Maiko Tamagawa Bacha is the instructor for the Stanford e-Kawasaki Program and Stanford e-KyuSan U (Kyushu Sangyo University, Fukuoka Prefecture) for the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (91勛圖).
Prior to joining 91勛圖, she worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan for 14 years and served in Tokyo, Japan; Bangkok, Thailand; Vientiane, Laos; and San Francisco, United States. She has experience working in different areas of international relations, including disarmament of conventional weapons, United Nations affairs, Japan每Laos bilateral relations, and public diplomacy. In her most recent role as Advisor for Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco, she had an opportunity to work closely with 91勛圖 to support its Reischauer Scholars Program, an online course on Japan and U.S.每Japan relations for U.S. high school students.
Maiko received a BA in American Area Studies from University of Tokyo, and an MA in International Policy Studies from Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California. She was born in Fukuoka, Japan, and grew up in Chiba, Japan.
〞Made possible through the Freeman Foundation＊s support of the 〞
With communities across the United States now reflecting even greater diversity and complexity, our classrooms are also rapidly changing, and schools are faced with both opportunities and challenges in providing instruction that is rich and meaningful. Diverse student populations offer valuable opportunities for classroom and community enrichment.
Like many other communities, Asian and Asian American students come from many different parts of Asia and represent a wide spectrum of ethnicities, languages, histories, generations, cultures, and religions. Providing culturally and experientially responsive instruction to these students can be daunting.
In this webinar, 91勛圖 welcomes Dr. Khatharya Um to discuss the diversity of our Asian and Asian American students, and share some pedagogical tools and approaches to support more effective teaching in culturally diverse classroom environments.
Join us via Zoom video webinar for a one-hour presentation, followed by 30 minutes of Q&A with Dr. Um.
Featured Speaker:
Dr. Khatharya Um
Professor Khatharya Um is Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies at the University of California at Berkeley, and Program Coordinator of Asian American and Asian Diaspora Studies. She is also affiliated faculty of Global Studies, the Center for Southeast Asian Studies, the Center for Race and Gender, and the Berkeley Human Rights Center, and serves on the UC system-wide Faculty Advisory Board on Southeast Asia. She was a Chancellor Public Scholar.
Professor Um＊s research and teaching center on Southeast Asian politics and societies, Southeast Asian diaspora, refugee communities, educational access, genocide, and the politics of memory. Her publications include recent books From the Land of Shadows: War, Revolution and the Making of the Cambodian Diaspora (NYU Press, 2015) and Southeast Asian Migration: People on the Move in Search of Work, Refuge and Belonging (Sussex Academic Press, 2015).
Professor Um is also actively involved in community advocacy, principally on issues of refugees and educational equity. She has served on numerous boards of directors, including as Board Chair of the leading Washington DC-based Southeast Asian Resource Action Center, and as President of the National Association for the Education and Advancement of Cambodian, Laotian and Vietnamese Americans. She has received numerous awards and congressional recognitions for her community leadership and service.
Online via Zoom, at . Please pre-register at .
Dr. Khatharya Um
Associate Professor of Ethnic Studies
University of California at Berkeley
Kasumi Yamashita is an Instructor for the Stanford Program on International and Cross-Cultural Education (91勛圖), currently teaching an online course for high school students in Oita Prefecture, Japan, called Stanford e-Oita. Kasumi＊s academic interests are in cultural anthropology, international education, and language technologies, and her research focuses on the Japanese diaspora in the United States and Latin America. While conducting fieldwork for her PhD in Anthropology at Harvard University, she spent a year at the University of S?o Paulo, as a Fulbright Scholar. She explored narrations of memory and migration, and community involvement in the emergence of Japanese diaspora museums throughout Brazil, including the Museu Hist車rico da Imigra??o Japonesa no Brasil (Historical Museum of Japanese Immigration to Brazil). Kasumi researched Nikkei Latin American communities in Japan while at Hitotsubashi University on a Japanese government scholarship. She earned an AM in Regional Studies每East Asia from Harvard University.
