Applications opened recently for the Spring 2022 session of the Stanford University Scholars Program for Japanese High School Students (also known as “Stanford e-Japan”), which will run from mid-February through the end of June 2022. The deadline to apply is December 31, 2021.

Stanford e-Japan Program for high school students in Japan
Spring 2022 session (February to June 2022)
Application period: November 15 to December 31, 2021

All applications must be submitted at https://spicestanford.smapply.io/prog/stanford_e-japan/ via the SurveyMonkey Apply platform. Applicants and recommenders will need to create a SurveyMonkey Apply account to proceed. Students who are interested in applying to the online course are encouraged to begin their applications early.

Accepted applicants will engage in an intensive study of U.S. society and culture and U.S.–Japan relations. Ambassadors, top scholars, and experts from Stanford University and throughout the United States provide web-based lectures and engage students in live discussion sessions.

“Participating in Stanford e-Japan has been one of the highlights of my high school experience,” reflected Fall 2020 honoree Allison Lin. “Through the course, I gained the opportunity to learn from intelligent and experienced scholars which I wouldn’t have had otherwise and found myself aspiring to be like them in the future.”

Stanford e-Japan is offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE), Stanford University. The Spring 2022 session of Stanford e-Japan is generously supported by the Yanai Tadashi Foundation, Tokyo, Japan.

For more information about Stanford e-Japan, please visit stanfordejapan.org.

To stay informed of news about Stanford e-Japan and SPICE’s other student programs, join our email list or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

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SPICE offers separate courses for U.S. high school students. For more information, please visit the Reischauer Scholars Program (on Japan), the Sejong Scholars Program (on Korea), and the China Scholars Program (on China).

My first visit to the University of Tokyo was in autumn 1977. I distinctly recall walking through Akamon and being in awe of the contrast between the autumn leaves and the red gate. I last walked through Akamon in autumn 2019. I had kindly been invited by Professor Hideto Fukudome, Director, Center for Advanced School Education and Evidence-based Research (CASEER), to give a guest lecture on “University–High School Collaboration” at the Graduate School of Education. I was scheduled to visit again in March 2020 but my trip had to be canceled due to the pandemic. Despite the pandemic, Fukudome conceptualized a lecture series that would allow SPICE staff to virtually walk through Akamon to collaborate with CASEER faculty and University of Tokyo students.

On November 1, 2021, the lecture series—SPICE/Stanford–UTokyo Partnership on International and Cross-Cultural Education and Global Citizenship—was launched. The goal of the lecture series is to provide a platform to share current research and practice. The discussions will ideally result in opportunities to collaborate between both organizations, and also opportunities for student engagement.

Fukudome delivered the first lecture, “Multiculturalism and Classical Tradition in Liberal Education: Comparative and Historical Perspectives.” Since his was the first lecture of the series, he opened by sharing important information about the University of Tokyo to help set the context for the series. This included the vision of the new president of the University of Tokyo—including an emphasis on diversity and inclusiveness—and information about University of Tokyo admissions. President Teruo Fujii’s vision is captured in UTokyo Compass, a statement of the guiding principles of the University of Tokyo that is titled “Into a Sea of Diversity: Creating the Future through Dialogue.” It focuses on the need to build a democratic society in which each individual can live with respect.

Sprinkled in his lecture were comparisons between the University of Tokyo and Stanford University. One of the comparisons—that 20 percent of undergraduates at the University of Tokyo are women, versus 51 percent of undergraduates at Stanford University—was very surprising to the SPICE staff and prompted discussion. He also noted that most students are admitted solely based upon test scores, and that only three percent are admitted through a process translated in English as “self-recommendation,” which is a more holistic review process to determine admissions. In addition, he noted that in Japan, universities do not identify students’ socio-economic background in the admissions process.

