91�Թ�

Stanford e-Japan made my days in high school much richer. I attended the fall session of the course last year, and I am currently in the third and final year of high school.

For me, Stanford e-Japan was a “gate” to learn and understand the United States. I am truly glad that I had been able to listen to lectures offered by leading scholars in the United States. One of the most valuable parts of the course was that each topic contained views from the U.S. side. For example, in the class about World War II, we learned how the atomic bombing was taught in schools in the United States, and I was surprised to know that it illustrates more aspects of the bombing than Japan does.

Through learning about the U.S.–Japan relationship from the perspective of the United States, I gained many new thoughts about Japan as well. In particular, when I read about the role of the Japan–U.S. Security Alliance, I realized that many countries in Asia and their historical legacies continue to impact U.S.–Japan relations, making the alliance a very complicated topic. In addition, I learned the benefits and responsibilities of the alliance for the United States, in addition to those for Japan. During that module, I understood that it is crucial to see things from the side of both countries. 

Discussions with students from many different backgrounds was another great feature of Stanford e-Japan. I was often inspired by the views of my classmates that are based on their unique experiences. For instance, in a discussion about gender issues and equality, some students shared their own stories about finding inequality in their schools, and others brought research and data that countries around the world are introducing to solve the problem. In virtual classes, I was often stimulated by the questions posed by other brilliant students.

Through the classes, Stanford e-Japan gave me the “bridge” to connect the United States and Japan. Now, I think we will have to keep and strengthen the relationship. In the future, I would like to be a person who works globally. Stanford e-Japan underscored the importance of keeping a peaceful relationship, and the importance of understanding each other.

Finally, I would like to thank Stanford e-Japan Instructor Meiko Kotani, the lecturers, and the Yanai Tadashi Foundation who supported this amazing program.

On September 2, 2020, over 160 educators from across the United States joined a webinar titled “Angel Island Immigration Station: The Hidden History.” The Angel Island Immigration Station was located in San Francisco Bay and was operational from 1910 to 1940. It was established in order to control and enforce the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act and other immigration-related laws that followed, e.g., the Immigration Act of 1924, which included the Asian Exclusion Act and the National Origins Act.

The featured speaker was Connie Young Yu, a writer, activist, and historian. Yu has written and spoken extensively about the contrasts between Ellis Island Immigration Station in New York Harbor—in which immigrants primarily from Europe were welcomed by an image of the Statue of Liberty—and Angel Island Immigration Station in San Francisco Bay where immigrants entering the United States primarily from Asia were detained and interrogated. The largest detained group of immigrants was from China. Reflecting on the webinar, Yu commented:

I was glad to share my “hidden history” during the 91�Թ� webinar, including the saving of the immigration barracks in the 1970s and my grandmother’s lengthy detention on Angel Island. The immigration station barracks—now a national monument—were nearly destroyed had it not been for Ranger Alexander Weiss and the activism of a citizens’ committee. The writing on the barracks’ walls by Chinese detainees still speaks to us today of peoples’ struggle against immigration exclusion and institutionalized racism.

The webinar can be viewed below.

Yu’s talk was followed by 91�Թ�’s Jonas Edman who worked with graphic artist Rich Lee to publish Angel Island: The Chinese-American Experience. Edman shared scenes and activities from this graphic novel that tell the story of Chinese immigrants who were detained at Angel Island Immigration Station. The graphic novel has been widely used nationally to educate students about immigration to the United States from China. Yu remarked, “I was thrilled to hear from Jonas Edman about the brilliant graphic novel, Angel Island: The Chinese American Experience. At last, as part of the curriculum, students can learn in living color about how the detainees struggled and endured, the human side of Chinese immigration exclusion.”

Given the prevalence of immigration-related news over the past several years, several teachers in attendance noted the importance for school curricula to include topics related to immigration history in the United States. Following the webinar, Angel Island Immigration Station Foundation’s Executive Director Edward Tepporn reflected:

Growing up in Texas, I didn’t learn about Angel Island and its significant role in our nation’s complex history until after I moved to the Bay Area… Especially as racism and xenophobia are on the rise in the U.S., it’s important to uplift the full history of how our nation has treated its diverse immigrant communities, including the injustices they have endured as well as their important contributions.

Edman suggests that teachers consider asking students essential questions like: How and why did U.S. immigration policy favor certain groups and not others? What impact did laws such as the U.S. federal law, Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882, have on Chinese immigration to the United States? In what ways did Chinese immigrants advocate for themselves and actively respond to discrimination and exclusion? How is U.S. immigration policy similar and different today? Also, Edman highly recommends teachers to visit the , which includes excellent teaching resources, including primary sources.

