JapanLocal: Japanese city mascots dance to “Call Me Maybe”
Japan Local, Video 
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Hey, I just met you and…. this is crazy…. but here’s a video of Japanese city mascots dancing to “Call Me Maybe” ….. and I was wondering if any JETs were involved in making this video or if there are any JETs and JET alums who work(ed) in the cities that appear in the video.
JET alum’s martial arts non-profit seeks to connect with Tohoku dojos for volunteering
Cultural Outreach, Earthquake Tsunami, Japan Local, Notable JET Alums, Volunteer Comments Off on JET alum’s martial arts non-profit seeks to connect with Tohoku dojos for volunteering
Posted by JET alum Jennifer Leigh-Gould (Miyagi-ken, Shibata-machi, 2001-04) to the Sendai Earthquake Friends and Family Facebook group:
Out of the Dojo, Into the World™ is a newly formed non-profit community of martial artists who are very interested in helping with disaster relief and community re-building in Tohoku. I wonder if anyone can connect us with local dojos in the area and/or service projects in need of volunteers. In the meantime, please visit and like our page. We’re just starting out and eager to connect with the international community in any way that we can. (I am a former JET 2001-2004 – in Shibata Machi, Miyagi Ken).
https://www.facebook.com/outofthedojointotheworld
AJET sets up “Education and Professional Development” page on its site
AJET Comments Off on AJET sets up “Education and Professional Development” page on its site
I just noticed that AJET has created a very helpful Education & Professional Development page on its site. See below.
AJET Education and Professional Development supports AJET Members as education professionals. Whether you have many years of experience and are planning on continuing a career in education after JET, or have never heard of ESL, we’re here to help throughout your entire tenure in Japan.
- Education News & Events
Educations news makes it easy to stay on top of the latest headlines and special offers from AJET.
- Outstanding Educators Program
An AJET initiative to support JET teachers through unique opportunities.
- Japanese Language Study
Courses, JLPT information, and tools for studying Japanese.
- Professional Development
Professional development organizations, certifications, courses, and ideas.
- Teaching Resources
Education articles, lesson materials, and classroom techniques.
If you have anything you would like to see added to our Education and Professional Development pages, comments or questions, please send an email to the Education and Professional development coordinator here.
JET Alumni Invited to Apply to Teach For America
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Note: The below announcement resulted from a discussion between JETAA USA Board of Advisors member Jessyca Livingston (Hokkaido, 2003-06) and Christie Clark of Teach For America after they realized there have been a significant number of JETs who have done TFA and vice-versa. (e.g., It turns out that current AJET Chair Mark Noizumi is a TFA alum.) TFA has had good experience with JET alumni who go on to work for TFA, and the JET Programme certainly appreciates applicants who come with the kind of prior teaching experience that TFA alums have. Stay tuned for more info as JETAA seeks to grow its relationship with TFA.
JET ALUMNI INVITED TO APPLY TO TEACH FOR AMERICA
Only 1 in 13 students from low-income communities will graduate from college. You can use your experience in education to be a part of a movement to change this. Join fellow corps members– from all professional and academic backgrounds – in the fight to ensure ALL students have a chance at the American Dream.
Teach For America enlists a diverse corps of leaders who commit to teach for at least two years in urban and rural public schools and become lifelong advocates in the effort to expand educational opportunity. Our teachers use their numerous skills and experiences from their varied work, leadership, and academic backgrounds to effect change in their classroom and help break the cycle of inequity that prevents students from fulfilling their potential. Full salary, benefits, transitional grants, and Americorps funding.
Sign up here to apply. The final application deadline for the 2013 corps is Friday, February 15th.
For further information, please email Christie.clark@teachforamerica.org .
New Facebook groups for Wisconsin and Indiana JETAA subchapters
JETAA Chapters Comments Off on New Facebook groups for Wisconsin and Indiana JETAA subchapters
Originally posted by JETAA Chicago President Rob Corder to the JETAA Chicago Facebook group:
Hi everybody! As most of you all know, JETAA Chicago serves not only the Chicago region, but all of Illinois as well as Indiana and Wisconsin. In our ongoing effort to reach out and grow the JETAA community, two new Facebook groups have been set up: JETAA Chicago Badger State Subchapter and JETAA Chicago Hoosier Subchapter. If you live in Wisconsin or Indiana and are interested in connecting with other JET Alums in your area, check them out. The hope is that these communities will grow and that we will be able to do some events in Wisconsin and Indiana.
Wisconsin: JETAA Chicago Badger State Subchapter
http://www.facebook.com/groups/329244980520254/
Indiana: JETAA Chicago Hoosier Subchapter
http://www.facebook.com/groups/410478425701096/
AJET Connect Magazine survey of JET Alumni
AJET Comments Off on AJET Connect Magazine survey of JET Alumni
A request from James Kemp (Ehime-ken, 2nd year), AJET Online Publications Manager and Editor for AJET Connect Magazine:
Are you a former JET? Then AJET Connect Magazine wants to hear from you! We’ve got a short five question survey we’d love for you to answer ahead of next month’s After JET Conference in Yokohama. The best answers will be printed in AJET Connect Magazine and distributed at the Conference, so if you fancy having your voice heard and helping hundreds of current JETs, please do get involved!
The survey can be found at http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/YL3HCNX
If you’ve any questions, don’t hesitate to get in touch.
AJET Survey: The JET Alumni Experience
AJET Comments Off on AJET Survey: The JET Alumni Experience
A request from AJET for JET alumni to participate in a survey:
“Every spring and fall, we run surveys on JET Programme aspects in order to create reports to present to CLAIR and the three ministries who cooperate to run the JET Programme. Our Spring 2013 Surveys are officially live and are open until Sunday, January 27th. This time, there is one specifically for JET alumni. We’d appreciate it if you could take a moment of your time to fill it out by this coming Sunday, January 27. Thank you!”
The JET Alumni Experience
The JET Alumni Experience: This survey will ask questions about the reappointment process and the retention of JET Programme participants. Your responses will help us assess which aspects of JET Programme participants’ lives were satisfactory and which areas are in need of improvement within the context of the JET Programme. We hope to explore responses within the reappointment and retention section to suggest improvements for the reappointment process.
http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/jetalumnisurvey
NEW JETAA Chicago “Daily Life In Japan” 2013 Calendars!
JETAA Chapters, Photography Comments Off on NEW JETAA Chicago “Daily Life In Japan” 2013 Calendars!
NEW JETAA Chicago “Daily Life In Japan” 2013 Calendars!
Exclusive this year, JETAA Chicago is showcasing the amazing photos submitted by the community for our charity event, “Daily Life in Japan – Photos for Soma,” in a 12-month wall calendar. Every image is a celebration of Japan’s natural beauty and rich culture. Share your love of Japan with friends and family while supporting a great cause; all proceeds benefit the Soma City Tsunami Orphan Scholarship Fund.
Here’s the link to purchase a calendar: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=SLGJQUHFXYPU6
Job: Call Center Agent in Mt. View, CA Fluent in Japanese (Speak and Write)
Jobs Comments Off on Job: Call Center Agent in Mt. View, CA Fluent in Japanese (Speak and Write)
Job listing received directly form Randstad Staffing. If you apply, please let them know that you learned of the job listing via JETwit:
TO APPLY FOR THIS POSITION, PLEASE CLICK ON THE FOLLOWING LINK: https://interview.harqen.com/interviewnow/9054/6311
Or E-mail resume to: monica.calderon@randstadusa.com
Candidates welcome for next AJET National Council
AJET Comments Off on Candidates welcome for next AJET National Council
Thanks to Appiah Boakye, AJET Block 9 Representative, for posting this on the Tottori JET Facebook group:
Get involved!!! Election season for the next AJET National Council is here!
Applicants should be current JETs who are reliable, have excellent time management skills, and are re-contracting for the 2013-2014 JET year. Elections for the 2013-2014 AJET National Council will be held online from February 15-March 1, 2013.
Elected positions available include Executive Officers (Chair, Vice Chair, and Treasurer), CIR Representative, and Block Representatives. There are also an additional four appointed positions, including Translating and Interpreting Coordinator, Online Publications Editor, Website Coordinator, and Head of Visual Media. Those wishing to run for an elected position should contact the current holder of your desired position and submit a platform to election@ajet.net by February 8, 2013. Candidates for appointed positions must submit their materials by March 11, 2013.
Contact information for the current National Council and information about positions can be found on our website on the following pages:
AJET National Council: http://ajet.net/national-council/
AJET Block Representatives: http://ajet.net/ajet-blocks/
Additional details about platform submission, election rules, and general advice for applicants can be found on our website at: http://ajet.net/ajet-elections/ .
If you have any additional questions, please send an email to the election committee at election@ajet.net .
JET alum Japanese teacher’s class visited by Delaware governor
Cultural Outreach, JETs in the News, Language Study, LifeAfterJET, Local Government, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on JET alum Japanese teacher’s class visited by Delaware governor
Thanks to Virginia Murray for catching this article and posting it to the JETAA Southeast Facebook group. It seems that Linnea Bradshaw, a fellow JET of Virginia’s from 1988, is a Japanese teacher at a high school in Delaware whose class was recently visited by Delaware’s Governor Jack Markell. Go JET!
Markell shares travel experiences with Appoquinimink students
Delaware’s Governor visited the Level II language class at Appoquinimink High School Tuesday morning to share his experiences in Japan and to take questions from the class he video-chatted with from the foreign country during his trip last year.
Here are some excerpts from the article:
“Governor Jack Markell told students in Linnea Bradshaw’s Japanese class Tuesday that speaking multiple languages gives them a leg-up in the job market. Delaware’s Governor visited the Level II language class at Appoquinimink High School Tuesday morning to share his experiences in Japan and to take questions from the class he video-chatted with from the foreign country during his trip last year.”
………
“Markell wasn’t the only one in the room Tuesday who has experienced Japan. Last summer, Bradshaw took 23 students from both Middletown and Appoquinimink High Schools to Japan to immerse them in the culture. Bradshaw said that her highest-level students can speak sentences, and understand, write and read Japanese.”
…….
“During his multi-city trip of the country, Markell, his wife, and staff, met with several businesses in the Miyagi area in hopes of building a stronger partnership between Delaware and Miyagi.”
Click here to read the full article on the Middletown Transcript’s website as well as see a photo of Linnea with the Governor: http://www.middletowntranscript.com/article/20130108/NEWS/130109810/0/SEARCH
Pacific Northwest JETAA Newsletter seeks submissions by January 16
JETAA Chapters, Writers Comments Off on Pacific Northwest JETAA Newsletter seeks submissions by January 16
Fellow JET Alums,
In two weeks’ time, our annual newsletter will be going to proverbial print. You’ll be able to read about all the things PNWJETAA has been up to this past year, as well as get a forecast for the future. Last year, we added a new column called “Haikus From You and Short Stories.” We welcomed poetry (haiku or other), stories, and photographs from JET Alums. We got a bunch of good haikus, several entertaining tales, and some neat photos.
The first poetic ventureI came across —The rice-planting songsOf the far north.
E: newsletter@pnwjetaa.org
JETAA British Columbia Newsletter – January 2013
Earthquake Tsunami, Japan Local, JETAA Chapters, Return on JET-vestment, Writers Comments Off on JETAA British Columbia Newsletter – January 2013
The latest issue of the JETAABC Newsletter is now available. The January issue includes a poignant article on Rikuzentakata by former Alison Dacia Brown (Iwate-ken, Rikuzentakata-shi, 2005-08) as well as an article on Photohoku, hockey in Japan, and other JET-relevant topics. JETAA BC is also one of the few remaining chapters to publish a print-layout newsletter, and they do a great job at it.
- Online Magazine Version: http://issuu.com/jetaabc/docs/newsletterv17n3/8
JET alum Bruce Feiler set to publish latest book: The Secrets of Happy Families
Books, Celebrity, LifeAfterJET, Notable JET Alums, Writers Comments Off on JET alum Bruce Feiler set to publish latest book: The Secrets of Happy Families
The latest from JET alum Bruce Feiler (Tochigi-ken, 1989-90), author of Learning to Bow, The Council of Dads, and, most recently, The Secrets of Happy Family, as well as several books on the Middle East including Walking the Bible, Abrahamand Where God Was Born. To read prior columns, please click here.
In a few weeks Harper Collins will publish Bruce’s new book, THE SECRETS OF HAPPY FAMILIES: Improve Your Mornings, Rethink Family Dinner, Fight Smarter, Go Out and Play, and Much More.
From Bruce: “Like many people we know, my wife, Linda, and I felt squeezed between aging parents and rising children. So over several years, I set out to find the smartest ideas and cutting-edge techniques to make our family happier. Avoiding the usual “experts,” I sought out creative minds from Silicon Valley to the set of “Modern Family” to the country’s top negotiators, asked what they were doing with the families, then tested their ideas at home with Linda and our girls. Some of these solutions failed, but many more improved our lives deeply and brought us all a lot closer.”
The book will be excerpted in the New York Times and appear on the cover of PARADE. Bruce will be featured on Good Morning America, Katie Couric, and other shows. Bruce will also be touring around the country.
There will also be an event in NYC at the Barnes & Noble on 86th Street on the East Side on February 20. (Stay tuned for a JETAANY announcement about going to the event followed by a happy hour.)
Learn more here: http://amzn.to/QwQxP5.
For more regular updates, follow Bruce on Facebook: www.facebook.com/brucefeilerauthor.
And Twitter: www.twitter.com/brucefeiler.
LifeAfterJET: JET alum makes Korean gay rights public service announcement video
LifeAfterJET, Video Comments Off on LifeAfterJET: JET alum makes Korean gay rights public service announcement video
Patrick Lee (also known as Pat Leezy, Nagasaki-ken, 2010-2012) specializes in videography. His videos can be seen on his Youtube Channel. He can be contacted through Facebook and Twitter.
Here’s another interesting video Patrick recently wrote/produced/directed/edited while in Seoul. It’s a gay rights public service announcement set in Seoul. He also had the video translated in 5 different languages (English, Japanese, Chinese, Spanish, French). Click the Closed Captioning “CC” button to choose the language on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMywAnbMHKY
