SPICE is pleased to share the announcement below from Stanford Global Studies about an upcoming Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) workshop for community college instructors that will feature a talk by Professor Tomás Jiménez on his latest book, States of Belonging: Immigration Policies, Attitudes, and Inclusion. This free virtual workshop will take place on Tuesday, November 9, 4:00–6:00PM (Pacific Time). All attendees will receive a copy of Professor Jiménez’s book after the workshop. Please see the workshop description below for more information as well as the registration link.

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The Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) and Stanford Global Studies (SGS) are continuing their partnership to offer exciting professional development opportunities for community college instructors who wish to internationalize their curriculum. This two-hour workshop is presented by SPICE and SGS as part of the Education Partnership for Internationalizing Curriculum (EPIC) and is supported by Department of Education Title VI funding.

This workshop will feature a talk by Stanford Professor Tomás Jiménez on his latest book, States of Belonging: Immigration Policies, Attitudes, and Inclusion. Participants will have the opportunity to ask questions and discuss with Professor Jiménez the differing approaches and attitudes shaping today’s immigration policies in the United States.

As noted by the publisher of States of Belonging, “Political turmoil surrounding immigration at the federal level and the inability of Congress to pass comprehensive immigration reform have provided an opening for state and local governments to become more active in setting their own immigration-related policies. States largely dictate the resources, institutions, and opportunities immigrants can access: who can get a driver’s license or attend a state university, what languages are spoken in schools and public offices, how law enforcement interacts with the public, and even what schools teach students about history. In States of Belonging, an interdisciplinary team of immigration experts explore the interconnections among immigration policies, attitudes about immigrants and immigration, and sense of belonging.” (https://www.russellsage.org/publications/states-belonging)

Tomás Jiménez is Professor of Sociology and Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity at Stanford University. His research and writing focus on immigration, assimilation, social mobility, and ethnic and racial identity.

Please register here at your earliest convenience.

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/SPICE East Asia Seminars for Teachers in Hawaii (“Stanford SEAS Hawaii”) is a teacher professional development opportunity for educators who wish to enhance their teaching of East Asia. Offered by the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (SPICE) with the generous support of the Freeman Foundation, Stanford SEAS Hawaii will select 25 teachers to participate in a nine-month fellowship from November 2021 to July 2022. This program is managed by Rylan Sekiguchi and coordinated by Sabrina Ishimatsu.

The application deadline for Stanford SEAS Hawaii is October 15, 2021.

The 2021–22 program is open to all public, charter, and private high school teachers on Kauai, Lanai, Maui, Molokai, Niihau, and the island of Hawaii. Selected teachers—Stanford/Freeman SEAS Hawaii Fellows—will build their content knowledge of East Asia by learning from a combination of experts based at Stanford University and other institutions. Fellows will also receive extensive curricula, teaching resources, and training from SPICE to support their teaching of East Asia in the high school classroom.

The 2021–22 program will consist of two parts:

1. A series of four private virtual seminars with scholars during the 2021–22 academic year (November 15, January 13, March 22, and May 3; to be confirmed), each exploring a different aspect of East Asia.
2. A three-day in-person teacher institute in Honolulu in the summer of 2022 (July 12–14; to be confirmed) that will highlight the geography, cultures, politics, and history of East Asia, including a special focus on U.S.–Asia relations and the Asian diaspora in the United States. Teachers will be joined by the 2020–21 Stanford/Freeman SEAS Hawaii Fellows from Oahu. (Note: The institute will be subject to local health and safety guidelines at the time. Participants will be notified in advance if plans must be changed.)

