Recently, the People's Government of Liaoning Province announced the list of recipients of the 2025 "Liaoning Friendship Award." Dr. Justin Mendes, a specially appointed foreign expert at our university, was selected for his outstanding contributions in the areas of digitally intelligent talent development, industry-education integration, and internationalized education. On March 24th, the Liaoning Friendship Award presentation ceremony was held at our university. Peng Zhiping, Director of the Foreign Expert Affairs Division of the Provincial Department of Human Resources and Social Security, attended the event and presented the award to Justin. University Chairman Wang Zhaobao presented Justin with a Lifetime Professorship appointment letter from Shenyang Institute of Technology, and Vice President Xu Ying also attended.
The "Liaoning Friendship Award" is a prestigious award established by the People's Government of Liaoning Province to recognize foreign experts who have made outstanding contributions to Liaoning. It aims to highlight the important role of foreign experts in Liaoning's economic, social, and educational development. Since being appointed as a supervisory expert at our university in 2020, Dr. Justin Mendes has remained deeply committed to frontline teaching and education. Through his solid academic expertise, innovative teaching philosophy, and proactive spirit of international collaboration, he has delivered impressive results in curriculum development, talent cultivation, industry-education integration, and international exchange.
In curriculum innovation and teaching reform, Justin drew upon his cross-cultural background and international perspective to develop distinctive course offerings such as "Cross-Cultural Communication for Studying Abroad and Working at Foreign Companies" and "Stratified IELTS Training." He designed original teaching cases based on comparisons between Chinese and Western cultures, guiding students in cross-cultural critical thinking and effectively enhancing their global competency and adaptive communication skills. His engaging teaching style and immersive methods have helped many students achieve breakthroughs in language learning. Wang Weimin, a 2021 Finance major, scored 6.5 on her first IELTS attempt; Tian Jiashu, a 2020 Network and New Media major, achieved a score of 7 and was subsequently admitted to the Communication and Media program at Monash University in Australia. By integrating authentic overseas life scenarios into the classroom, Justin helped students make the leap from "exam preparation" to "real-world application," truly putting language learning into practice.
In response to the university's goal of cultivating "language + professional" composite talent, Justin precisely aligned with industry needs. Focusing on the field of industrial robotics, he developed specialized courses such as "Practical English for Robotics Technology" for the KUKA order class, driving precise alignment between course content and enterprise standards, and deep integration between classroom instruction and real production environments. This established a new talent development pathway that equally values language ability and technical competency. Through his systematic guidance, students are now able to fluently explain in English the design, operating mechanisms, and technical principles of multiple KUKA robot models. He also developed a tailored three-month international training program for KUKA's overseas expansion, using language to empower the company's technology export. At their graduation presentations, trainees delivered project showcases in fluent English, demonstrating professional communication skills in an international context — a model example of school-enterprise collaboration in cultivating internationally capable talent.
In international exchange and academic affairs, Justin serves as an important bridge connecting the university to the world. Over the past year, he represented the university at several international conferences — including the Mobile World Congress in Spain, the Huawei Smart Education Forum in Hong Kong, and the Digital Intelligence Summit in Thailand — where he delivered keynote speeches sharing the university's educational innovation practices in the era of digital intelligence. He was also interviewed by Times Higher Education, conveying to the international community the achievements and voice of Liaoning's educational reform. In addition, he actively expanded the university's international cooperation network, facilitating the establishment of strategic partnerships with leading universities in Spain, Portugal, and Hungary, bringing in quality resources from renowned institutions such as the University of Queensland and Harvard University, and organizing cultural exchange programs such as the "Shenyang Institute of Technology International Musical Theatre Masterclass," injecting powerful momentum into the university's international development.
Beyond his dedication to teaching, Justin is also a warm and caring mentor who deeply looks out for his students — his kindness and companionship are among the most heartwarming presences on campus. Academically, he never lets any student fall behind. Based on each student's individual background and development needs, he uses his spare time to provide one-on-one academic planning guidance, patiently answering students' questions about IELTS preparation, studying abroad, and their coursework. He tailors personalized study plans for each student, down to the specific learning priorities and areas for improvement at each stage. When a student is struggling, he sacrifices his own rest time to provide targeted tutoring, using patience and encouragement to help students build confidence. In daily life, he actively participates in all kinds of campus activities — from cultural festivals to academic competitions, his enthusiastic cheering for students is always a familiar sight. He often eats with students in the cafeteria and sits with them for chats, listening to their everyday worries, growth challenges, and hopes for the future. Like a friend, he engages with students heart to heart, using his cross-cultural perspective to help them work through difficulties. His genuine care and sincerity have given students a sense of warmth that transcends national boundaries, deepened the bond between teacher and students, and made him the most steadfast support in students' journeys of growth.
Dr. Justin Mendes's receipt of the "Liaoning Friendship Award" is both a recognition of his own dedicated efforts and a strong affirmation of our university's work in attracting international expertise and advancing internationalized education. Going forward, our university will further optimize the development environment for international talent, deepen the integration of science and education, industry and education, and external cooperation, and use educational practice to support Liaoning's comprehensive revitalization and the high-quality development of Northeast China.
Translated by Basic Courses Department
