Smith alumna Julia Chang Lin ’51, a poet and a scholar of Chinese literature, died recently in New York City. Born in Shanghai in 1928, Julia (born Ming-hui Tsang) introduced many Chinese women poets to an American audience.
She attended St. Mary’s Hall School for Girls and St. John’s University in Shanghai, and in 1949 she was awarded a scholarship from Smith College. Her incredible journey to Smith (which began when Julia was smuggled to the United States on a fishing boat) brought her to Smith one month after the fall semester began in 1949.
Julia graduated from Smith with a BA in English in 1951. She then went on to earn an MA in English from the University of Washington in 1952, and a PhD in Chinese Language and Literature in 1965.
You can read the full story of Julia’s journey to Smith in her online obituary.
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