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Dr. Theodore Hsi-en Chen (1902-1991): Chinese American Education Pioneer and Founder of East Asian Studies at USC

Chinese Pioneers in American Higher Education: The Story of Professor Theodore Hsi-En & Wen-Hui Chen. By: Wen-Hui Chen; Translators: Min Chen & Alan Pierpoint (December, 2013)

Dr. Hsi-En “Theodore” Chen had a long and distinguished career in higher education, both in the United States and in China. Dr. Chen was the first professor of Chinese ancestry to be granted tenure at the University of Southern California; his hiring opened the gates for Chinese scholars to teach in America on the university level. Dr. Chen revived the moribund Asian Studies Department at USC, taught and wrote extensively on the history and theory of education, inspired several generations of students, established a scholarship for Chinese students pursuing graduate work at USC, published nine books and countless scholarly articles, and earned the respect of all who knew him by his diligence and humility. As an inspirational speaker in bothEnglish and Chinese, Dr. Chen worked tirelessly to build support for Chinese resistance against Japanese expansion, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that, more than any other individual, Dr. Chen helped feed America’s voracious appetite for information on Chinese culture and history in the years following the Communist revolution. Although he briefly interrupted his career at USC to establish new universities in China and Taiwan, Dr. Chen continued to serve his chosen university until his death at age 88.