Kasumi received a BS in Studio Art from New York University. She was a University Scholar and spent her junior year in Spain at the Instituto Internacional in Madrid. After graduating from NYU, she taught English as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) and later worked as a Coordinator for International Relations (CIR) on the Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program. As a CIR at Yukuhashi City Hall, Fukuoka Prefecture, she founded a Japan每U.S. student and teacher exchange program between middle schools in Yukuhashi City and the Grace Church School in New York. More than 500 students and teachers from the United States and Japan have participated in the program since she launched it in 1994. That year, she published a book of essays chronicling her experiences as a Japanese American woman in a small Japanese town, Kasumi no Yukuhashi Nikki (Kaichosha Press).
In New York, she served as a member of the local staff of the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations under the leadership of Ambassador Hisashi Owada. She also served on the Executive Committee of the Convenci車n Panamericana Nikkei (COPANI XI) in New York and has been involved in past conferences across the Americas, most recently COPANI XX in San Francisco (CA) in 2019.
Kasumi also teaches and develops web-based curricula for the Translation and Interpretation Program at Bellevue College (WA). Kasumi frequently interprets for Japanese delegations in various fields (including education, technology, international relations, film, art, and museums) and serves on the Board of the Japanese Cultural and Community Center of Washington (JCCCW).
Hiroshima Governor Hidehiko Yuzaki (MBA, 1995) and Dr. Mariko Yoshihara Yang (MA, 1995, PhD, 2000) participated on an education-focused panel at 91勛圖 on August 26, 2019. The panel was part of the California-Japan Governors＊ Symposium that was co-hosted by the U.S.-Japan Council and the Silicon Valley Japan Platform, which is co-chaired by , founding director of the . One of the objectives of the education panel was to encourage educational collaborations between Japan and California.
Keeping many of the key discussion points from the education panel in mind, Yang recently conceptualized and launched a 91勛圖 online course for MBA students at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima (PUH) and other universities in Hiroshima. The course is called the Stanford-Hiroshima Collaborative Program on Entrepreneurship (SHCPE) and is offered under the leadership of Professor Katsue Edo, Hiroshima Business and Management School (HBMS), PUH.
Yuzaki shaped the rationale for the course. Yuzaki stated, ※We are now facing times when it is critical to design a new social system for accelerating the growth of Hiroshima Prefecture. In this environment, the government of Hiroshima is promoting various plans for enhancing a creative region and developing the economy and society of Hiroshima.§ This sentiment has prompted Yuzaki to stay in close touch with his Stanford mentor, Okimoto, and involved with the Silicon Valley Japan Platform. Yuzaki continued, ※To achieve this goal, challenging students through education is one of the most important issues in Hiroshima. The Stanford-Hiroshima Collaborative Program on Entrepreneurship established by the HBMS at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima and 91勛圖 will deliver a very valuable program which offers knowledge and wisdom of the practitioners of business in Silicon Valley, which is an intense area of innovation near 91勛圖. It will also foster entrepreneurship and management for the next generation of leaders, who will contribute to the further development of Hiroshima and Japan.§
SHCPE Instructor Yang has noted that the course ※provides a unique opportunity for the MBA students in Hiroshima to connect and interact with Japanese entrepreneurs, professionals, and scholars of Silicon Valley in a virtual setting. SHCPE＊s speaker lineup includes Stanford scholars as well as founders of a software startup, a social networking organization, and an educational non-profit as well as venture capitalists, a legal expert, and a policy advisor. Together with these guests, the students explore and analyze Silicon Valley＊s ecosystem and think critically about entrepreneurial competencies.§
Dr. Yang (on screen) with MBA students at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima.
Dr. Yang (on screen) with MBA students at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima. Photo credit: Kazue Hiura, PUH.
In November, Yang will be visiting Hiroshima to meet with Yuzaki as well as PUH President Ken-ichi Nakamura. Yang will have the chance to share her initial assessment of the course with Yuzaki and Nakamura, who has emphasized the importance of inviting lecturers from universities outside of Japan to work with PUH＊s MBA students in order to underscore the importance of adding global perspectives to the curriculum. Nakamura has stated, ※For the students to step forward into the globalizing world, they must feel and experience the real challenges of an increasingly interdependent world and this course is providing exactly that.§ Yang will also be offering the final SHCPE class in person and will meet her students in person for the first time.
