CONWAY, Ark. (March 29, 2018)
— Twenty-three students, a professor, and a staff member from Hendrix College
recently returned March 25 from a Spring Break exchange trip to various
locations in Japan.
Arranged through the Tomodachi
Kakehashi Inouye Scholars Exchange Program, one of Japan’s “Friendship Ties”
programs promoted by Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the group’s travels
included stops at Prefectural Hiroshima University, Hiroshima Peace Park,
Hiroshima Memorial Museum, the Itsukushima Shrine at Miyajima, the Meiji Jingu
Shrine, and the TEPIA (Technology Excellence Promoting Innovative Advances)
museum. They also learned about Japanese culture and family life by staying
with families in Akiōta.
This exchange program also
included a February visit of Prefectural Hiroshima University (PHU) students to
central Arkansas. They stayed at Hendrix and spent time learning about central
Arkansas history and culture, and teaching Hendrix students about Japanese
culture. Hendrix students on the Spring Break trip were delighted to be reunited
with the PHU students who visited Hendrix in February. PHU and Yamuaguchi
University students joined the group for many activities.
Goals of the program include
promoting deeper mutual understanding between Japan and the U.S.; enabling
future leaders of the U.S.-Japan exchanges to form networks; and helping
students develop wider perspectives to encourage active roles at the global
level in the future.
Assistant Director of
International Programs Claudia Courtway and Associate Professor of Computer Science
Dr. Mark Goadrich accompanied the students, who represented a variety of majors.
All students who participated learned some conversational Japanese, and those
already taking classes in Japanese or who live in the Japanese Culture and
Language House at Hendrix had an opportunity to practice the language skills
they had previously learned.
Participating students were Alexander
Berner ’19, Mara Campbell ’18, Brandon Casey ’21, Scott Chrysler ’20, Maddie
Clendening ’20, Liam Edwards ’19, Peyton Hall ’21, Olivia Hardick ’20, Rebecca Levin
’19, Sarah Logan ’18, Aidan Mannette ’20, Adrienne McGooden ’19, Mary Nail ’20,
Tristan Norman ’20, Rebecca Parham ’21, Lena Pham ’18, Abigail Rains ’19, Sumaira
Sardar ’21, Kristi Scott ’18, John Tate ’19, John Tran ’19, Levi West ’21, and Hueseng
Xiong ’19.
About
Hendrix College
A private liberal arts
college in Conway, Arkansas, Hendrix College consistently earns recognition as
one of the country’s leading liberal arts institutions, and is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That
Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges. Its academic quality and
rigor, innovation, and value have established Hendrix as a fixture in numerous
college guides, lists, and rankings. Founded in 1876, Hendrix has been
affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. To learn more, visit www.hendrix.edu.