The Yale-China Association's long legacy of work in China places it among the premier American organizations engaged in international service. Founded in 1901, Yale-China built on a long tradition of Yale's graduates founding churches, schools, and colleges in far-flung places. In time, the organization evolved into a bicultural educational enterprise, reflecting a spirit of intellectual tolerance and openness that adapted itself to China's changing conditions and needs.

From its earliest years at the close of the Qing dynasty through wars, revolutions, and the modern era of reform, Yale-China's history was interwoven with China's own turbulent journey to find its place in the modern world. At certain points in its history, Yale-China was ahead of its time; at others, the organization was overwhelmed by social and political forces beyond its control or comprehension. Yale-China's history thus provides intriguing insights into the vagaries and complexities of America's interaction with China in the twentieth century, as well as the profound ambivalence with which many Chinese viewed the United States—its representatives, educational models, and intentions toward China—in this period.