SHCPE is an example of ※Engagement beyond our university,§ which is one of the four key areas in Stanford＊s long-range plan and a timely topic of consideration during the upcoming Stanford Alumni Weekend. Yang has noted, ※SHCPE utilizes knowledge and methodologies developed at 91勛圖. In the first session, students were introduced to techniques and mindset of by interviewing, ideating, and prototyping for their partners. Through the eight-week course, the students will not only acquire new knowledge on Silicon Valley＊s ecosystem, but also challenges themselves to hone their analytical skills, nurture entrepreneurial creativity, and develop a .§ This resonated in Nakamura who reflected, ※The Stanford-Hiroshima Collaborative Program on Entrepreneurship was developed to be an opportunity for our students to learn the ways of thinking taught by the innovators of Silicon Valley and 91勛圖. We are confident that this will be an exciting program which will contribute not only to promote academic research but also to promote business practices in Hiroshima.§
As 91勛圖 continues to strive to make Stanford scholarship accessible to students not only in the United States but also in other countries, 91勛圖 looks forward to continuing its partnership with PUH and other universities in Hiroshima for many years to come, and building upon lessons learned from the inaugural SHCPE course. Yuzaki and Yang crossed paths during their graduate school years at Stanford and Yang reflected that ※despite the passage of many years since the completion of our programs, it has been very much an honor to reconnect and work with fellow Stanford alumnus Governor Yuzaki to improve U.S.每Japan relations through educational channels across the Pacific＃ and I would be remiss to not say that the reconnection would not have been possible without the vision of my academic advisor and mentor, Professor Okimoto.§
To stay informed of 91勛圖-related news, and follow 91勛圖 on , , and .
This summer, 91勛圖 Director Dr. Gary Mukai was interviewed at Stanford by The Education Newspaper of Japan about his long experience working with American and Japanese students. In particular, the two-part feature highlighted his impactful work in education and U.S.每Japan relations over his 40-year career.
In Part 1 of the ※close-up§ interview, Mukai shares his educational philosophy derived from 40 years working with students in Japan and the United States. In Part 2 of the interview, he talks about , the , and 91勛圖＊s other Japan-focused projects and online learning courses for high school students.
※I feel honored to be interviewed by The Education Newspaper,§ reflected Mukai. ※And I＊m grateful for the opportunity to share about some of the cross-cultural work we do at 91勛圖 to promote mutual understanding between students in the United States and Japan.§
Read the two articles here:
Part 1: (in Japanese; full article behind paywall)
Part 2: (in Japanese; full article behind paywall)
To stay informed of 91勛圖-related news, and follow 91勛圖 on , , and .
Stanford e-Japan is an online course on U.S. society and culture for high school students in Japan. The Reischauer Scholars Program is an online course on Japanese society and culture for high school students in the United States. They are two of the several online courses that 91勛圖 offers to students in the United States and abroad.
On August 26, 2019, 91勛圖/FSI served as the 91勛圖 host of the California-Japan Governors＊ Symposium, which was co-hosted by the and the . Four governors and one vice governor from Japan were in attendance along with dignitaries from California.
Dignitaries from Japan
Mr. Katsusada Hirose, Oita Prefecture Governor
Mr. Ryuta Ibaragi, Okayama Prefecture Governor
Dr. Heita Kawakatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture Governor
Mr. Yutaka Ota, Nagano Prefecture Vice Governor
Mr. Hidehiko Yuzaki, Hiroshima Prefecture Governor
Dignitaries from California
Ms. Eleni Kounalakis, California State Lieutenant Governor
Mr. John Roos, former U.S. Ambassador to Japan
Mr. Tomochika Uyama, Consul General of Japan in San Francisco
The goal of the Symposium was to create an opportunity for leaders from Silicon Valley and Japan to come together, reinforce relationships, consider new ways of thinking, initiate dialogue, and catalyze outcomes that benefit both the United States and Japan. USJC President Irene Hirano, California State Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis, and Ambassador Roos set the context for the Symposium by highlighting the interdependence of Japan and California broadly〞and Silicon Valley specifically〞historically, economically, and socially.