The webinar was made possible through the support of the Freeman Foundation’s initiative. The webinar was a joint collaboration between 91�Թ� and Stanford’s . Special thanks to Dr. Dafna Zur, CEAS Director, and John Groschwitz, CEAS Associate Director, for their support; and to 91�Թ�’s Naomi Funahashi for facilitating the webinar and Sabrina Ishimatsu for planning the webinar.

“What is social innovation?” was the central question that Professor Emeritus Seiichiro Yonekura, Hitotsubashi University Institute of Innovation Research, posed to 25 high school students who were enrolled in the inaugural offering of Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan in spring 2020. Yonekura was the first guest lecturer of the online course that is jointly sponsored by 91�Թ� and the Japanese NPO , and his lecture set the context for a four-month course that also featured sessions by e-Entrepreneurship’s Yusuke Matsuda, Stanford scholars, and Silicon Valley- and Japan-based entrepreneurs. The goal of Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan is to foster creative thinking and problem-solving skills in students with a focus on innovation to address social issues.

For Yasuko Kinoshita, a student from Akita Prefecture, she immediately took this question to heart and began to think critically about how to help Akita’s economy, which has been largely dominated by traditional industries like agriculture, fishing, forestry, and sake brewing. Like many prefectures in Japan, Akita grapples with population decline due to an aging population and young people moving to urban centers like Tokyo for college and employment. Kinoshita’s final paper focused on ways to encourage youth to stay in Akita or to return to Akita after going away to college, and proposed ways that Akita could promote its strengths—such as its abundance of onsen (hot springs)—to establish workplaces that promote physical and psychological health for customers. Onsen waters are thought by many to be “healing.”

Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan honoree Yasuko Kinoshita with Principal Takahiro Watanabe, Akita Senior High School; photo courtesy Yasuko Kinoshita

Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan allowed me to have an experience to come up with realistic but ideal solutions to address real-world problems as a team. Before attending the program, I simply had the idea of wanting to combine my science background and my dream of solving social problems. However, one of the classes, which was the class on demographic change offered by , helped me to focus my interest, and enabled me to take action to address issues concerning the elderly by founding a company to manage Yunokoshi Onsen.

In her onsen management role, Kinoshita creates and updates websites, raises money through crowdfunding, and plans for new projects such as attracting people of all ages to the onsen, which has typically attracted more elderly. She is planning to allow local people to staff restaurants at Yunokoshi Onsen in order to provide them with an experience of learning the inner workings of restaurants.

Kinoshita will be invited to 91�Թ� in 2021 for a ceremony during which she will be afforded the opportunity to present her research to an audience of members of the Stanford and Japanese communities in the San Francisco Bay Area, including the Consulate General of Japan.

Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan is a partnership between 91�Թ� and NPO e-Entrepreneurship, which is led by Yusuke Matsuda, MBA, and Mana Miura. Stanford e-Entrepreneurship Japan enrolls exceptional high school students from throughout Japan. Top Japanese and American scholars and entrepreneurs provide web-based lectures and engage students in live discussion sessions or “virtual classes” on topics like health care and public health, food and agriculture, environment and energy, and technology and innovation. The course is offered in English and includes reading assignments, online lectures, and discussion board posts. The course culminates in an independent research project. Students who successfully complete the course receive a Certificate of Completion from 91�Թ�, 91�Թ�.

The spring 2020 course was taught by and generously supported by . Teacher Advisor Roy Lee, a teacher at Seiko Jr. and Sr. High School, Yokohama, Japan, contributed his time to the spring 2020 course as well as several high school and college students.

The fall 2020 course will be taught by Irene Bryant and is generously supported by Andrew and Mako Ogawa, Noriko Honda Chen, and the Capital Group. 

Applications opened last week for the , Sejong Korea Scholars Program (SKSP), and —three intensive online courses offered by 91�Թ�, 91�Թ�, 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 2021 Online Course Application Deadlines

China Scholars Program: October 16, 2020
Sejong Korea Scholars Program: October 16, 2020
Reischauer Scholars Program: October 16, 2020

All three online courses are currently accepting applications for the Spring 2021 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.

“U.S. relations with East Asia is prominently featured in the news daily,” says Naomi Funahashi, instructor of the Reischauer Scholars Program. “91�Թ� is incredibly fortunate to have Stanford faculty conducting cutting-edge research on Korea, Japan, and China who are willing to help our students interpret key historical events and understand contemporary topics related to security, trade, and politics.”

