The National Committee on United States-China Relations is pleased to announce the eighth round of fellows in its Public Intellectuals Program (PIP), generously funded by Carnegie Corporation of New York. The twenty fellows comprise a wide range of research interests, geographic locations, and types of institutions.  

Launched in 2005, PIP identifies outstanding members of the next generation of American China specialists – in the academic, professional, or policymaking spheres – who, in the tradition of earlier China hands, have the interest and potential to venture outside of academia or their professions into areas relevant to foreign policy and public education.  

The two-year program is designed to enrich the twenty new fellows’ understanding of policymaking processes in both the United States and China; help them establish useful relationships both with their academic and professional colleagues and with policy practitioners; encourage them to move beyond the confines of their own disciplines; and nurture their ability to engage with the public at a national, regional, and local level. PIP is implemented through a series of activities. These include workshops in Washington, D.C., and the West Coast; an international study tour; opportunities to participate in National Committee delegations as scholar-escorts; and public education initiatives.  

PIP is an enrichment opportunity intended to complement the primary academic or professional positions held by the fellows. The program offers unique opportunities for professional development, mentoring by senior scholars, networking, and exposure. Fellows gain access to senior policymakers and experts in both the United States and China, and to individuals and fields they are not typically exposed to, such as the business, arts, health, and civil society sectors in China, as well as to the media in both countries. Fellows have access to media coaches to help edit and place op-eds and develop a social media presence.  

The eighth cohort joins an accomplished community of now 160 PIP fellows from cohorts one through seven, who have formed a strong network of mutual support and academic collaboration.  Visit our PIP Fellow Database to view bio information for all the incoming eighth cohort fellows by selecting “PIP VIII” in the search bar.

Emily Baum

Associate Professor of History, University of California, Irvine

Ling Chen

Assistant Professor, School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University

Kin Cheung

Associate Professor of East and South Asian Religions, Moravian University

Tarryn Chun

Assistant Professor of Film, Television, and Theater, University of Notre Dame

Jessica DiCarlo

Assistant Professor of Geography, University of Utah

Seth Gurgel

Subject Matter Expert, Environment and Supply Chain Innovation, Apple, Inc.

Leland Lazarus

Associate Professor, National Security Program, Jack Gordon Institute for Public
Policy, Florida International University

Ke Li

Assistant Professor of Political Science, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York

Andy Liu

Associate Professor of History, Villanova University

Kristen Looney

Associate Professor of Asian Studies and Government, Georgetown University

Ilaria Mazzocco

Senior Fellow, Trustee Chair in Chinese Business and Economics, Center for Strategic and International Studies

Elizabeth Plantan

Assistant Professor of Political Science, Stetson University

Andrew Polk

Co-founder and Head of Economic Research, Trivium China

Eric Schluessel

Associate Professor of History and International Affairs, The George Washington University

Nick R. Smith

Assistant Professor of Architecture and Urban Studies, Barnard College, Columbia University

Tobias Smith

Assistant Professor of Administration of Justice, Ohlone College

Austin Strange

Assistant Professor of Politics and Public Administration, University of Hong Kong

Robert Watts

Captain, U.S. Pacific Fleet

Wei-Ting Yen

Assistant Professor of Government, Franklin and Marshall College

Jack Zhang

Assistant Professor of Political Science, University of Kansas