OUR HISTORY
The School is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit entity and we are a non-denominational, non-partisan and independent institution. We do not discriminate on the basis of gender, race, nationality, religion, physical condition, or scholastic ability.
The School was originally founded as part of the Organization of Chinese Americans chapter for Fairfield County, Connecticut (now the OCA-FC) in 1975 by the parents of Chinese-American students living around lower Fairfield County. Since that time, we have attracted students from all over Connecticut, as well as from Westchester and Rockland counties in New York. Over the last forty-five years, we have graduated over a thousand students from our School. Currently, we offer Chinese language courses for pre-K to high school students and our students have the choice of whether to learn Chinese using the simplified or the traditional writing systems. A typical non-adult student attending our school will, upon graduation, have received sufficient instruction to permit him/her to sit for the on-line Chinese Language SAT II test the following academic year. However, we want to be more to our students than a place of language instruction – we seek to have them enjoy their time with us and to look upon their classmates as friends who are bound by a mutual desire and interest in learning Chinese.
In addition, we believe that as a living language, Chinese cannot be taught in isolation from its cultural background. As part of the School programs, we offer our students the opportunity to participate in cultural classes in Chinese arts & crafts, calligraphy, chess, painting, songs (chorus class), folk-dancing and martial arts. Many of these classes are guided by instructors specially hired for the purpose.
Our School
CLSFC was established in 1975 by a group of enthusiastic Chinese parents. Our goal since then has been to teach Mandarin Chinese to children of all ages.
Our Impact
Our focus on developing practical skills in all aspects of Mandarin language and culture, including listening, speaking, reading, and writing, has successfully prepared many of our graduates for advanced college-level studies in Mandarin.