In the heart of his lecture, Fukudome shared comments on the many different ways of thinking about liberal education in the United States. He noted two major trends that form the ideological foundation of liberal education. One is the classical approach, or the idea that the cultural and spiritual foundation of the United States is to be found in Europe and that the core of liberal education is to learn about Western civilization, which originated in Greece and Rome. The second is multiculturalism, or seeing the cultural origins of the United States as diverse and made up of many races and ethnic groups. He noted, “These ideas are often viewed in opposition to each other over the undergraduate curriculum. From the perspective of how to think about the ideological basis of the curriculum, both ideas can provide suggestions for Japan. In this sense, the ideological debate over liberal education in the United States has an essential meaning for Japan as well.”

The SPICE staff is looking forward to further exchanging ideas with Fukudome and his CASEER colleagues and the University of Tokyo students on topics related to liberal education and other topics of mutual interest. The second session on December 6, 2021 will focus on SPICE’s online instruction for high school students, including Stanford e-Japan, SPICE’s first online course for high school students in Japan that is supported by the Yanai Tadashi Foundation. The following are the list of speakers and their topics for the first six session of the lecture series.

• 1st session: November 1, Hideto Fukudome, University of Tokyo, Multiculturalism and Classical Tradition in Liberal Education: Comparative and Historical Perspectives
• 2nd session: December 6, Gary Mukai, SPICE/Stanford, Online Instruction for High School Students
• 3rd session: January 10, Yuto Kitamura, University of Tokyo, Teaching and Learning Transversal Competencies Through Education for Sustainable Development (ESD): Implications from a Survey Conducted in Yokohama City
• 4th session: February 7, Rylan Sekiguchi, SPICE/Stanford, Curriculum and Instruction: What Does It Mean to Be an American?  
• 5th session: February 28, Misako Nukaga, University of Tokyo, Visibilizing the Second Generation Immigrants in Japan: Divergent Pathways of Acculturation and Educational Inequality
• 6th session: April 4, Mariko Yang-Yoshihara, SPICE/Stanford, Learning Assessment in Online Courses
   

The University of Tokyo faculty members who are participating in the lecture series all have experiences in the United States. Listed alphabetically, they are:

• Hideto Fukudome, Director & Professor (Former Visiting Scholar at U.C. Berkeley and Penn State)
• Yuto Kitamura, Deputy Director & Professor (PhD, UCLA)
• Kayoko Kurita, Professor (Former Visiting Scholar at Center for Teaching and Learning, Stanford)
• Kanako Kusanagi, Assistant Professor (BA, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill)
• Yusuke Murakami, Associate Professor (Former Visiting Scholar at U.C. Berkeley)
• Misako Nukaga, Associate Professor (PhD, UCLA)
   

SPICE’s Maiko Tamagawa Bacha is a graduate of the University of Tokyo and following the first session commented, “The lecture series brought back fond memories of my time at the University of Tokyo as an undergraduate. In particular, it was touching to see one of my fellow undergraduate students—Misako Nukaga, now an associate professor at the University of Tokyo—in attendance! I am grateful to Professor Fukudome for bringing us together again and for also bringing my academic and work institutions together.”

Since UTokyo Compass underscores (1) the importance of a university as a place where diverse people gather to discuss, share, and solve problems and (2) the importance for students to think from multiple perspectives, I hope that the collaboration with SPICE will help to support UTokyo Compass. These two points have been central pillars of SPICE since its beginning in 1976.

OECD’s latest annual report has shown that Japan had the lowest share of women studying Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) among 36 comparable OECD member countries in 2019. According to the report, the proportion of women entering college to study natural sciences, mathematics, and statistics in Japan was 27 percent, far below the OECD average of 52 percent. In engineering, manufacturing and construction, the ratio of women was only 16 percent in Japan, while the OECD average was 26 percent.  

In the August 2021 edition of Keidanren Monthly Magazine, Mariko Yang-Yoshihara shared her thoughts on STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education. To help address the gross STEM gender gap in Japan and instill self-efficacy among young girls in STEAM, an approach that combines STEM and liberal arts education, Mariko Yang-Yoshihara co-founded SKY Labo in 2016 with Rie Kijima, assistant professor at the University of Toronto. Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) is Japan’s largest association of big businesses, founded in 1946, which connects industry visionaries and leaders. SKY Labo, a non-profit educational initiative, offers workshops which utilize design thinking, a methodology that was formalized by scholars at Stanford University for creative problem solving.

