Who We Are

Qingdao Expat Group is a community for expats, by expats. It continues to grow witheach passing year and is currently represented by members, accompanying spouses and children from 56 countries! We aim to create a mutual understanding of Chinese and Western cultures and also hope to help new Expats arriving in Qingdao to settle in more comfortably by frequently organising events such as balls and dances, dinners..
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Over the past several years, the Mission of the Expat Charity Committee has also been and continues to be: assist in structural and educational assistance to local Qingdao and rural Qingdao (Laixi, Pingdu, Jimo, Laoshan) students and schools. As the Chinese Government changes their funding of schools and students, the Qingdao Expat Charity then finds students and schools still in need of assistance.

The following gives a brief description of the Qingdao Expat Charity Committee’s commitment to financially helping some poor students and schools in rural areas outside of Qingdao.

Chinese children begin school when they are six years old.
Students attend Elementary school for 6 yearsthen go toMiddle School for3 years. Some students go onto High school for3 years and some then go onto University.

The QEC begins financially assisting needy children while they are in elementary school. By visiting these young children at least two times a year, taking their pictures, talking with them, we hope to not only help them stay in school, financially, but encourage them to keep going to school. We enjoy going back to visit and watch how they are growing, and how they begin to feel comfortable with us and smile when they walk in the office to see us.

The QEC follows the same students as they graduate elementary school and go onto middle school. If some of these students are still in need of financial assistance, we try to help them.

The QEC assists students in schools in rural towns outside of Qingdao:

*Laixi -2 schools
*Pingdu -2 schools
Laoshan -2 schools
Jimo City -individual students

The numbers of students at each of these schools varies from year to year, based on the needy students being presented to us by the school principals.

*The Laixi and Pingdu school are in remote areas outside of Qingdao and have very little money. During our visits in the fall (September) and spring (after Chinese New Year) semesters, we not only talk with the principals and students but also walk around the school grounds. Over the years, we have financially assisted the Laixi and Pingdu schools with new school rooms, a well and washing station, replaced roofs and windows and WC facilities along with donations of computers from Qingdao companies.

The Laoshan schools have very good school structures.
A women’s group in Jimo City is in contact with us, as they are told of very poor girls in need of educational assistance so that they are able to continue their education.