China on Tuesday questioned the appropriateness of an email sent by a Duke University medical school administrator warning Chinese students to speak in English.

Asked about the controversy, foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang compared it to a Chinese university demanding that English-speaking students talk only in Chinese.

“If a Chinese university required that American students not use English to communicate, I think this would not be normal,” Geng said at a daily briefing.

Duke University in North Carolina moved quickly to offer apologies, launch an investigation and reassure a core group of graduate scholars after the email raised an outcry at home and abroad.

The story drew thousands of comments in China on social media. Some called it racial discrimination and said Chinese universities should ban speaking English, while a few said it was not a big deal.

The administrator’s message came at a time when elite U.S. universities are trying to remain attractive to top international students despite negative rhetoric toward foreigners by President Donald Trump and other politicians.

Protests mounted after the email was sent Friday by Megan Neely, who teaches in the biostatistics master’s degree program and served as its director of graduate studies.

Neely’s message to an email list for about 50 biostatistics students said two faculty members approached her to complain about students speaking loudly in Chinese in a common area. She wrote that both were disappointed the students weren’t working to improve their English and wanted their names. The email urged international students to “keep these unintended consequences in mind when you choose to speak in Chinese in the building.”

Amid the angry response, Neely stepped down as the program’s director of graduate studies, according to a letter from Mary Klotman, the medical school dean.

Klotman apologized to students in the program in her letter, saying there was no restriction on using foreign languages in conversations.

Neely, who remains an assistant professor, apologized in an email to program members, saying: “I deeply regret the hurt my email has caused. It was not my intention.”

Related Stories
‹
Duke Medical School Apologizes Over Complaint About Chinese
Duke University’s medical school has issued an apology and launched a review after an administrator admonished students over speaking Chinese in a school building. Megan Neely, who served as graduate studies director in the biostatistics master’s program, wrote an email Friday urging students to “commit to using English” in the building housing the program. She […]
Vietnam Celebrates 50 Years Since War’s End With Focus on Peace and Unity
Vietnam on Wednesday celebrated the 50th anniversary of the end of the war with the United States and the formation of its modern nation with a military parade and a focus on a peaceful future.
The United States and China Are Locked In a Faceoff Over Tariffs. No One Wants To Blink First
President Donald Trump tried to narrow his global trade war into a direct — and risky — faceoff with China, escalating the tariff fight.
Beyond the Ban: How TikTok’s Uncertain Future Affects Student Creators
At UNC, many student influencers make money off their TikTok fame. Now, those influencers are in limbo with the app's U.S. future in question.
Sweeping Trump Tariffs Draw Dismay and Calls for Talks From Countries Around the Globe
Sweeping new tariffs announced by U.S. President Donald Trump provoked dismay, threats of countermeasures and urgent calls around the globe.
Germany Sees Ukraine Truce Efforts as Deadlocked, While China Says the Talks Are Encouraging
Germany’s chief diplomat on Tuesday described efforts to secure a truce in the three-year war between Russia and Ukraine as deadlocked.
Analyzing The Significance of The UNC-Duke Rivalry in The White Lotus Season 3
The White Lotus season three uses the UNC-Duke rivalry to make a deeper point about a family of main characters.
Trump Is Leveraging Tariffs. Is He Ready for Potential Fallout? Are Consumers? Here’s What To Know
Trump's tariffs fulfill certain campaign promises but also have roiled stock markets and supply chains while testing relations with neighbors.
Trump, the ‘America First’ Candidate, Has a New Preoccupation: Imperialism
Donald Trump ran on an “America First” foreign policy platform. But since winning a second term, he's been embracing a new imperialist agenda.
Strong Earthquake Kills at Least 126 People in Western China Near Mount Everest
Written by KEN MORITSUGU BEIJING (AP) — A strong earthquake shook a high-altitude region of western China and areas of Nepal on Tuesday, damaging hundreds of houses, littering streets with rubble and killing at least 126 people in Tibet. Many others were trapped as dozens of aftershocks shook the remote region. Rescue workers climbed mounds of broken bricks, […]
›