The title of Yang-Yoshihara’s article (translated from the Japanese), “‘I May Change the World’—Towards Society 5.0 Human Resources Development: Case Study Through STEAM Education,” quotes a 9th grader’s reflection about her participation in SKY Labo’s workshop. The student wrote that the program brought her a most empowering realization that she can “change the world” by pursuing a career in STEM fields. In the article, Yang-Yoshihara discusses the gearshift in the U.S. higher education to bring in a human-centered approach to STEM fields. She urges Japanese society to reimagine its approach to inspire the next generation by merging traditional STEM subjects with liberal arts education in order to spur innovation and cultivate its underutilized resources: women. The article concludes by introducing SKY Labo’s initiative as a case study of such an attempt. Yang-Yoshihara’s perspectives are shaped by her education in both Japan and the United States. Yang-Yoshihara notes, “STEAM is sort of becoming a ‘buzz word’ in Japan, but it is often misrepresented as a simple inclusion of art-related activities in STEM classrooms. We need to inspire the students at a deeper level—through an innovative pedagogical approach at the intersection of STEM and humanities.”

Yang-Yoshihara and Kijima are trying to provide a fuller understanding of what STEAM stands for by writing about engineers and scientists in Silicon Valley who do truly amazing work by bringing human-centered approaches into their endeavors. They co-authored a book in 2019 to advocate for STEAM education in Japan. Their book, originally published in Japanese, has recently been translated into the Chinese language. Further, Yang-Yoshihara and Kijima have been capturing the effects of the STEAM workshops they offer at SKY Labo through research; they offer evidence-based research to show how design thinking complements STEM education as a pedagogical approach in inspire young girls (link to the journal article).

At SPICE, Yang-Yoshihara harnesses the principles of design thinking in her teaching of high school and university students in Japan and engages the SPICE staff and student alumni of SPICE’s online courses with SKY Labo seminars. In addition, she serves as an advisor to Carey Moncaster’s Stanford e-China program. With Kijima, Yang-Yoshihara has offered a workshop to teach design thinking to educators in China, as a part of the teacher professional development program developed by Moncaster. Having had the pleasure of observing Yang-Yoshihara’s numerous efforts with SKY Labo and SPICE, I have been a witness to how she and Kijima empower students—especially girls—to level the playing field for all genders to pursue their interest in STEM fields. The views on STEM and STEAM education that Yang-Yoshihara and Kijima share with their students remind me of seldom seen aerial views of the iconic Mt. Fuji—views that I believe will encourage and empower more girls in Japan to rise to the top.

Naomi Funahashi is the instructor of the Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP), an online course on Japan and U.S.–Japan relations that is taught to high school students across the United States each spring.

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Beneath the shade of the trees outside of Stanford’s Arbuckle Cafe on a recent Friday afternoon, I sat back and marveled at the vibrant sounds of laughter and conversation as I looked around the table. A large group of Stanford University undergraduate students—all alumni of the Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP) spanning the 2016 to 2021 cohorts—were gathered for Japanese bentos and sushi, eager to meet one another in person for the first time. Given the virtual format of the RSP, the opportunity for me to connect with RSP students and alumni face-to-face is a rare and special gift.

After the COVID-19 pandemic had relegated virtually all student interaction to Zoom for 18+ months, it felt incredible to be sharing a meal together on campus. As students shared their course selections for the quarter, listed their favorite classes and professors, and chatted about their academic and extracurricular activities and interests, I was struck by the true sense of community that was building among the RSP alumni.

