaving HP she joined the startup ecosystem as an entrepreneur and mentor at two Colorado incubators.

From 2018-2019, Min brought her entrepreneur experience and passion for US and China collaboration to the nonprofit sector as the Executive Director/COO of US China Innovation Alliance (UCIA). Over 100 US companies visited China on sponsored trips as a result of her team’s efforts.

Prior to joining the US Heartland China Association, Min launched US China Now, a not-for-profit endeavor, which partnered with a broad spectrum of organizations to build a bridge of understanding across the cultural divide between US and China.

About Min
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Jason Conley

Program Associate

Jason Conley

Originally from the Heartland, Jason Conley is a graduate of the Ohio State University and has pursued his Master's degree in Advanced Chinese Language and Culture, specializing in the Belt and Road Initiative and foreign investment. 

His research background focused on the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and the ROI of Chinese-backed infrastructure development in northern Pakistan.

Before his time at USHCA, Jason spent several years teaching English as a Second Language and Education. He now spends his time working to continue education and engagement of local Heartland communities.

About Jason
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Christina Oyelowo

Communications Coordinator

Christina Oyelowo

Christina Oyelowo is a Nigerian-American with a diverse professional background. A graduate of the American University of Paris, she is a recipient of a BA in Middle Eastern and Islamic Pluralities and International and Comparative Politics. While at university, Christina was fortunate to visit numerous countries in Africa, Europe, and the Middle East for both leisure and research purposes. While finishing her BA abroad in Paris, France, she also spent time living in Cairo, Egypt, where she is currently based. Her time abroad and traveling the world has given her rare insights into different cultures and thought processes, allowing her to solidify her identity as a global citizen.

Christina's professional background is composed of vast experiences ranging from communications to DEI efforts, providing her with numerous skills that she is eager to use in her role as the 2021 Summer Communications Coordinator with the USHCA. A native of Minnesota, she is excited to dive into this role and examine the unique relationships that can be built
between the Heartland States, and China. In her free time, she enjoys practicing her French and Arabic, painting, and exploring Egypt.

About Christina
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Frank M. Dolce, PhD

Third Space - Program Director

Frank M. Dolce, PhD

Frank Dolce was born in Buffalo, New York, where he grew up immersed in the languages and cultures of the many tourists that come to visit Niagara Falls. Studying advanced Mandarin at Carleton College, Frank became interested in designing events and ecosystems that integrate meaningful second language use and intercultural exchange into language learning programs.

Frank has taught Mandarin across a range of contexts, from middle school to college levels supplementing this in-class teaching experience with a PhD in Second Language Acquisition from Carnegie Mellon University. Frank’s research explores the way intercultural interactions between diverse Chinese and Americans support them in developing second language skills, cultural knowledge and intercultural rapport.

Trained as a sociocultural practitioner and conversation analyst, after earning his doctorate Frank took a role at Asia Society in New York City as Director of Networks and Engagement. In this position he designed, piloted, implemented and assessed US-China events and ecosystems that supported Chinese and American college students in cultivating intercultural competence
and second language skills. This work centered on tailoring a UNESCO methodology, “Story Circles”, into a foundational activity for a growing college community, where diverse Chinese and American students come together to build intercultural skills and bonds of rapport.

Frank is excited to bring his expertise to US Heartland China Association, where he will design programs to support Chinese and Americans in cultivating intercultural skills, knowledge and friendships. The “Third Space” initiative, centered on bilingual US-China story-sharing, is a core focus of Frank’s work at USHCA, though he also consults on an array of educational initiatives
offered by Heartland.

About Frank
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Sophia Sun

Special Projects Advisor

Sophia

Born in China, Sophia Sun came to the United States to pursue her master’s degree in Public Relations at the University of Georgia. She also earned an M.B.A. degree from the University of North Carolina. 

Sophia spent over 15 years as a sales and marketing professional in the financial, high tech, and CPG industries, specializing in digital marketing, market research, and PR/event management. She led HSBC North America key growth initiatives for customer engagement by building award winning websites and first-class online customer services.  She drove record volume of new customer acquisition with breakout technology and innovative campaigns. At Discover Card Services, she developed enterprise level adtech capabilities to grow incremental sales while orchestrating relevant cardmember experiences across digital touch points.

In recent years, Sophia has been devoting her time to community and volunteering activities including culture exchange, child and youth education, and international affairs. 

About Sophia
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Haolin Li

Intern (Madison, WI)

Haolin Li

Haolin is an undergraduate student majoring in computer engineering at University of Wisconsin Madison. He is an international student from Xi’an China and very interested in the US-China relationship. He is managing Chinese social networks of USHCA.

About Haolin
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Marshall Summar

Intern (Knoxville, TN)

Marshall Summar

Marshall Summar is an undergraduate student at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville earning his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration. He is pursuing a major in Economics and a minor in International Business. He has a curiosity and passion for other cultures that he discovered through his study abroad experiences in France and England. Driven by his passion, Marshall strives to discover new ways to bridge the cultural gaps between the U.S. and other nations. 

About Marshall
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Caroline Brown

Intern (Nashville, TN)

Caroline brown

Caroline Brown is an undergraduate student pursuing a degree in International Business with a Chinese minor at Belmont University. She was adopted from China to America at twelve years old. Through her adoption experience, she developed a passion for global connection, and she seeks to help people from all over the world connect. 

