JET News Roundup 12.26.2011
Return on JET-vestment 
Comments Off on JET News Roundup 12.26.2011
By Filmore Ha (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08). Filmore continues to live and work in the Greater Tokyo Area and is webmaster for JETAA Tokyo, however he is looking for new opportunities in the U.S. or Canada.
Hope everyone had a great X-mas holiday!
- New Years Volunteering OP w/ JETAA Portland
2011 is coming to an end and 2012 is right around the corner. Those lucky enough to have experienced a traditional New Years in Japan know what that means, it’s time for Osechi Ryori! JETAA Portland is looking for volunteers to help prepare this year’s jubako (three layered food box) on Dec. 30-31, check the link above for more details if you’re interested and are in the area! - JETAANC FALL 2011 Newsletter
JETAANC released its fall edition of it’s news letter Pacific Bridge, and chock full of interesting content! Check it out for ideas about how to celebrate “Japan in Your Neighborhood!” - JET Alum quoted in the Daily Yomiuri
JET alum Michael Auslin is quoted in this Dec. 22nd article about regime change in Pyongyang.Washington should also tell Beijing that any move on China’s part to take advantage of the transition so as to leave it in an enhanced position on the peninsula would harm U.S.-China relations and result in a further bulking up of the U.S. military in the Asia-Pacific region.
- Videos, JET Program featured on KTSF-26 Oct. 9th 2011
Via Peter Weber, JET Coordinator at the Consulate of Japan in San Francisco. The JET Program was featured on KTSF-26’s Japanese American Journal program. The videos, now available on YouTube, are embedded below.
December edition of “AJET Connect” now online
AJET, Article/Journalism, Japan Local, Return on JET-vestment, Travel/Tourism, Writers Comments Off on December edition of “AJET Connect” now online
***************
A really terrific December edition of AJET Connect online magazine is now available for viewing at:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/AJET/AJET+Connect+DEC+2011.pdf
JET News Roundup 12.16.11
Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on JET News Roundup 12.16.11
By Filmore Ha (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08). Filmore continues to live and work in the Greater Tokyo Area and is webmaster for JETAA Tokyo, however he is looking for new opportunities in the U.S. or Canada.
We’re back this friday with another JET News Roundup.
- JETAA USA Funded Project in Rikuzentakata
$25,000 of funds raised through the JETAA USA Earthquake Fund were granted to Empowerment Through Participation and Change, an organization based in Iwate which operates in education. - Even a Native Speaker Stops sometimes.
JET Alum Kevin Stein has written an interesting article on Scribed about how to help beginning Japanese learners get used to English. - JETAA USA Event
JETAA Usa is having a karaoke on January 31th, for more details please visite therir website? - JETAA New Jersey Subchapter Bonenkai
The JETAA New Jersey Subchapter recently had their bonenkai and has posted pictures up on their facebook. If you’re a JET alumni living in New Jersey, please check them out!
Grant made in honor of Taylor Anderson to strengthen Japan Studies at Randolph Macon College
Academic, Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, JETs in the News, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on Grant made in honor of Taylor Anderson to strengthen Japan Studies at Randolph Macon College
************
R-MC RECEIVES GRANT IN HONOR OF TAYLOR ANDERSON ’08
http://www.rmc.edu/News/11-12-13%20-%20Taylor%20Anderson.Japan%20Foundation.aspx
Randolph-Macon College has received a grant from The Japan Foundation Center for Global Partnership (CGP) to strengthen Japanese Studies, a part of the college’s Asian Studies program, in memory of R-MC alumna Taylor Anderson ’08. Anderson perished during the March 2011 earthquake & tsunami that devastated parts of Japan.
“We are pleased to receive this generous support from The Japan Foundation,” said Randolph-Macon President Robert R. Lindgren. “This grant will help us increase our students’ awareness and appreciation of Japanese culture and will aid the college in laying the groundwork for a lifetime of engagement and exchange with our Japanese neighbors.”
The Japanese Foundation grant, entitled “Honoring the Life, Work, and Good Spirit of Taylor Anderson – Enhancing Japanese Studies at Randolph-Macon College,” will help Randolph-Macon reach its goal of increasing course offerings in Japanese language and culture. The college received $100,000 for this academic year with the anticipation of receiving additional funds during the five year duration of the grant, which will allow for faculty travel to Japan to develop broader course offerings and establish student travel courses to Japan.