The Symposium featured one panel and two sessions. First, Stanford Emeritus Professor, Co-Founder, and Co-Chair of the SVJP Executive Committee moderated a panel that featured the governors and the vice governor sharing some of the challenges and opportunities in their prefectures with a special focus on their prefectures＊ relationship with Silicon Valley and institutions of higher learning like Stanford. Second, 91勛圖 Director Dr. Gary Mukai moderated an education-focused session that explored issues at the intersection of education and global citizenship. Co-Founder Dr. Rie Kijima and SKY LABO Co-Founder and 91勛圖 Instructor Dr. Mariko Yoshihara Yang spoke about their work in fostering the next generation of innovative human resources in STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics) education with special attention to girls＊ and women＊s education. They were followed by Governors Hirose, Ibaragi, and Yuzaki, who shared education-related priorities and concerns in their prefectures, e.g., declining school enrollment especially in rural areas, low numbers of Japanese students choosing to study abroad, and empowering Japanese students with global points of view. Third, Dr. Devang Thakor moderated a healthcare-focused session. Stanford , a cardiologist, and Dr. Caleb Bell, G4S Capital and Ikigai Accelerator, shared comments on the application of AI and machine learning to medical diagnosis and treatment. Also in the session, Governor Kawakatsu and Vice Governor Ota shared reflections on health-related topics such as aging societies, the rising cost of healthcare, and prevention and wellness.
In his closing comments, Okimoto noted that he hopes to convene another symposium with the governors from Japan in three to five years. The goal of the symposium would be to share and discuss the progress that has been made since last month＊s gathering.
Over the next three to five years, 91勛圖 plans to do its part〞in at least five areas〞in terms of building upon the discussion from the education-focused session. First, later this month, Mukai will be offering the first class of Stanford e-Oita, an online class on U.S. society and culture that 91勛圖 will offer to high school students in Oita this fall. Second, Rylan Sekiguchi, Instructor of Stanford e-Hiroshima, will begin instruction from this fall of an online class on U.S. society and culture that 91勛圖 will offer to high school students in Hiroshima. Third, Yang will be visiting Hiroshima in November to meet Governor Yuzaki as well as to offer the final class of the Stanford-Hiroshima Collaboration Program, which will be offered to MBA students at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima and other universities also from this fall. Fourth, 91勛圖 will continue to assist Okayama Prefecture and Shizuoka Prefecture on their educational efforts in areas like sister city school programs and engaging their students in Stanford e-Japan, a national online class that 91勛圖 offers to high school students throughout Japan. Stanford e-Japan is taught by Waka Takahashi Brown and Meiko Kotani. Fifth, SVJP Executive Director Kenta Takamori and Mukai recently shared reflections on the Symposium and their work with the prefectures on . They hope to continue to inform the broader Silicon Valley community of the outcomes of the Symposium.
Professor Okimoto, Governor Yuzaki, Governor Kawakatsu, Ms. Hirano, Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis, Governor Ibaragi, Governor Hirose, Vice Governor Ota
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On August 9, 2019, six students from 91勛圖＊s online course and three students from the (RSP) were recognized during the 13th annual Japan Day at 91勛圖. The nine honorees had the chance to share presentations of their research papers with an audience that included Consul General Tomohiko Uyama (Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco), Ambassador Michael Armacost (former U.S. ambassador to Japan), 91勛圖 supporter Amanda Minami Chao, and Stanford Professor and 91勛圖 advisor Indra Levy.
The program began with opening remarks by Consul General Uyama and his words resonated in me as I grappled with the fact that the celebratory Japan Day was being held on a solemn occasion, the 74th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Nagasaki. Consul General Uyama stated:
The Japan每U.S. alliance is the cornerstone of security, stability, and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region. As we look at the global challenges we face today, I believe that we must strive to ensure that our special relationship remains strong and vital. One way to accomplish this is by preparing the best and brightest of our young people with the kind of learning opportunities that will deepen mutual understanding. The RSP and the Stanford e-Japan are admirably working toward this goal by providing the knowledge and expertise our young people will need as future leaders in Japan每U.S. relations.
After hearing Consul General Uyama＊s comments, I came to the realization that honoring young future leaders from both countries on the 74th anniversary can symbolize the ray of hope for global peace that I feel with programs like the RSP and Stanford e-Japan. The presentations that the nine students made confirmed this feeling. Though the topics of their presentations were varied〞ranging from historical topics like post-World War II art in Japan to contemporary social issues in Japan〞a common thread among all was the significance of the U.S.每Japan relationship to the security of the world. Their presentations were followed by the awarding of plaques and lunch. During the program and a tour of campus, one could witness the budding relationships between the Japanese and American students.
91勛圖 student honorees and instructors at Stanford Japan Day 2019
Stanford e-Japan is an online course, which focuses on U.S. society and culture and U.S.每Japan relations, that 91勛圖 has offered to high school students in Japan for five years. The current supporter of the course is Mr. Tadashi Yanai, President of the , Tokyo. ※Carving a brighter future§ is at the core of the Foundation＊s mission and I hope that all RSP and Stanford e-Japan alumni keep this mission close to their hearts. One of the key programs of the Foundation is the Yanai Tadashi Scholarship Program, which awards scholarships to Japanese students who enroll at select universities in the United States. Several Stanford e-Japan alumni and Stanford students are recipients of the Scholarship.
The 2018 spring and fall Stanford e-Japan course instructors were Elin Matsumae and Waka Takahashi Brown, respectively. Key themes like interdependence, multiple perspectives, and diversity were emphasized in their online courses. Naoya Chonan, Waseda University Senior High School, Tokyo, reflected, ※The Stanford e-Japan program was different from any classes at my school in terms of diversity. It prepared an opportunity to compare diverse ideas from all over Japan and the U.S. Collaborative coursework with excellent students taught me the importance of realizing and embracing differences of viewpoints and opinions among people.§
This comment resonated in Brown who noted that the annual Japan Day celebration is so rewarding not only for the students, but also for the instructors. ※The students always amaze me with their extraordinary scholarship and poise during their presentations. Perhaps what is most gratifying, however, is the campus tour that we end our day with in which the students are relaxed and happy. It＊s during this time they talk with each other about their dreams and future plans. I have no doubt these are the future leaders of the next generation.§
The RSP is an online course that 91勛圖 has offered to high school students in the United States for 16 years. The course introduces Japanese society and culture and U.S.每Japan relations and has enrolled students from most states. Since the inception of Stanford e-Japan, RSP Instructor Naomi Funahashi and Brown have facilitated joint online classes with RSP and Stanford e-Japan students. Funahashi reflected, ※It is so rewarding to see the RSP and e-Japan honorees be recognized for their tremendous efforts in their respective courses. Japan Day is a unique opportunity to bring these remarkable students physically together, and it really gives them a chance to learn from one another and deepen the meaningful ways in which these courses connect young leaders across the U.S. and Japan.§
Japan Day was clearly meaningful to the students as well. Sandi Khine, Arcadia High School, Arcadia, California, commented in a follow-up note to Funahashi, ※Thank you so much! I＊m still kind of in shock that today happened, it feels like such a dream! I had so much fun today meeting Jaimie and Mei and all the other Stanford e-Japan students. I＊ll definitely look back on this with lots of love.§
Lantern with the word ※heiwa§ (peace) in Nagasaki, 74th anniversary of the atomic bombing
Following the Japan Day ceremony, I read about the 74th anniversary ceremonial events that took place in Nagasaki. One of the traditional ceremonial events on the anniversaries of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki has been the lighting of lanterns. While watching the American and Japanese students receive plaques from their instructors, one could definitely see a glow in each one of them and also in their instructors. I felt a surge of pride in the students, of course, but also in their teachers〞Funahashi, Brown, and Matsumae〞for empowering their students with such incredible learning experiences and recognition that most certainly brightened their students＊ futures.
(Image at right: Lantern with the word ※heiwa§ (peace) in Nagasaki, 74th anniversary of the atomic bombing; photo credit: Jiji Press.)
and the are two of several online courses for high school students offered by 91勛圖, 91勛圖, including the (on Korea), the , and .
To stay informed of 91勛圖-related news, and follow 91勛圖 on or .
