Jan 21

Saving JET: JET Alumni Groups….by Prefecture

Local Government, Networking, Return on JET-vestment, Uncategorized Add Comment (4)

What does “Saving JET” have to do with joining your JET prefecture’s LinkedIn group?

1. The biggest threat to JET (and JETAA) now is attrition at the local government level as prefectural governments increasingly choose to reduce costs by getting ALTs from dispatch companies rather than hiring JETs.
2. The most effective way to counter this trend is to demonstrate a positive ROJ (“Return on JET-vestment”) at the local government level.
3. Local governments have expressed a strong interest in being able to connect and communicate with JET alumni who worked in their prefectures.
4. JET Alumni have never been organized by prefecture….

……until now.  So please do your part and sign up for your respective JET Alumni LinkedIn Group below.  It’s one small act of giving back to your prefecture that can make a big difference over time.

Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.

–Steven Horowitz (Aichi-ken, Kariya-shi, 1992-94)
jetwit [at] jetwit.com

Prefectural JET Alumni LinkedIn Groups

• FYI:  All groups below were created in connection with JetWit and not by the prefectural governments.  They’re just intended to help facilitate future communications.
• Current JETs and Monbusho English Fellows (MEFs) welcome too, as always.  Additionally, prefectural and other government employees as well as residents of each prefecture are welcome to join the groups.
  
• If anyone would like to be a “Manager” for their respective LinkedIn group, that would be very helpful.  Just get in touch.  Primary role will be approving requests to join the group.
  
• You may of course join other groups in addition to your own prefecture’s group if it’s helpful to you.

1. Aichi JET Alumni

2. Akita JET Alumni

3. Aomori JET Alumni

4. Chiba JET Alumni

5. Ehime JET Alumni

6. Fukui JET Alumni

7. Fukuoka JET Alumni

8. Fukushima JET Alumni

9. Gifu JET Alumni

10. Gunma JET Alumni

11. Hiroshima JET Alumni

12. Hokkaido JET Alumni

13. Hyogo JET Alumni

14. Ibaraki JET Alumni

15. Ishikawa JET Alumni

16. Iwate JET Alumni

17. Kagawa JET Alumni

18. Kagoshima JET Alumni

19. Kanagawa JET Alumni

20. Kobe JET Alumni

21. Kochi JET Alumni

22. Kumamoto JET Alumni

23. Kyoto JET Alumni

24. Mie JET Alumni

25. Miyagi JET Alumni

26. Miyazaki JET Alumni

27. Nagano JET Alumni

28. Nagasaki JET Alumni

29. Nara JET Program Alumni (set up by Savannah Maynard)

30. Niigata JET Alumni

31. Oita JET Alumni

32. Okayama JET Alumni

33. Okinawa JET Alumni

34. Osaka JET Alumni

35. Saga JET Alumni

36. Saitama JET Alumni

37. Shiga JET Alumni

38. Shimane JET Alumni

39. Shizuoka JET Alumni

40. Tochigi JET Alumni

41. Tokushima JET Alumni

42. Tokyo JET Alumni

43. Tottori JET Alumni

44. Toyama JET Alumni

45. Wakayama JET Alumni

46. Yamagata JET Alumni

47. Yamaguchi JET Alumni

48. Yamanashi JET Alumni

Note on Methodology: I took a relatively awkward approach to setting this all up.  I created subgroups via my LinkedIn account.  However, LinkedIn only lets a user create up to 10 groups and up to 20 subgroups, so I had to create a new LinkedIn account (“Jet Wit”) and use that account to set up the rest of the prefectural alumni groups.  Not ideal, but it seemed to be the best solution under the circumstances and given limited resources.  It’s always better to have something than nothing.  I’m very open to any ideas and suggestions on better ways to set this up.