R-MC’s Asian Studies Progam will also develop and offer a spring workshop and curriculum website for Virginia elementary, middle, and high school teachers of history, geography, world language, and literature. This seminar workshop will be led by R-MC Professor Todd Munson and provide teachers the opportunity to engage in the study, analysis and discussion of topics related to Japanese history, geography, and culture. It will provide ten hours of instruction and will convene on the Randolph-Macon campus beginning in spring 2012.
The Japan Foundation grant will also support the following Randolph-Macon initiatives in the current academic year:
|
|
|
|
Taylor Anderson, who had a lifelong love of Japan, graduated from Randolph-Macon College in 2008 with a Bachelor’s degree inInternational Studies and minors in Asian Studies and Political Science. She joined The Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program and was assigned to teach in Ishinomaki, Japan. The JET program is one of the world’s largest exchange programs and is aimed at developing strong international relationships between Japan and other nations.
“This grant will help to continue strengthening relationships with a country she loved and Randolph-Macon College,” said Anderson’s father, Andy. We are grateful to both the college and the Japan Foundation for so generously supporting this project in her memory and honor.”
JET alum paper published: “A New Framework for US-Japan Development Cooperation”
Academic, Article/Journalism, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment, Writers Comments Off on JET alum paper published: “A New Framework for US-Japan Development Cooperation”
Jim Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94), Executive Director of the Japan Center for International Exchange (JCIE/USA), has a new paper published as part of JCIE’s “Enhanced Agenda for US-Japan Partnership” paper series titled:
- “A New Framework for US-Japan Development Cooperation“ (PDF) http://www.jcie.org/researchpdfs/USJapanPapers/Gannon.pdf
Click here for other JCIE papers in the series.
JET News Roundup 12.12.11
Article/Journalism, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on JET News Roundup 12.12.11
Posted by Jessica Cork (Hiroshima, 1997-2000); JET Program Coordinator, Consulate General of Japan in Atlanta
Article from the Japan Times that mentions the JET Programme:
Japan faces the serious issue of a dwindling number of children and a shrinking workforce. So far in this situation, not much has been done to make use of foreign students studying in Japan, who may become essential resources to relieve the labor shortage. Leading figures from academia and the business world were recently invited to discuss ways in which to attract more foreign students to study and work in Japan.
The speakers were Kenji Honma, president of the Hokkaido University of Education, Yohei Otani, a general manager at NEC Soft, Nam-Kung Sung Il, an executive director at the Tokyo YMCA, Larry Greenberg, CEO of Urban Connections, and Keiko Iwata, president of Heart Connections.
JET News Roundup 12.09.11
JETs in the News, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on JET News Roundup 12.09.11
By Filmore Ha (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08), a graduate of Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. Filmore continues to live and work in the Greater Tokyo Area and is webmaster for JETAA Tokyo.
UPDATE: Added an additional news item.
Good evening from Saitama! I’d had several things circulate my way recently so here we are with another Jet News Roundup.
- PR Event for Food Produced in Fukushima Prefecture (Japanese)
JET alum Greg Beck posted a story to JETAANY’s Facebook wall about a PR event held in New York to promote food produced in Fukushima Prefecture. Due to the accident and ongoing issues at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, sales of Fukushima-ken produced food stuffs has decreased considerably. Over 200 people were invited to the event and among the foods presented were roast beef prepared with salt produced in Fukushima and Fukushima produced sake, among others. - AJET Announces TEFL Scholarship Winners
Via JETAAUSA, on Nov. 29th AJET announced this year’s TEFL Scholarship winners from its AJET Outstanding Educator’s Program. This year’s winners are Emily Johnson and Meredith Smith. Congratulations to both accomplished teachers.Both winners demonstrated outstanding activities not only in teaching, but in spreading the values of the JET program and internationalization in their communities.
- Remembering a Very Different Dec. 7th
JET Alum Graham Shelby written an essay for the Courier Journal recounting his experience in Japan and how it affected his perspective on Pearl Harbor and its legacy. The essay is a wonderful read and I’m sure that many past and current JETs can connect with it on many levels, so go give it a read! - Welcome Back Reception in Portland for Oregonian JETs
On Nov. 17th the Consulate General of Japan in Portland held a welcome back reception for returning Oregon JETs. - Anime USA Charity Auction Raises Over $3000
This year Anime USA raised over $3000 through its annual charity auction benefiting the Taylor Anderson ’04 Memorial Gift Fund.
Photos from Rikuzentakata Tutoring Project supported in part by JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund
Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, Japan Local, JETAA Chapters, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on Photos from Rikuzentakata Tutoring Project supported in part by JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund
Thanks to Jim Gannon (Ehime-ken, 1992-94) for forwarding the below photos of the “Youth Empowerment Iwate“ Rikuzentakata tutoring project that received $25,000 in support from the JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund. These photos are from a November 10 visit to one of the several middle schools in town where the project is operating three times a week. These photos are of three rooms, one where individual students can study quietly on their own, a second dedicated to group study (and relaxing, too…which is important), and a third that is tutoring for the entire group. The tutors you see are university student volunteers, who are the ones running things.
**************
**************
**************
**************
**************
JET News Roundup 12.05.11
JETs in the News, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on JET News Roundup 12.05.11
By Filmore Ha (Ibaraki-ken, 2006-08), a graduate of Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Arkansas. Filmore continues to live and work in the Greater Tokyo Area and is webmaster for JETAA Tokyo.
JET has made headlines quite a bit over the past several weeks, so today we’re going to do a roundup in the first ever JET News Roundup!
- Japan to offer donations to alma maters of U.S. Jet disaster victims
The Japan Foundation stated it will be offering US $100,000 annually over five years to the alma maters of Taylor Anderson and Montgomery Dickson. In addition, the foundation is working with each school on projects in memory of both victims. - Japan shows world it is safe with help of JET teachers
Current JETs such as Sean Dowty (featured in this article) as well as former JETs as are seen as crucial in rebuilding world wide trust in Japan as a safe destination for tourists. - On Nov. 24th the Asahi Shinbun released a short article about former CIR William McMichael who now works at Fukushima University and his efforts to recruit international students here. The article is in Japanese, so get out your dictionaries! asahi-shinbun-william-mcmichael-jet-news
- Woman pitches in for Japanese tsunami relief
Canadian community website YorkRegion.com posted an article about former Shiogama ALT Tanya Gardecky who went door to door raising funds for tsunami relief following news of the 3/11 disaster. - TV Japan posted a video prior to Thanksgiving highlighting the JET Welcome Back Reception in New York. The video, which is in Japanese, is can be accessed via the TV Japan video archive.
- Mockridge returns to visit quake-, tsunami-ravaged Japan
Bay Area Mercury News posted a great article about Alan Mockridge, a former ALT from the UK, highlighting his activities in disaster relief following the 3/11 disaster, as well as the events leading up to his return to Iwate Prefecture to visit his former school. This article is a great example of the relationships and special ties that result from participation on JET.
Miyagi AJET launches Micro Grant Program in honor of Taylor Anderson
AJET, Cultural Outreach, Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, Japan Local, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on Miyagi AJET launches Micro Grant Program in honor of Taylor Anderson
*****************
Miyagi AJET has launched a Micro Grant Program in honor of Taylor Anderson intended to “empower JETs with financial support in their efforts to fulfill the goals of the JET Programme in and outside of school.” Read below for full details:
To all Miyagi/Sendai JETs:
Employed directly through Boards of Education and embedded in communities, we JETs have a lot of potential to do great things here in Japan. Many of us invest our personal time, and sometimes our own money, to craft interactive lessons that engage students, to motivate students and spark their interest in English and foreign cultures, to produce quality events educating the people in our communities about our home countries, and more. As the AJET branch for Miyagi and Sendai, MAJET is here to support you in your activities as a JET, and to this end, we would like to announce the “Miyagi-Sendai JET Micro-Grant Program.”
Attached please find a detailed description of the program, outlining it’s goals and how to apply. To put it simply, as Miyagi starts to take it’s formative steps towards recovery from the March 11th disaster, the purpose of this program is to empower JETs with financial support in their efforts to fulfill the goals of the JET Programme in and outside of school.
All too often JETs have great ideas to create language/culture boards at their school, to put on fun events for eikaiwa groups, to put on culture days at the local community center, but find themselves encumbered for lack of even a minimal working budget. There’s only so much that can come out of our own pockets, which is where this program comes in. Whatever idea you may have for doing something that you feel helps meet the goals of the JET Programme (internationalization, cultural interaction, language education, etc.), we want you to tell us about it. If your idea does indeed further the cause of JET, we’ll provide you with money to make it a reality! Initially we have set the range of possible grants to between 2,000 and 10,000 yen, but if you have a particularly good idea, let us know and we will consider going beyond this range.