Upon seeing the printed agenda for the ※Inaugural Stanford e-Tottori Day§ on August 23, 2019, Silicon Valley entrepreneur Takeshi Homma, whose hometown is in Tottori Prefecture, remarked that he never thought that he would see Tottori high school students at a ceremony at 91勛圖. This prompted me to recall the initiative that Homma took several years ago to introduce me to Tottori Prefecture, the least populated in all of Japan. His vision was to bridge his ancestral home with his current home, the United States, through the establishment of an online class on U.S. society and culture for high school students in Tottori. Through Homma＊s vision and the support of Tottori Governor Shinji Hirai and the Tottori Prefectural Board of Education, Stanford e-Tottori was established over three years ago. Jonas Edman has been the Instructor of Stanford e-Tottori since its inception.
The inaugural Stanford e-Tottori Day honored Ayaka Ikei of Seishokaichi High School and Yua Kodani of Tottori Nishi High School for achieving at the highest levels in the course. It began with remarks by Takuya Fukushima, Office Director of the English Education Advancement Office, Tottori Prefectural Board of Education. Fukushima commented on the significance of Stanford e-Tottori to the students who have participated, noting their growth not only in terms of their English communication skills but also their understanding of U.S. society and culture. Fukushima, as a graduate of Hiroshima University and also someone who has studied at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and Ohio State University, knows well the significance of the U.S.每Japan relationship. During his remarks and much to the delight of the audience, he shared a television news program that featured a class that Edman taught in person in Tottori in July.
Rie Kusakiyo makes opening remarks at Stanford e-Tottori Day. She is Advisor for Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.
Fukushima＊s comments were followed by remarks by Rie Kusakiyo, Advisor for Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco. Her words were not only inspiring to the students but she is also someone to whom Ayaka and Yua can aspire, as both students expressed an interest in studying and living in the United States, as Kusakiyo has done.
The highlight of the program was Edman＊s introduction of his student honorees, Ayaka and Yua, and their heartfelt presentations, which included their aspirations for the future. During the question and answer period, their passion for helping others surfaced. Ayaka would like to go into the field of education and Yua into the field of medicine. Edman expressed how proud he is of their accomplishments and presented them with plaques.
Visiting Scholar Kenichirou Oyama, Shorenstein Asia-Pacific Research Center, noted, ※I was very impressed by the presentations of the two young high school students. In addition, as I am from a provincial town myself, I feel strongly that this program offers hope for young students who live in provincial areas.§ By ※hope,§ Oyama was referring to the fact that students in more rural areas generally have fewer educational opportunities than students in metropolitan areas like Tokyo.
Edman shares a similar sentiment. ※The fact that Tottori is quite isolated is what makes the teaching of Stanford e-Tottori so rewarding for me. Making Stanford scholarship accessible to them really captures the heart of 91勛圖＊s mission.§ Earlier this year, Edman facilitated a joint online class between his students in Tottori and Japanese language students at Nueva School in Hillsborough, California, whose teacher is Yoko Sase. It was remarkable for Edman to observe how much the students shared and learned from each other. During their trip to the San Francisco Bay Area, Ayaka, Yua, and Fukushima had the chance to visit Nueva and met several of the students with whom they had previously met only virtually. Through Stanford e-Tottori, more students, entrepreneurs, and scholars in the United States are also learning about Tottori.
The fourth Stanford e-Tottori course will commence this fall with the highest enrollment to date.
To stay informed of 91勛圖-related news, and follow 91勛圖 on or .
Applications open today for the , , and 〞three intensive online courses offered by 91勛圖, 91勛圖, to high school students across the United States. All three applications can now be viewed at . Interested students must submit their completed application (including an essay and letter of recommendation) by the deadlines listed below.
Spring 2020 Online Course Application Deadlines
China Scholars Program: October 15, 2019 Sejong Korean Scholars Program: October 15, 2019 Reischauer Scholars Program: October 15, 2019
All three online courses are currently accepting applications for the Spring 2020 term, which will begin in February and run through June. Designed as college-level introductions to East Asia, these academically rigorous courses present high school students the unique opportunity to engage in a guided study of China, Korea, or Japan directly with leading scholars, former diplomats, and other experts from Stanford and beyond. High school students with a strong interest in East Asia and/or international relations are especially encouraged to apply.