When the selection committee brings students together to form each RSP cohort, we do so in hopes that these young, bright, and diverse individuals from across the United States will find commonalities and bonds that will shape their development into young leaders. Students come to the RSP with different backgrounds, perspectives, and personalities, but with tremendous respect for one another and their shared interest in learning about Japan and the U.S.–Japan relationship with and from each person in their cohort. To see the growth of this RSP alumni community happening in real time around the table that Friday afternoon brought tears to my eyes.

Certainly, the RSP prepares students academically for the challenges of undergraduate life when it comes to researching, writing, and engaging in academic discourse. As Camryn Pak (RSP 2018, Stanford 2023) noted, “RSP was an amazing experience that provided me with the same writing and research skills that I use for essays today. The program also gave me a taste of what a global education entails, and its scope extended far beyond what I had been learning in my high school history courses at the time.” As the RSP instructor, I find it meaningful to know that the hard work that the students put in during their time in the course continues to have a positive impact on their academic careers.

Others commented on different ways in which the RSP experience has continued to influence the opportunities they seek at the college level. For incoming freshman Amy Zhao (RSP 2020), “it was so great to find a community of RSP people here at Stanford. I’m still interested in promoting international and global education as well as further studying my RSP paper topic, which was minority rights in Japan. I thought it tied really well into my major interests, Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity (CSRE) and Public Policy, and I would love to explore the topic more while studying abroad in Kyoto!”

In previous years when we have gathered RSP alumni together at Stanford for an annual “shinnenkai” (“new year”) luncheon in January, it has always been wonderful to catch up with one another. As campus life at Stanford begins to return to some sense of normalcy, however, I feel an even greater appreciation for these opportunities to connect with my former Reischauer Scholars in person. I look forward to organizing future events for RSP alumni at Stanford and hope that they will build upon the connections that we made around the lunch table as new bonds and friendships continue to grow.

When I first met Mayor Norihiko Fukuda in Kawasaki City several years ago, he shared two important values that he embraces. They are “diversity brings strength and greater possibilities” and “recognizing differences is beneficial.” I also learned of the three pillars of Kawasaki’s industrial policy. They are life innovation, green innovation, and welfare innovation. I was struck by his vision that was shaped by his education in both Japan and the United States, and began discussions with him about the development of an online course for high school students in Kawasaki that would introduce topics related to diversity and entrepreneurship. Stanford e-Kawasaki was launched in 2019.

The opening ceremony for the third-year offering of Stanford e-Kawasaki was held on September 23, 2021. Mayor Fukuda addressed the new students, saying, “Today, I am very happy that many of you have decided to participate in this program. I think that the willingness to challenge yourselves is a very important mindset for you to embrace as you prepare for the future.” He continued,

Stanford e-Kawasaki Instructor Maiko Tamagawa Bacha and I represented SPICE during the opening ceremony. During the ceremony, Bacha informed her 20 students from Kawasaki High School and Tachibana High School that they will be encouraged to think critically about issues related to diversity and entrepreneurship. Stanford scholars and leading entrepreneurs have been invited as speakers. Among the lineup of speakers are Dr. Stephen Murphy-Shigematsu, Stanford University, and Sukemasa Kabayama, Founder and CEO of Uplift Labs in Silicon Valley and former President and Representative Officer, Telsa Motors, Japan. Reflecting on her first two years of serving as the Instructor of Stanford e-Kawasaki, Bacha noted, “Because I have family ties to Kawasaki City, formerly worked for the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs in San Francisco, and currently live in the United States, I feel both a personal and professional connection to Stanford e-Kawasaki. I hope that the course will inspire my students to pursue studies and work in U.S.–Japan relations as I have done.”

Bacha introduced the course requirements, including the development of final projects, and noted that the top two performing students will be invited to Stanford University for a ceremony during which they will be honored along with the top two students in SPICE’s four other regional programs in Japan. Earlier this year, two of the students in the 2020–21 Stanford e-Kawasaki course were honored. They were Eric Silang, whose final project was titled “Humor and America,” and Shunya Tani, whose final project was titled “Possible Ways to Promote Renewable Energy in Japan and the U.S.” Silang’s project noted the importance of considering diversity through the lens of cultural differences in humor, and Tani’s project stressed the need for Japan and the United States to cooperate, rather than compete, in promoting the use of renewable energy to tackle climate change.

