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Secretary Norman Y. Mineta is a person of many firsts. He was the first Asian-American mayor of a major city, San Jose, California; the first Japanese American from the mainland to be elected to Congress; and the first Asian American to serve in a presidential cabinet. Mineta served as President Bill Clinton’s Secretary of Commerce and President George W. Bush’s Secretary of Transportation. 91�Թ� is honored to be collaborating with Mineta and Bridge Media, Inc., on making Mineta’s legacy more broadly known at the secondary and collegiate levels through the (MLP). The MLP will include a documentary and educational curriculum that are being developed with Mineta’s full involvement.

The documentary, titled An American Story: Norman Mineta and His Legacy, “delves into Mineta’s life, public service career, and unabashed love for his country… this, in spite of the fact that in 1942 his country betrayed him,” note producers Dianne Fukami and Debra Nakatomi.

Presidents Clinton and Bush were recently interviewed for the documentary and educational curriculum. “[Mineta’s] family was in a Japanese internment camp in World War II, and it could have made him bitter, angry,” commented President Clinton, “but instead he used that…to deepen his own commitment; to make sure that people weren’t discriminated against or held back or held down. In that sense, he represents the very best of America.”

This quote will be one of many presented to students in the educational curriculum, which pivots around the essential question, “What does it mean to be an American?” When asked this question, President Bush referred not only to key values such as freedom of speech and freedom of religion, but also to a sense of decency in the public square and to the nation’s communities of compassion. “It means that we care about each other. One of the real strengths of America [are] what I would call the ‘armies of compassion’…people in their communities who set up programs to feed the hungry or find shelter for the homeless, without the government telling them what to do.” He also referred to the United States’ long history of immigration, and said that being an American means recognizing that “although, on the one hand, we ought to enforce our laws, [on the other hand] we ought to welcome immigrants in a legal fashion, because immigrants reinvigorate our soul.”

Beyond Mineta’s groundbreaking achievements, Mineta epitomizes the dreams and aspirations of youth. He is the son of immigrants and his family was forcibly removed from his home to spend years in an internment camp for Japanese Americans during World War II. And yet, he remains a patriot, has led with integrity to achieve a long and distinguished career as a public servant, and continues to champion the underserved and mentor students.

The educational curriculum is being developed by of 91�Թ� in consultation with Fukami and Nakatomi and is targeted to high school and college educators and students. The curriculum will be offered free on the MLP and 91�Թ� websites and is being developed in coordination with the documentary. The standards-aligned lesson plans will highlight six key themes connected to the life of Secretary Mineta—immigration, civil liberties & equity, civic engagement, justice & reconciliation, leadership & decision-making, and U.S.–Japan relations—and ask students to examine them in both historical and current-day contexts. Mineta himself has underscored the enduring relevance of these themes in U.S. society, for example drawing parallels between the Japanese-American experience following the Pearl Harbor attack in 1941 and the Arab-American and Muslim-American experience following 9/11. As our country debates contentious topics such as deportations, immigration bans and restrictions, surveillance, and registries, the lessons learned from Mineta’s life can help us.

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Sponsored by the United States–Japan Foundation, the Elgin Heinz Teacher Award recognizes exceptional teachers who further mutual understanding between Americans and Japanese. The award is presented annually to pre-college teachers in two categories, humanities and Japanese language. It is named in honor of Elgin Heinz for his commitment to educating students about Asia as well as for the inspiration he has provided to the field of pre-college education.

91�Թ�’s Reischauer Scholars Program Manager and Instructor Naomi Funahashi has won the 2017 for her teaching excellence with the (RSP), an online course named in honor of former Ambassador to Japan Edwin O. Reischauer that introduces Japan and U.S.–Japan relations to high school students in the United States. Funahashi formally accepted the award at 91�Թ� on November 20, 2017.

In his opening comments, David Janes, Director of Foundation Grants and Assistant to the President, , who hosted the ceremony, praised Funahashi, explaining why she is so deserving of the distinction: “Like Ambassador Reischauer, Naomi knows how global education at the high school level can transform kids for life, making them better leaders for the future.”

Comments from the Honorable Jun Yamada, Consul General of Japan, were shared by Maiko Tamagawa, Advisor for Educational Affairs, Consulate General of Japan in San Francisco. Consul General Yamada noted, “Ms. Funahashi is indeed an extraordinary educator. Her dedication and commitment to inspiring and empowering young Americans to become experts on Japan is an invaluable contribution to the promotion of mutual understanding between our two countries.” Consul General Yamada, who serves on the advisory committee of the RSP, also graciously hosted a dinner at his residence in honor of Funahashi in July 2017, shortly after the announcement of the award.

91�Թ� Director Gary Mukai, who nominated Funahashi for the award, commented that “Naomi is extremely dedicated to her students, and I hear regular praise from her students, including those who have matriculated to Stanford. Elgin would have rave reviews of her interdisciplinary approach to teaching… Because of Naomi, the original RSP goal of creating a new generation of leaders in the U.S.–Japan relationship has become a reality.”