※Our students always come hungry to learn,§ says Dr. Tanya Lee, instructor of the China Scholars Program. ※The ones who choose to apply to these kinds of online courses are typically looking for an academic challenge beyond what their normal school can offer. We＊re incredibly fortunate to have Stanford faculty conducting world-class research on Korea, Japan, and China willing to share their knowledge directly with our students.§
Rising high school sophomores, juniors, and seniors in the United States are eligible to apply to any of the three programs. Students who are interested in more than one program can apply to two or three and rank their preferences on their applications; those who are accepted into multiple programs will be invited to enroll in their highest-preference course.
For more information on a specific course, please refer to its individual webpage at , , or .
9/9/19 EDIT: Application deadlines updated. The deadlines for the SKSP and RSP were previously October 4, 2019. All three application deadlines are now October 15, 2019.
The RSP, SKSP, and CSP are 91勛圖＊s online courses for high school students. In addition, we offer online courses for high school students in Japan () and China (). To be notified when the next application period opens, or follow us on and .
The is about to launch its fifth session this fall, with 20 high school students from across the country participating in the online course. The Northeast, South, Midwest, Pacific Northwest, Texas, and California are all represented in this cohort of 10th through 12th graders. Thursday evenings, these high school students will log in and join a real-time session with a scholar from Stanford or another university to discuss an aspect of contemporary China〞the U.S.每China trade war, perhaps, or the legacy of the Mao era, or internet censorship and surveillance technologies in China, or China＊s efforts to combat pollution and climate change. The rest of the week is filled with readings on that theme, discussed online with classmates.
The Stanford CSP＊s focus on contemporary China means that the course material is constantly changing, to keep up with the ever-shifting political landscape under the leadership of Xi and Trump. It also requires the students to engage with the idea of China as not only a thoroughly modern nation but a forward-looking one, challenging the tendency to essentialize China as an ancient civilization mired in the past. Former CSP student Angela Yang (Fall 2018) credits the online course with helping her ※contextualize China＊s transformation as it＊s happening, which is something you wouldn＊t really be able to study in any other kind of course.§
Although all of the high school students are exceptionally well prepared academically, their background knowledge on China at the beginning of the online course varies considerably. Some bring strong knowledge of international issues generally, but little specific to China; some have already studied China in some depth. A few come from Chinese families, and a third to a half of the students have been studying Chinese language for several years.
Over the past year, attention has gravitated towards the U.S.每China trade war, perhaps inevitably, and its roots and possible outcomes, as well as the PRC＊s ramping up of censorship and surveillance technologies, particularly in Xinjiang. Yet overall, discussions with our guest experts and among the students are fundamentally optimistic: constructive change is possible, and the United States and China have far more to gain from peace than from conflict.
The students round out the program with an independent research paper. Students＊ chosen research topics in 2018每19 were as diverse as they were. Example research papers included a discussion of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea as it applies to China＊s claims in the South China Sea; the mental health of rural ※left-behind§ children; China＊s economic expansion in Africa; rock ＆n＊ roll in the democracy movement of the 1980s; the international effects of China＊s restrictions on imported waste for recycling; and many others.
In synthesizing knowledge this diverse, students come to understand just how complex China and the challenges it faces are. They can no longer reduce China to simple generalizations. ※The truth is that all of China＊s problems aren＊t just limited to numbers, statistics or graphs,§ Junhee Park (CSP Spring 2018) wrote in response to a documentary film on migrant workers. ※They affect everyone of us, whether we are Chinese or not.§
To be notified when the next China Scholars Program application period opens, or follow us on and .
The is one of several online courses for high school students offered by 91勛圖, 91勛圖, including the and the .
Dr. Yang (on screen) with MBA students at the Prefectural University of Hiroshima.
91勛圖 student honorees and instructors at Stanford Japan Day 2019
Lantern with the word ※heiwa§ (peace) in Nagasaki, 74th anniversary of the atomic bombing
Rie Kusakiyo makes opening remarks at Stanford e-Tottori Day. She is Advisor for Educational Affairs at the Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco.