naomi funahashi

Naomi Funahashi

  • Manager, Reischauer Scholars Program and Teacher Professional Development

616 Jane Stanford Way
Encina Hall, E007
Stanford, CA 94305-6060

(650) 724-4396 (voice)
(650) 723-6784 (fax)

Biography

Naomi Funahashi is the Manager of the Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP) and Teacher Professional Development for the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE). In addition to her work as the instructor of the RSP, she also develops curricula at SPICE. Prior to joining SPICE in 2005, she was a project coordinator at the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Northern California and worked in technology publishing in San Francisco.

Naomi's academic interests lie in global education, online education pedagogy, teacher professional development, and curriculum design. She attended high school at the American School in Japan, received her Bachelor of Arts in international relations from Brown University, her teaching credential in social science from San Francisco State University, and her Ed.M. in Global Studies in Education at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.

She has authored or co-authored the following curriculum units for SPICE: Storytelling of Indigenous Peoples in the United States, Immigration to the United States, Along the Silk Road, Central Asia: Between Peril and Promise, and Sadako's Paper Cranes and Lessons of Peace.

Naomi has presented teacher seminars nationally at Teachers College, Columbia University, the annual Asia Society Partnership for Global Learning Conference, the National Council for Social Studies and California Council for Social Studies annual conferences, and other venues. She has also presented teacher seminars internationally for the East Asia Regional Council of Overseas Schools in Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia, and for the European Council of International Schools in France, Portugal, and the Netherlands.

In 2008, the Asia Society in New York awarded the 2007 Goldman Sachs Foundation Media and Technology Prize to the Reischauer Scholars Program. In 2017, the United States–Japan Foundation presented Naomi with the Elgin Heinz Teacher Award, an honor that recognizes pre-college teachers who have made significant contributions to promoting mutual understanding between Americans and Japanese. Naomi has taught over 300 students in the RSP from 35 U.S. states.

In The News

Speakers Kathryn Tolbert and Waka Takahashi Brown and webinar moderator Naomi Funahashi.
Blogs

Japanese War Brides: Teaching History Through Multimedia Resources

A teacher professional development webinar featured Kathryn Tolbert and Waka Takahashi Brown.
cover link Japanese War Brides: Teaching History Through Multimedia Resources
RSP honoree giving a presentation
Blogs

20 Years of the Reischauer Scholars Program: Reflections and Legacies

Of the nearly 600 RSP alumni, many are engaged in Japan-related fields and U.S.–Japan relations.
cover link 20 Years of the Reischauer Scholars Program: Reflections and Legacies
Meyer Green campus scene
News

Spring 2024 Applications Now Open: Stanford/SPICE Online Courses for U.S. High School Students on Korea, Japan, plus New U.S.–China Climate Program

Students with a strong interest in East Asia or international relations are encouraged to apply.
cover link Spring 2024 Applications Now Open: Stanford/SPICE Online Courses for U.S. High School Students on Korea, Japan, plus New U.S.–China Climate Program