David Janes (United States–Japan Foundation) presents the 2017 Elgin Heinz Teacher Award to Naomi Funahashi (91�Թ�)

Former RSP student and recent Stanford graduate Aryo Sorayya spoke next and thanked Funahashi for extending herself to students far beyond the RSP’s course requirements themselves. Sorayya spoke not only about Funahashi’s careful attention to students’ work but also her sincere interest in their college plans and careers.

Also in attendance were former Ambassador to Japan Michael Armacost; many Stanford scholars—including , , and —who contribute lectures, lead online “virtual classrooms,” and/or serve as principal investigators of the RSP; former recipients the Elgin Heinz Teacher Award Norman Masuda and Saya Okimoto McKenna; and members of Funahashi’s family, including her mother Jan Funahashi, husband Rich Lee, and three-year-old son Akira, hopefully a future RSP student in 2030.

Funahashi was born in Tokyo and grew up moving between the United States and Japan. Naomi has resided in the San Francisco Bay Area since 2000, joining 91�Թ� in 2005. She is a graduate of Brown University (BA), San Francisco State University (teaching credential), and the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign (M.Ed.). She has served as Manager and Instructor of the RSP since joining 91�Թ�.

Find more information on the Elgin Heinz Teacher Awards online

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91�Թ� Director has been named a recipient of the 2017 Autumn Conferment of Japanese Decorations. On November 3, the government of Japan announced that Dr. Mukai will be awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Rays for his contributions to the promotion of friendship and mutual understanding between Japan and the United States.

The Order of the Rising Sun is a decoration in the Japanese honors system that dates back to 1875. It was established as the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, and it recognizes individuals who have made significant contributions to Japan or its culture. It is one of the highest decorations conferred by the government.

“I am very humbled by this honor,” reflects Mukai. “I still find it hard to believe. But as someone who has always cared deeply about the U.S.–Japan relationship, this decoration truly means a lot to me. I’m just thankful I’ve had so many opportunities to be involved.”

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After receiving his Bachelor of Arts degree and teaching credential from UC Berkeley, Dr. Mukai moved to Japan to teach in 1977 and has since worked to promote cross-cultural education between the United States and Japan. Besides working as a teacher in both countries, he has served as a longtime interviewer for the and has been a selection committee member of the United States-Japan Foundation’s since its inception. At 91�Թ�, he has developed numerous curriculum guides on Japan for K–12 classrooms as well as overseen the creation of both the and —a pair of nation-wide online courses that teach American and Japanese high school students about each others’ countries.

A date for Mukai’s formal conferment ceremony has not been announced.

To read the Consulate’s announcement of the recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun, visit .

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All things Korean – economics, culture, politics – are the subject of an educational conference on campus this week.

The fifth annual  on Korea for U.S. Secondary School Teachers takes place July 25 to 27 in Paul Brest Hall. The meeting brings together American teachers and educators from Korea for discussions on how Korean history, economics, North Korea, foreign policy and culture are covered in American schools.

From lectures to curriculum workshops and classroom resources, the attendees will deep-dive into conversations, information and resources made available by the  (91�Թ�) and the , which hosts the event.

, director of Stanford’s , said that Korea is a country often overlooked or understudied in U.S. secondary schools.

“The Hana-Stanford Conference provides an excellent opportunity for U.S. secondary school teachers to learn about Korea and return to their classrooms better equipped with teaching materials and knowledge about Korea, as well as with the confidence and motivation to incorporate what they have learned from the conference into their curricula,” he said.

Shin said that exposing more American students to Korea “nurtures in students more balanced and complete perspectives on the world.” Korea, after all, he noted, is an important U.S. ally.

Discussions will cover an array of topics, including Korea’s major historical themes; World War II memories in northeast Asia; English education in Korea; Korea’s relationship with the U.S.; Korean literature; and the lives of Korean teenagers and young people. Scheduled speakers include Yong Suk Lee, the SK Center Fellow at Stanford’s  for International Studies, and , a former U.S. ambassador to South Korea.

Such conversations are important, as how one teaches history shapes contemporary society. , director of 91�Թ�, said that one of the curriculum units demonstrated at the conference each year is “.”

“The unit introduces the notion that school textbooks provide an opportunity for a society to record or endorse the ‘correct’ version of history and to build a shared memory of history among its populace,” Mukai said.

He noted that American and Korean teachers’ examination of textbook entries about the Korean War from U.S., Japanese, Korean, Taiwanese and Chinese textbooks challenged their assumptions and perspectives about the war.

Also, during the conference, the , a distance-learning program on Korea sponsored by 91�Թ�, will honor American high school students and give them the opportunity to present research essays.

Clifton Parker is a writer for the Stanford News Service. This article has been updated to reflect a different speaker and additional program sponsor.