In order to increase the number of qualified Chinese language teachers available to teach in American K-12 classrooms, in 2006 China Institute formed the Confucius Institute at China Institute (CI@CI).

CI@CI focuses on three primary areas:

• Professional development for Chinese language teachers, with a particular emphasis on helping in-service teachers gain the credits and training needed to obtain New York State certification and also on helping pre-service and in-service teachers gain the cross-cultural skills and methodologies critical to success in teaching American youth;

• Identifying best practices in teaching Chinese in American K-12 classrooms, and

• Policy analysis and recommendations with respect to encouraging the teaching of Chinese in American schools, especially in the New York State public school system.

CI@CI and the various programs it offers are made possible through the generous support of the Hanban(officially known as the "Office of Chinese Language Council International"), with additional support from other private and public foundations.