Twenty-four teachers from Oahu participated in the inaugural year (2020–21) of Stanford SEAS Hawaii. In their reflections, many commented on the rich subject matter content that was delivered by the Stanford scholars. Dr. Robert Straton (Punahou School) commented, “To my mind, the Stanford SEAS Hawaii program is spot-on! In a nutshell, you get down-to-earth professors who provide extremely interesting talks, then do their best afterwards to answer all questions in clear, straightforward language… Each session includes a shortlist of further readings, useful primary source documents, and more.” Shawna Poitra (Kapolei High School) noted “The Stanford SEAS Hawaii program was a great opportunity for educators to learn about multiple aspects of history. The presenters were engaging and knowledgeable; the depth in their content area made it a rich experience. The SPICE coordinators did a fantastic job creating meetings that were useful and manageable as working teachers. This experience was well worth my time.”

To apply for this opportunity, visit this webpage.

To be notified of other professional development opportunities, join SPICE’s email list and follow SPICE on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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In addition to Stanford SEAS Hawaii, SPICE offers teacher PD opportunities virtually to teachers nationwide and locally in California to middle school teachers, high school teachers, and community college instructors. For more information on those programs, please visit the webpages below.

• East Asia Summer Institute for Middle School Teachers
• East Asia Summer Institute for High School Teachers
• Community College Programs

Gathering educators from across the Bay Area for our in-person summer institutes on East Asia and the Asian American experience has always been a highlight of our year at SPICE. Teachers soak up content lectures from Stanford faculty and other experts and discuss pedagogy, and, most importantly, form a meaningful learning community in which diverse ideas and varied perspectives are encouraged and shared. Teachers also gain valuable insight and feedback from SPICE curriculum specialists. Sitting eye-to-eye with like-minded educators seeking deeper content knowledge and authentic voices is a special experience, and it’s one that we look forward to every year.

The COVID-19 pandemic, of course, necessitated a change of plans. We moved our middle school and high school teacher professional development programs online amidst concerns that the deeper person-to-person connections that we valued would be lost. Much to our surprise, these fears proved to be unwarranted. After 18 months of teaching under the most challenging and exhausting of circumstances, teachers were eager for a safe space to connect, share, empathize, listen, and learn. Perhaps we had all become used to interacting as little squares on a Zoom screen.

Moving to an online model enabled us to broaden our reach considerably, engaging teachers from all across North America and beyond, with participants joining from as far as China and India. This geographic diversity—as well as the wide range of subject areas taught by the participants—enhanced the learning experience of these summer institute cohorts in surprising ways. Rich curricular and pedagogical resources were shared generously in the discussion boards on Canvas, our online learning platform. One of the most rewarding aspects of the posts was to hear about the diverse communities of students with whom the teachers work—from inner city schools on the West Coast to rural schools in the Midwest and suburban schools in the South.

Seventeen educators gathered online from June 28 to July 1 for the 2021 Virtual East Asia Summer Institute for Middle School Teachers, deepening their content knowledge on Asia and considering new perspectives and pedagogical approaches for the upcoming school year. The first three days focused on the Silk Road, Chinese dynasties, and Tokugawa Japan respectively. On the final day, teachers explored and discussed ways to incorporate more authentic Asian American voices in their teaching, culminating in a panel discussion with Asian American authors of YA fiction and memoirs.

During the final week of July, the 2021 Virtual East Asia Summer Institute for High School Teachers engaged 20 teachers with content lectures, small group discussions, and curricular resources highlighting the geography, cultures, politics, history, and literature of East Asia, with a special focus on the Asian diaspora in the United States and the diversity of the Asian American experience. Teachers absorbed subject-matter content from a range of guest speakers and collaboratively discussed ideas for implementing the content into their classrooms.

“I gained so many valuable takeaways from this summer SPICE seminar to be able to adapt meaningful content points and activities,” noted Kelly McKee, a social studies teacher at Lake Forest High School in Illinois. “It is such a challenge cultivating an effective online learning community. This summer I participated in several online PD [professional development] programs, but the SPICE seminar was certainly one of the most engaging and worthwhile.”

With the fall 2021 academic term under way, the teachers now face the challenge of taking their newfound knowledge and finding ways to incorporate it into their classrooms. Mike Vazquez, a history teacher at Brenwood Academy in Nashville, Tennessee, commented that he appreciated the opportunities to interact with other educators, and that “it is up to us to continue those relationships in the future.” With this in mind, we hope to convene additional virtual gatherings with these two cohorts later this year, and to continue strengthening this learning community as educators continue to face new challenges brought about by the pandemic.

