The University of Dayton is establishing a presence in China with the Aug. 8 grand opening of the University of Dayton China Institute in one of the fastest-growing innovation parks in the world.

Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP) officials invited the University of Dayton to open a stand-alone institute in the ultra-modern park and then made a multi-million-dollar investment in the renovation of a five-story, 68,000-square-foot building for classrooms, laboratories and project space. SIP wants the University of Dayton to do applied research and product development for industries in the park, which is home to a third of the world’s Fortune 500 companies, as well as provide education and training.

“The University of Dayton is a natural choice because we have a track record in the commercialization of technology and in building research teams in emerging technologies,” said University of Dayton President Daniel J. Curran, who held a professorship at Nanjing University early in his academic career and has cultivated ties in China for more than 25 years.

The University of Dayton is among the first American universities to set up operations in Suzhou Industrial Park about 75 miles from Shanghai. Located in Jiangsu Province in eastern China, the park is a cooperative venture between the governments of China and Singapore.

The School of Education and Allied Professions is exploring a TESOL (Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages) certificate program on campus that would provide opportunities for graduates to teach English in China. University officials also are in discussions with the archdiocese of Nanjing about providing in-service training in theology and philosophy for priests.

In addition, the institute will open the door to co-op and internship opportunities in China for University of Dayton students and provide a pipeline for recruiting Chinese students.