About
Santa Barbara Chinese School – Weekday Tutoring & Chinese Clubs offers weekday tutoring, Chinese Clubs, and after-school enrichment, along with alternative recess Chinese programs and Chinese conversation tables. The program also offers online sessions, Chinese singing groups, and Spring and Summer full-immersion camps that follow a no-frills format with meals included. Additional activities connected to the school include weekend classes, full-immersion camps, playdates around Santa Barbara for toddlers and young children, and Summer Camps.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Formal classes are offered in two terms during the academic year on weekends, and Spring and Summer camps run 8:30am–4:30pm with meals included.
Santa Barbara Chinese School was established in 1985 and was registered as a nonprofit organization in 2001. Its mission is to provide Chinese language instruction using a student-centered pedagogy and to offer educational programs for learners in a multicultural community to discover and develop an appreciation for the evolving richness of the Chinese language and culture. The school states that it does not discriminate based on race, color, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarships, or other school-administered programs.
The leadership team includes principal and executive director Jenny Mazanec (M.Ed, E.MBA 余捷), vice principal and treasurer Wenjing Chen, CPA (陈文静), secretary and community coordinator Yunxia Hallowell (云霞), and music director Chloe Hsun Lin, Ph.D. (林晟). Staff credentials include backgrounds in international education, Chinese language pedagogy, accounting, anthropology with a focus on education, musicology, English, journalism and broadcasting, and Chinese language and literature, with multiple advanced degrees and teaching certifications in California, Hong Kong, and Mainland China, as well as experience teaching elementary students ages 5–13 and at the university level.
The program offers classes for children and adults from zero beginners to advanced level, both in person and online, and uses Pinyin (the Romanization phonetic system) to support Mandarin learning. It offers tutoring services, homework support, training, mentorship, and educational consultation services, and also runs Chinese Clubs in Mandarin and Cantonese during the week at various school campuses as a space to practice Chinese and find language buddies. The program maintains a student-to-teacher ratio of no more than 5:1, with class size capped at 8 students, and includes a small student-to-teacher ratio noted by a parent as allowing individualized attention and a more tailored learning experience.
During the week, Santa Barbara Chinese School collaborates with PTAs in the Santa Barbara Unified School District and Goleta Union School District to introduce Chinese during after-school enrichment or alternative recess. For Spring and Summer Camps, the school partners with various attractions around town as part of an all-inclusive learning process, and it connects students with a wider Chinese-learning community by partnering with organizations worldwide. Chloe routinely hosts Chinese singing groups and playdates for toddlers and young children, and Wenjing provides bookkeeping and financial consultation services to local nonprofits.
The school also organizes community events where students can perform or present in front of an audience, families can exchange Chinese learning materials, and participants can converse over food. Some students at the school aspire to achieve California’s State Seal of Biliteracy upon graduating high school, and the program notes plans to introduce Cantonese and study abroad opportunities. Testimonials from an education director, a PTA president, and a parent describe learning-through-play pedagogy in Mandarin classes, a balance of language learning, cultural exploration, and fun activities, and a deeper appreciation for Chinese traditions and history.
Last updated August 1, 2026.
• Ages: 5–18 years old
• Schedule: Formal classes are offered in two terms during the academic year on weekends, and Spring and Summer camps run 8:30am–4:30pm with meals included.
Santa Barbara Chinese School was established in 1985 and was registered as a nonprofit organization in 2001. Its mission is to provide Chinese language instruction using a student-centered pedagogy and to offer educational programs for learners in a multicultural community to discover and develop an appreciation for the evolving richness of the Chinese language and culture. The school states that it does not discriminate based on race, color, national and ethnic origin in the administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarships, or other school-administered programs.
The leadership team includes principal and executive director Jenny Mazanec (M.Ed, E.MBA 余捷), vice principal and treasurer Wenjing Chen, CPA (陈文静), secretary and community coordinator Yunxia Hallowell (云霞), and music director Chloe Hsun Lin, Ph.D. (林晟). Staff credentials include backgrounds in international education, Chinese language pedagogy, accounting, anthropology with a focus on education, musicology, English, journalism and broadcasting, and Chinese language and literature, with multiple advanced degrees and teaching certifications in California, Hong Kong, and Mainland China, as well as experience teaching elementary students ages 5–13 and at the university level.
The program offers classes for children and adults from zero beginners to advanced level, both in person and online, and uses Pinyin (the Romanization phonetic system) to support Mandarin learning. It offers tutoring services, homework support, training, mentorship, and educational consultation services, and also runs Chinese Clubs in Mandarin and Cantonese during the week at various school campuses as a space to practice Chinese and find language buddies. The program maintains a student-to-teacher ratio of no more than 5:1, with class size capped at 8 students, and includes a small student-to-teacher ratio noted by a parent as allowing individualized attention and a more tailored learning experience.
During the week, Santa Barbara Chinese School collaborates with PTAs in the Santa Barbara Unified School District and Goleta Union School District to introduce Chinese during after-school enrichment or alternative recess. For Spring and Summer Camps, the school partners with various attractions around town as part of an all-inclusive learning process, and it connects students with a wider Chinese-learning community by partnering with organizations worldwide. Chloe routinely hosts Chinese singing groups and playdates for toddlers and young children, and Wenjing provides bookkeeping and financial consultation services to local nonprofits.
The school also organizes community events where students can perform or present in front of an audience, families can exchange Chinese learning materials, and participants can converse over food. Some students at the school aspire to achieve California’s State Seal of Biliteracy upon graduating high school, and the program notes plans to introduce Cantonese and study abroad opportunities. Testimonials from an education director, a PTA president, and a parent describe learning-through-play pedagogy in Mandarin classes, a balance of language learning, cultural exploration, and fun activities, and a deeper appreciation for Chinese traditions and history.
Last updated August 1, 2026.
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