In October 2010, Dr. Shen Jian, Director-General of Jiangsu Provincial Department of Education, visited the University of Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) to sign an official agreement between the JPDE and the UMKC, which envisioned setting up an overseas training center for teachers from Jiangsu. The first training program for Jiangsu universities presidents also took place in the Centre. This is the fourth training center established overseas by the JPDE, following the centers in Manchester in the UK, Brisbane in Australia and Toronto in Canada.