I-Chun Hsiao, a PhD candidate in the College of Education’s multilingual education program, wants everyone to know how much she appreciates her parents—especially because of all the guidance and support they’ve provided throughout her life.
Hsiao nominated her parents, Shu-Mei Chang and Fu-Ching Hsiao, for the 2025 International Parents of the Year award and was recently informed that they had in fact won.
The announcement of this award honoring her parents was recently highlighted in an article by UI’s International Programs. The following excerpt is from that article:
“International Programs is proud to recognize Fu-Ching Hsiao and Shu-Mei Chang of Changhua County, Taiwan, as the 2025 International Parents of the Year. Known for their quiet strength, honesty, and tireless work ethic, they have devoted their lives to creating opportunities for their children.
‘My parents may have had little compared to others,’ said their daughter, I-Chun Hsiao, a PhD candidate in multilingual education who will graduate in May 2026, ‘but they gave my brother and me all they had. Their sacrifices, values, and love have shaped me into who I am today.’
For more than two decades, Hsiao’s parents ran a small automotive cold-painting factory in Changhua City.
‘Their hands were often cracked and stained with paint that would never wash away,’ said Hsiao. “Yet they never allowed hardship to overshadow their dignity.”
When health concerns led them to close the factory, the parents began farming rice and vegetables in their hometown, earning recognition as model farmers in 2021 and 2024.
What sets her parents apart is not only their hard work but also their character.