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SPICE’s teacher institutes are offered in partnership with the National Consortium for Teaching about Asia, which is generously funded by the Freeman Foundation. For more professional development opportunities for educators, visit our Teacher Programs webpage, join our email list, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

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.

Under the leadership of Carey Moncaster (MA ’94) and Liyi Ye (MA ’16), Stanford e-China recently concluded its Spring 2021 session. Launched in Winter 2020, Stanford e-China, Technologies Changing the World: Design Thinking into Action, is offered twice annually and introduces high school students in China to cutting-edge technologies that are defining the future and providing exciting areas for academic study, professional opportunities, and entrepreneurial innovation. Focusing on the fields of green tech, finance tech, health tech, and artificial intelligence, students engage in live discussion sessions and real-time conversations with Stanford University scholars, Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, as well as American high school students. Moncaster partners with Stanford e-China Advisor Liyi Ye and Ye’s team at Third Classroom in Shanghai.

A key challenge in developing Stanford e-China has been finding and refining a framework that encourages students to analyze the challenges facing each of the technologies highlighted in the course and then brainstorm innovative solutions. To showcase the dynamic research and teachings at Stanford University, Moncaster honed in on Design Thinking, a creative-thinking and problem-solving framework widely utilized throughout campus and Silicon Valley. Moncaster explained, “Design Thinking is a very hands-on, interactive, team-based experience that is dependent on critical feedback from other people. Translating the Design Thinking concepts online, with students, scholars, and practitioners virtually scattered across the world, presents an exciting opportunity to create curriculum that effectively introduces the relevant skills and mindset.”

For final projects, Stanford e-China students delve into an area of personal interest in one of the technology fields, applying aspects of the Design Thinking framework to develop a prototype pitch and action plan. Some of the sample projects have focused on improving the accessibility of digital healthcare for China’s rural residents, improving the mental health of Chinese students, utilizing solar energy at rural schools to provide electricity to students at night, and lowering carbon emissions at traditional power plants. Once it has been deemed safe to travel to the United States again, the top three students from each session will be invited to annual ceremonies at Stanford University. During the ceremonies, students will present their pitches and sharpen their Design Thinking skills with Stanford community members present.

Based on feedback from students, a highlight of Stanford e-China has been the chance to collaborate with American high school students studying about China and U.S.–China relations in SPICE’s China Scholars Program (CSP). With the support of CSP instructor Dr. Tanya Lee, the Chinese and American students work together in small groups on WeChat and Canvas to apply Design Thinking to an environmental challenge in their respective communities. In the process, they figure out how to bridge different time zones, tech resources, learning styles, and cultural perspectives.

Moncaster reflected, “Since Tanya, Liyi, and I are trying to cultivate future leaders in U.S.–China relations, we are hoping to increase the interaction between the students in Stanford e-China and the China Scholars Program. It has been fascinating to hear them discuss not only cutting-edge technologies but also how they can serve as change agents and address topics such as social inequality.” She continued, “Thanks to our inspiring guest speakers and the robust dialogue between my students and the CSP students, I am confident that many of my students have been inspired to become social entrepreneurs of the future. I also hope that some of my students will consider applying to Stanford as undergraduates or graduate students.”

In terms of next steps, Moncaster and Ye hope to shift some of their attention to training schoolteachers in China—including the regular schoolteachers of their Stanford e-China students—via professional development seminars. SPICE Instructor Dr. Mariko Yoshihara Yang and Dr. Rie Kijima already offered one such seminar, which focused on Design Thinking. SPICE hopes to offer additional seminars to teachers in China on Design Thinking as well as other pedagogically focused strategies such as Project-Based Learning.

SPICE is seeking support to broaden its work with Stanford e-China, the China Scholars Program, and teacher professional development in China.

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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