About Caroline
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Fangzhou Gu

Intern (Beijing, CN)

Emma Gu

Fangzhou is a rising senior at New York University’s Gallatin School of Individualized Study, with a concentration in Psychology and Media studies. She is interested in how media consumption in the U.S. and in China have shaped the respective psychologies of their citizenries. Born and raised in Beijing, China, Fangzhou has spent her college years in New York, Paris, and Shanghai. Living in these cities has prepared her not only with language skills but also cultural competency across a range of contexts. Fangzhou ardently believes that similarities always outnumber differences across cultures, and that there is great potential for mutual understanding despite the international and diplomatic challenges that we face.

About Fangzhou
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Katherine Newton

Intern (Houston, TX)

Katherine Newton

Born and raised in a small Texas farming and ranching town, Katherine Newton is a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin with degrees in International Political Economies and Chinese Culture and Language. She is currently a student at American University pursuing her MS in International Business. She has published research works analyzing international political and economic organization across East and Southeast Asia. 
Katherine has worked with a number of nonprofits focused on U.S.-China relations, and is very excited to now be focusing on the Heartland region.
About Katherine
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Carissa Yang

Intern (Chicago, IL)

Carissa Yang

Carissa Yang is a graduate of Colby College with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology: Neuroscience and a Chemistry minor. As a first-generation QuestBridge scholar, her aspiration is to pursue a public interest career in the legal field and to advocate for underrepresented communities. Carissa believes that understanding the dynamic relationship between China and America is key to improving policy, cultural awareness, and community.

Over the past year, Carissa has volunteered as a Core Ambassador and digital intern for Third Space at USHCA, a bilingual program aiming to foster intercultural engagement and community. She was an American Delegate for the inaugural 2021 China-America Student Conference (ChASC), and is a current American Executive Committee Member for the upcoming 2022 conference. ChASC is hosted by International Student Conferences, a partnering non-profit organization that prepares and empowers university students from the United States, Japan, Korea, and China through student-run educational and cultural exchange programs. Having grown up in Illinois, Carissa is excited to work with USHCA as a Fundraising and Operations Intern to both support the organization and explore the deep history and relationship between the Heartland states and China.

About Carissa
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Ronghua Gai

Intern (Wuxi, CN)

Ronghua Gai

Ronghua earned his Bachelor’s degree at Colgate University, with a major in International Relations and a minor in Economics. He is also an incoming MPP student at University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policies. Ronghua developed rigorous intellectual curiosity about the US-China relations during his undergraduate years. His experience of pursuing higher education in the US as a Chinese student inspired his great passion for promoting cultural exchanges.

About Ronghua
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Irene Qi

Intern (Beijing, CN)

Irene Qi

Miao Qi is an incoming student at the Harris School of Public Policy, the University of Chicago. She was born and grew up in Beijing and pursued an undergraduate degree in Economics and Finance at the University of Hong Kong. She has a strong passion for regional economic development in both China and the US. As a research team member, she is motivated to explore potential collaboration opportunities and build cultural connections between the US and China.

About Irene
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Nicole Boutaugh

Intern (Veazie, ME)

Nicole Boutaugh

Nicole is an undergraduate at Mount Holyoke College, studying International Relations and East Asian Studies. After high school, they took a gap year to study Mandarin in Beijing, China. Through this opportunity, Nicole developed a passion for US-China relations and wishes to continue to support communication between the two nations. Since then, Nicole has extensively studied East Asian politics and cultures, and interned at multiple Asia focused nonprofits. They hope to utilize their experiences to promote cross-cultural communication and compassion for cultural differences.

About Nicole
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Nadya Al-Shawi

Intern, Third Space Program (Mishawaka, IN)

Nadya Al-Shawi

Nadya Al-Shawi is a first-generation Russian-Iraqi American based in Northern Indiana. She is pursuing a Bachelor's degree in International Economics and Politics, as well as Chinese and Japanese Studies at Valparaiso University. Growing up in a culturally diverse environment, Nadya developed an incredible desire to learn more about her own identity, discover unknown cultures, and master foreign languages. She began studying both Mandarin and Japanese in high school, further cultivating her passion for cross-cultural communication and international relations. With much enthusiasm for research, education, and scholarship, she plans to attain a Master's and PhD in the near future as she continues down a path of economic and political diplomacy.
About Nadya
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Juno Sheng

Intern, Third Space Program (Suzhou, CN)

Juno Sheng

Juno Sheng is a rising senior from the first cohort of undergraduates at Duke Kunshan University. She is pursuing her bachelor's degree in political economy and has worked in multiple research projects related to international development and intercultural communication. As a part of the Third Space Team, she enjoys intercultural storytelling a lot and hopes this communicative form can bridge the cultural gap between Chinese and American undergraduates in the context of COVID-19.

About Juno
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Lindsay Acker

Intern, Third Space Program (Buffalo, NY)

Lindsay Acker

Lindsay is in her final semester of a Master’s degree program in Conflict Transformation at the Center for Justice and Peacebuilding at Eastern Mennonite University. As a part of the Third Space team, she uses her skills in facilitation and circle keeping rooted in Indigenous practices to create an equitable and empathetic space, undermining conventional power dynamics and advancing the practice of intercultural engagement. Lindsay also works at the Erie County Restorative Justice Coalition, encouraging and supporting accountability and healing in communities in Buffalo, NY through community circles and restorative conferencing. Her enthusiasm for the transformative power of stories includes a passion for theater, and in non-Covid times you can find her attending, teaching, acting, or working on and off stage.

About Lindsay
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