Lawrence Today magazine, Summer 2002
Twenty students from Waseda University in Tokyo will begin a year's study at Lawrence this fall, marking the start of a new program that continues and expands Lawrence's longstanding relationship with Waseda.
Since 1970-71, Lawrence has participated in the Japan Study Program hosted by Waseda and recognized by both the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM) and the Great Lakes College Association (GLCA). A small number of Lawrence students have been able to study in Japan, and a similar number of Waseda students have come to Lawrence.
Former ambassador Takakazu Kuriyama, LL.D. '93, who attended Lawrence in the 1950s and returned as a Stephen Edward Scarff Memorial Visiting Professor in 2000, is a graduate of Waseda University and currently teaches there.
More than a year ago, the Japanese university expressed interest in creating programs that would send their students to American undergraduate colleges in much greater numbers. Several ACM and GLCA institutions submitted proposals to Waseda, and Lawrence's was one of three accepted in the initial round.
"For us," says Dean of the Faculty Brian Rosenberg, "this is an opportunity to further diversify and internationalize our student body. To have these students on campus at this time, when we are strengthening our offerings in East Asian Studies and introducing Japanese language instruction, is a splendid opportunity."
The Waseda students, Rosenberg adds, might serve as language assistants and resources for Lawrence students studying Japanese, even as our students can assist them as they improve their English.
The academic program for the Japanese students will include courses in English as a Second Language and Introduction to American Society and Culture, as well as a special version of Freshman Studies with ESL support. They will not be housed together but will be assigned rooms throughout the campus and will all have Lawrence students as roommates.
"The long-term benefits to Lawrence of a strong and ongoing relationship with the most prestigious private university in Japan could be immense," Rosenberg says.