I am most grateful to Mayor Norihiko Fukuda for his vision and for making this course possible. I would also like to express my appreciation to Mr. Nihei and Mr. Katsurayama from the Kawasaki Board of Education; and Mr. Abe, Mr. Tanaka, Mr. Kawato, and especially Mr. Inoue from Kawasaki City for their unwavering support. Importantly, I would like to express my appreciation to Principal Iwaki and his staff of Kawasaki High School and Principal Takai and his staff from Tachibana High School for their engagement with Stanford e-Kawasaki.

When I saw the photo (above) of the Port of Kobe, I immediately thought of my paternal grandmother, Wakano Mukai, who, at the age of 17, departed on the SS Manchuria from the Port of Kobe on January 10, 1910. She left Japan to join her husband, Buntaro, in California. She had agreed to marry him based only upon a photo that she had seen of him. If Wakano were alive today, I would ask her about what the voyage from Kobe to Honolulu to San Francisco was like and what her life in California had taught her about the world.

The goal of educating youth about the world has been promoted by Kobe City Mayor Kizo Hisamoto, who supported Kobe City’s decision to collaborate with the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) on the development of a new online course, Stanford e-Kobe. The opening ceremony for the inaugural Stanford e-Kobe course was held on September 18, 2021. The course will help high school students in Kobe expand their knowledge of the United States and U.S.–Japan relations—including topics like diversity and entrepreneurship—beyond just a superficial level. In his opening comments, Mayor Hisamoto noted, “Our city strives to create an environment in which young people could fully realize their potential. We have already implemented a number of startup support programs in cooperation with various universities and private companies in the city.” He continued,

SPICE’s Alison Harsch, Stanford e-Kobe Instructor, and I represented SPICE during the opening ceremony. During the ceremony, Harsch told the 29 students that they will be encouraged to think in an “internationally minded manner”—that is, to think about different points of view. She also emphasized that students need not be concerned if they encounter small setbacks in the course, and to “fail forward.” Harsch offered students a glimpse into what Stanford e-Kobe will be like with its active learning and student-centered focus. Teacher Consultant Tomoko Nakamura, Fukiai High School, commented, “Alison-sensei’s words encouraged our students a lot. They must think that it is important to be positive and express their opinions without hesitation… I am grateful for her welcoming of our students so warmly into Stanford e-Kobe.”

Harsch noted that “students should come away from the course with a much deeper understanding of the United States and its strong history of diversity, including early Japanese immigration.” Wakano was never able to return to Japan after immigrating to the United States in 1910. She died in 1947. I wish that she were alive today to hear me share with the students of Kobe, who are about her age when she left Japan, that her last fading glimpse of Japan—that of Kobe—has become clearer again through students of Kobe who aspire to build bridges between their city and the United States and to encourage their peers in the United States to see Kobe firsthand.

I am grateful to Mayor Kizo Hisamoto for making this course possible and for his vision; and to Superintendent Jun Nagata for his leadership and support. I am most grateful to Masanori Nagamine, former Director, Kobe Trade Information Office in Seattle, and Dr. Takaaki Hoda, Kobe University, for allowing me to consult with them while they were in Seattle and at Stanford, respectively. Importantly, I would like to express my heartfelt appreciation to Tomoko Nakamura from Fukiai High School and Toshihiro Nishiyama from the Kobe Board of Education for their kind correspondence and unwavering support; and to Satoshi Kawasaki as well.

Stanford e-Japan is an online course that teaches Japanese high school students about U.S. society and culture and U.S.–Japan relations. The course introduces students to both U.S. and Japanese perspectives on many historical and contemporary issues. It is offered biannually by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE). Stanford e-Japan is supported by the Yanai Tadashi Foundation.

In Summer 2022, top students of the Spring 2021 Stanford e-Japan course will be honored through an event at Stanford University.

The three Spring 2021 honorees—Yura Amaya (Toyama Chubu High School, Toyama), Akira Fukutomi (Yaeyama High School, Okinawa), and Yuto Kimura (Waseda University Senior High School, Tokyo)—will be recognized for their coursework and exceptional research essays that focused respectively on “Organ Donation After Brain Death in Japan and the United States,” “Ambiguity and Clarity: Cultural Differences between Japan and the U.S.,” and “The U.S.–Japan Relationship: Consideration from the Perspective of U.S.–China Friction.”

Risei Ko (Ikeda Senior High School Attached to Osaka Kyoiku University) and Moe Shimizu (Shibuya Senior High School) received Honorable Mentions for their research papers that focused respectively on “The Metaverse & Human Relations: A New Approach to Tackle Racism in Japan and the U.S.” and “Mental Health Care for U.S. High School Students Under COVID-19.”

In the Spring 2021 session of Stanford e-Japan, all 28 students successfully completed the course. The students represented the following schools: Aichi Shukutoku Junior and Senior High School (Aichi); the Academy for the International Community in Japan (AICJ) High School (Hiroshima); Hachinohe St. Ursula Gakuin High School (Aomori); Hiroo Gakuen High School (Tokyo); Hiroshima Prefectural Hiroshima Senior High School (Hiroshima); Hokkaido Sapporo Minami High School (Hokkaido); Ikeda Senior High School Attached to Osaka Kyoiku University (Osaka); International Christian University High School (Tokyo); Kaijo Senior High School (Tokyo); Kaisei Academy (Tokyo); Kasugaoka High School (Osaka); Keio Girls Senior High School (Tokyo); Kyoto Gakuen High School (Kyoto); Kyoto Prefectural Rakuhoku Senior High School (Kyoto); Mita International School (Tokyo); Nagasaki Prefectural Isahaya High School (Nagasaki); Oin High School (Tokyo); Okayama Prefectural Joto High School (Okayama); Oshima High School (Kagoshima); Saitama Municipal Urawa High School (Saitama); Senior High School at Otsuka, University of Tsukuba (Tokyo); Shibuya Senior High School (Tokyo); Takada High School (Mie); Takamatsu High School (Kagawa); Toyama Chubu High School (Toyama); Waseda University Senior High School (Tokyo); Yaeyama High School (Okinawa); and Yatsushiro High School (Kumamoto).

For more information about the Stanford e-Japan Program, please visit stanfordejapan.org. The application period for Spring 2022 will begin November 15, 2021.

On August 23, 2021, a virtual award ceremony was held to recognize the eight honorees of SPICE’s 2020–2021 regional programs in Japan. These students performed at the highest levels in their respective courses. Their names, high schools, and final research project titles appear below.

Stanford e-Hiroshima (Instructor Rylan Sekiguchi)

• Sara Arakawa (Hiroshima Prefectural Hiroshima Kokutaiji Senior High School), “Silicon Valley: Secrets Behind Success”
• Chika Isone (Hiroshima Prefectural Hiroshima Senior High School), “Innovation by Design Thinking in Silicon Valley”

Stanford e-Kawasaki (Instructor Maiko Tamagawa Bacha)

• Eric Silang (Kawasaki High School), “Humor and America”
• Shunya Tani (Kawasaki High School), “Possible Ways to Promote Renewable Energy in Japan and the U.S.”

Stanford e-Oita (Instructor Kasumi Yamashita)

• Hana Burkart (Hofu High School), “Social Discrimination Against Foreigners in Japan”
• Yayano Okuda (Usa High School), “Environmental Education”

Stanford e-Tottori (Instructor Jonas Edman)

• Eri Tamura (Tottori Nishi High School), “Teachers’ Treatment in the U.S.”
• Hinata Yonemura (Yonago Higashi High School), “Veganism: How Japanese Society Can Promote It”
   

The Honorable Toru Maeda, Consul General of Japan in San Francisco, made opening remarks and congratulated the honorees on their outstanding academic performances. Addressing the students directly, he said, “You have demonstrated strong initiative and deep understanding of various aspects of Japan and the United States.” He also expressed optimism in the future of the U.S.–Japan relationship. He continued, “With young people like you, I’m confident that Japan–U.S. relations—which are now firmly based on shared fundamental values and common strategic goals—will continue to grow for many years to come. A deeper understanding among young people on both sides will promote greater cooperation and collaboration between our two countries, which will enable us to meet the challenges lying ahead.”

Consul General Maeda’s remarks were followed by introductions of the student honorees by their instructors Sekiguchi, Bacha, Yamashita, and Edman. The honorees then gave formal research presentations in English and responded to questions from the audience. Each honoree received an award plaque to recognize their achievement.

Although some of the students felt nervous about their presentations at the beginning of the event, once the ceremony ended, they felt a sense of accomplishment and renewed motivation. “I had a great time today,” commented Sara Arakawa. “My desire to study English is getting stronger each day, and I will practice hard to be a person who works globally in the future. I will never forget everything I learned in this program.”

The SPICE instructors would like to express their gratitude to their key contacts at the Hiroshima, Oita, and Tottori Prefectural Boards of Education and the City of Kawasaki, who have helped make these regional programs a success. They would also like to thank Hiroshima Governor Hidehiko Yuzaki, Kawasaki Mayor Norihiko Fukuda, Oita Governor Katsusada Hirose, and Tottori Governor Shinji Hirai for their continued support of these regional programs.

SPICE’s regional programs are a subset of our local student programs in Japan.

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Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan is an online course offered to high school students from throughout Japan. It is offered annually in spring and fall by SPICE and the Japanese NPO e-Entrepreneurship, led by Yusuke Matsuda. The instructors are Maiko Tamagawa Bacha (spring) and Irene Bryant (fall).

On August 11, 2021, the top students in the 2020 spring and fall cohorts were honored in a virtual ceremony. They are listed below alphabetically.  

• Naho Abe, The American School Foundation in Mexico City
• Yasuko Kinoshita, graduate of Akita Senior High School, Akita Prefecture
• Rion Kurihara, Shibuya Senior High School, Tokyo
• Sungyeon “Sunny” Park, The British School in Tokyo

The goal of Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan is to foster creative thinking and problem-solving skills in students with a focus on innovation to address social issues. During the ceremony, the honorees made presentations that focused on history textbook controversies in Japan (Abe); aging communities in rural prefectures like Akita (Kinoshita); gun control in the United States (Kurihara); and poverty alleviation (Park).

While listening to the presentations, Bacha and Bryant were struck by the diversity represented by the honorees. Bryant, who is a former Coordinator of International Relations on the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, reflected, “As an American who has lived outside of the United States for many years, I have no doubt that Naho’s attendance at a high school in Mexico City and Sunny’s attendance at The British School in Tokyo will have a profound effect on their college studies and possibly careers, just as my overseas experiences have had a profound effect on my life.” Bacha similarly reflected, “As a Japanese national who attended graduate school in California and also worked in San Francisco, I think it’s great that Yasuko, who is from the rural prefecture of Akita, will be enrolling at Minerva University in San Francisco this year, and hope that Rion will fulfill her dream of enrolling in a university in the United States as well.”

Bryant and Bacha are most grateful to the following educators in Japan for their support throughout the 2020 courses:

• Mana Miura, Curriculum Designer, NPO e-Entrepreneurship
• Roy Lee, former teacher at Seiko Jr. and Sr. High School
• Sara Inoue, currently a student at Harvard University’s Graduate School of Education

The spring 2020 Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan course was generously supported by the Water Dragon Foundation. The fall 2020 Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan course was generously supported by Noriko Honda Chen and the Capital Group, Norman Chen, Andrew Ogawa, and Mako Ogawa.

For more information about SPICE’s online courses for students, visit our Student Programs page.