Our Alumni

Many Middlebury graduates who studied Chinese language with Middlebury’s Chinese Department stay in touch with one another and with us here at the College. Every five years many of these alumni come back to Middlebury for a reunion hosted by the Chinese Department and many provide help and guidance to students who are about to graduate or have just graduated and are looking for ways to put their Chinese language skills to work. On this page some of our graduates will share their stories. A first story is below. More stories are coming shortly.

Brian Bethke (Bei Yabo, Chinese major class of '01)

After graduating from Middlebury in 2001, I moved to China and began working for a company in Shanghai doing international trade and export. After  gaining some experience in electronics and manufacturing, I moved to Shenzhen and started a company called Pigtronix. Pigtronix makes guitar pedals that are now distributed worldwide. Notable Pigtronix users and enthusiasts include Andy Summers (The Police), Peter Frampton, The Mars Volta, Vernon Reid  (Living Colour), Leo Nocentelli (The Meters) and Los Lobos.  Studying Chinese has been both the most fun and most rewarding challenge in my life.