If you are interested in applying for a grant, please fill out an application here:
https://docs.google.com/a/ajet.net/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dDNPaFdVSFUxUDBzb1pZcGttZEdoSHc6MQ
Even if you are currently engaged in an activity that you already pay for out of pocket, let us know and we may be able to provide you with funding to take this activity to the next level. Please keep in mind that once funds run out, this program will be discontinued, so if you have an idea for things you want to do next spring/summer, let us know sooner rather than later.
In announcing this program, we would like to give special thanks to the family of Taylor Anderson, an Ishinomaki JET who was sadly loston March 11th. During what was undoubtedly a trying time for the Andersons, they decided to honor Taylor’s memory as best they could in supporting the recovery of the community in which Taylor lived, and which she loved. Knowing Taylor’s activities as a JET, the Andersons recognize the importance of the JET Programme towards internationalization and language education at the grassroots/community level in Japan, and see the potential for the JETs of Miyagi and Sendai to be active parts of recovery. It is a result of the Andersons commitment to helping Ishinomaki and Miyagi that the idea for this program was formed, and it is from donations raised by the Anderson’s that the seed money for this program will come.
If you have any questions about this program, or if you would like to brainstorm with us and discuss in more detail the possibility of receiving a grant, please contact us at miyagi@ajet.net
Wishing you the best,
The MAJET Team
—
——————————————
Miyagi Association of JET 2011-12
www.ajetmiyagi.net
Claudine Bennent (President)
Cameron Peek (President)
Brian Garvey (Vice-President)
Marissa Godwin (Treasurer)
——————————————
Read on for official Micro Grant Program guidelines: Read More
Xmas cards for Tohoku kids
Earthquake Tsunami, Return on JET-vestment, Volunteer Comments Off on Xmas cards for Tohoku kids
Via JETAA USA:
Xmas Cards for Tohoku Kids
http://www.jetaausa.com/?p=1952&preview=true
A Professor Emeritus of Chuo University has started a project called “Xmas Cards from Friends Around the World”. This is a campaign to gather Christmas cards from around the world to bring to the children in Tohoku. If you’d like to participate, please send your card(s) to the following address:
c/o Mrs. Mayumi Hoshi
Shichigahama-cho Saigai-Volunteer Center
Noyama 5-9, Yoshidahama
Shichigahama-cho, Miyagi
JAPAN 985-0802
ATTN: Boys and Girls
For more information (Japanese only) please see the PDF.
“Hope For Tomorrow” expands activities to 5 cities including Ishinomaki thanks to JETAA USA Funds
Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, Japan Local, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on “Hope For Tomorrow” expands activities to 5 cities including Ishinomaki thanks to JETAA USA Funds
JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund Update:
Hope for Tomorrow, one of the grantees of the JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund, has been successful enough to expand to 5 cities, including Ishinomaki in addition to Rikuzentakata. They mention the JET contribution as a reason for focusing on these cities front and center on their home page.
Also, since the original posting, JETAA USA upped its grant to a total of $26,700 which comes out to an even 2,000,000 yen.
Click here for a re-cap of disbursements by the JETAA USA Earthquake Relief Fund.
Daily Yomiuri: “Study halls opened in honor of ‘Monty-sensei'”
Earthquake Tsunami, Fundraising, JETs in the News, Local Government, Notable JET Alums, Return on JET-vestment Comments Off on Daily Yomiuri: “Study halls opened in honor of ‘Monty-sensei'”
JETAA USA establishes Sister City Support System
Cultural Outreach, Return on JET-vestment, Translating/Interpreting Comments Off on JETAA USA establishes Sister City Support System
Since just before the 2011 National Conference in DC this past summer, a few of us (e.g., U.S. Country Reps Jessyca Wilcox and Mike Shu as well as myself) have been working on setting up a JETAA USA system to encourage JETAA chapters to connect with and engage with their sister city/ prefecture counterparts in Japan. We met with Sister Cities International prior to the start of the conference (SCI is HQ is based in DC) to see how we might get this put together and how we can have a symbiotic relationship.
We established that some of the key needs of U.S. sister cities are the ability to communicate in Japanese and familiarity with and ability to navigate the Japanese culture, which are key ingredients for helping to grow, re-inspire, or create those relationships. This, as you are likely well aware, is the exact skill set we, as JET alumni, possess.
While JETAA has not yet established any formal relationship yet with SCI, JETAA is very much looking forward to working with them more closely in the future. But in the meantime, JETAA has begun to lay necessary groundwork to enable the JET alumni network and community to begin providing support when ready.
This has now been created in the form of the JETAA USA Sister Cities/ States JET Initiative (thanks to a lot of behind the scenes work by Jessyca Wilcox). Click the link (or read further down) for more background about this project and the tools that will enable JETAA chapters to get started. Simply connecting your JETAA chapter with your Japanese counterpart is valuable in and of itself! It demonstrates to local governments in Japan one more way that the JET alumni community is eager to provide “Return on JET-vestment” to our adopted home country.
***********
JETAANY held its annual Career Forum/Welcome Back Reception on Saturday at the Nippon Club in NYC. And in addition to the usual combination of useful advice, networking, natsukashii talk and reconnecting in general, this year’s Welcome Back Reception was notable for one other reason: It was attended by approximately 25 participants in Japan’s new Japan-U.S. Training Training and Exchange Program for English Language Teachers (JUSTE) program, sometimes referred to as the “Reverse JET” program.
The program selected 96 Japanese teachers of English to spend 6 months in the U.S. studying ESL teaching methodology–in English–at 6 different universities across the U.S.: Rutgers University (NJ), University of Delaware, University of Michigan, University of Texas, University of Iowa, UC Irvine and UC Davis. The teachers are in turn supposed to bring back their learning and share it with their respective school systems as part of an effort to improve English ability of Japanese students.
The Reverse JETs attending on Saturday came up from Rutgers and the University of Delaware. It was a terrific opportunity to get to know them and learn more about the program. Following a brief intro by all of the returning JETs, the Reverse JETs were asked to do the same. And as they said their names and prefectures, there was an almost instant connection as JET alums from various prefectures cheered when the Reverse JETs called out their own home prefecture.
It was also apparent that these were top rate teachers–the really genki, creative and engaged teachers you remember from your JET days. (We all were fortunate to have had at least one of these if not more.) This was made rather apparent when the Delaware contingency decided to forego the traditional introduction style and instead go with a teaching game they had all learned in class the day before. (See video below.)
Throughout the reception and the nijikai at Faces & Names, JET alumni found the Reverse JETs extremely friendly and easy to talk to. And it was interesting to hear about their situations and the parallels with our own first time experiences in Japan. For example:
- While the Rutgers participants are all living on campus in a dormitory for foreign students, the Delaware participants are all living with homestay families and generally need to rely on them for transportation to and from the campus (as they’re not permitted to drive while in the U.S.)
- Most participants were surprised to have been selected for the program. That’s because most of them hadn’t even known of the program’s existence until their principals called them into their offices and asked them if they’d like to go to the U.S. for 6 months. In same cases, participants only had hours to contact their spouse and decide whether to say yes. Though in everyone’s eyes, this was too good an opportunity to pass up, not to mention a terrific honor. They realized they had been 1 of 96 selected out of a total pool of 50,000 English teachers in Japan. It sounds like each prefecture is permitted to select a few school systems, and then the Board of Ed in those school systems chooses the teacher. Interestingly, some schools apparently passed on the opportunity because they didn’t feel they could afford to be without one of their top teachers for 6 months. And in some prefectures, the selection process is different and teachers can actually apply to be a participant.
- The teachers seemed to be aware of the costs involved in sending them to the U.S. and expressed a strong sense of obligation to study hard and share their learning upon return. Though one confessed to worrying about maintaining a delicate balance of sharing knowledge while also not wanting to be the nail that sticks up.
- And perhaps most interesting of all, in talking with one of the participants from Aichi (my JET prefecture), I learned that she grew up in Inuyama City and had JET alum and Inuyama City Council Member Anthony Bianchi (Aichi-ken, Inuyama-shi, 1988-89) as her ALT when she was a student! Now that’s full circle. (If anyone knows a good Japanese kotowaza for that idea, please share.)
Hopefully, the Reverse JETs through the U.S. will be able to find JET alumni in their area. And it would be really terrific if JETAA chapters as well as the JET alumni community in general could do its best to reach out to the participants wherever they are. They truly appreciate getting to spend time with the New York JET alumni on Saturday. Imagine how great it must feel to be from Tottori-ken and find an American who is also familiar with Tottori.
Unfortunately, they’re only here through January. So now is the time to reach out. In addition to meeting some great people, you’ll also be helping to support a very unique Japanese education program that we hope will continue in the future and grow to meet the English learning needs of Japan’s society.