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 .

The RSP, SKSP, and CSP are 91�Թ�’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 , , or .

Amidst the hectic year known as 2020, I started and finished 91�Թ�’s Sejong Korea Scholars Program (SKSP), an online program offered through Stanford for high school students interested in Korea. The program was challenging but also rewarding; I honestly loved every moment of it.

My interest in Korea began when I was in elementary school. Growing up in Queens, New York, a New York City borough with a diverse population, Korean culture was introduced to me in the form of food. Although some may think all Asian food is the same, as a Chinese American, I know how vastly different Korean food can be from Chinese food. My Korean American classmates would bring in Korean foods for lunch—kimchi, gimbap, galbi—and because I had never seen it before, I’d always want to know how it tasted. Luckily for me, Queens had a sizable ethnic Korean population and with that came great Korean restaurants. I was a frequent visitor to these tasty restaurants. Through this, I became interested in learning more about Korea, but outside of food, a few videos I had watched, and some information from my classmates, I didn’t know much, if anything at all, about Korea.

Heading into the SKSP, I was worried I didn’t know as much as my classmates. When I started the SKSP, all of my worries subsided. You didn’t need a strong background on Korea or in Korean. I was told that the most important thing to have is a genuine interest or curiosity about the topic, which was something I did have. I also have to say that my classmates were some of the most motivated students I’ve ever met.

And during our biweekly meetings, we would attend lectures with experts on Korea and professionals who worked with Korea. Something interesting I learned from a lecture was that the “BBC Dad” Professor Robert Kelly is a political analyst on Korean affairs, which I don’t find to be a coincidence; instead, learning the fact that Professor Kelly is an expert on Korea shows how widespread and important the study of Korea today is.

We explored a bit of pre-nineteenth century Korean history and then explored more on religions in Korea, colonial Korea, the division of Korea and the Korean War, post-war Korea, the divergence of North and South Korea, and trends in South Korean culture including bits about chaebols and the Hallyu wave. I found a particular interest in the Korean diaspora in Japan, which I learned about when learning about Korea in its colonial period. And because the SKSP has a research component, I wrote my paper on that and enjoyed my time so much because it was a topic I genuinely wanted to learn more about. After completing my paper, I was led to Min Jin Lee’s novel Pachinko, a historical fiction about a Korean family in Japan, and found myself so invested because I had some background knowledge.

Starting the course before the pandemic and completing it during the pandemic was interesting, to say the least. When the coronavirus situation took a turn for the worse, my high school courses scrambled to finish the year, but the SKSP went on normally, and I was able to invest more time into learning about Korea. I have to give props to the course instructor, Dr. HyoJung Jang, and the program coordinator Jonas Edman for keeping the course running smoothly through a worldwide crisis and helping us students with any questions and issues we had.

I participated in the SKSP as a senior in high school, and having taken it right before college has been incredible. This course has helped develop my self-driven learning skills, which I believe will be unimaginably beneficial for me as I head off to begin my first year of college. The SKSP is a college-level course that teaches in the same way college courses are taught, and right now, I find that my experience with the SKSP has prepared me for my college classes that I have only recently started.

The SKSP has furthered my interest in international relations, which I hope to major in at the University of Pennsylvania where I am a freshman this fall. I am definitely looking forward to furthering my knowledge of Korea and hope I am able to visit one day after traveling is safe once again. For me, as someone who came into the SKSP with a curiosity and left with even more, I can’t wait to continue on my path of learning. For those interested in the SKSP, I say go for it. It has changed not only how much I know about the world, but also how I perceive it. I hope 91�Թ� continues to offer this terrific opportunity and students take this opportunity, so they can make a difference in the world.

As schools across the U.S. began to close due to COVID-19 in mid-March, I was in the unique position of transitioning into online classes while already having had some experience taking fully online classes. The year before, I had completed 91�Թ�’s Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP), an intensive online course focusing on Japanese culture, history, and U.S.–Japan relations; participating in the Sejong Korea Scholars Program (SKSP), an equivalent program, I thought, would be a similar experience.

Yet, being part of the SKSP in the midst of a pandemic framed the way I participated in and learned from the class. As the course went on, we began each Virtual Classroom with a brief discussion on COVID-19, talking amongst ourselves how we were personally doing, and how Korea was handling it as compared to the U.S. We were encouraged to read local news in Korea to learn about COVID-19, and we brought our learnings to each discussion with renewed vigor. There’s a strange and harrowing feeling you get when analyzing the course of a virus in your home country and across the Pacific—an implicit understanding that this isn’t just a research text to pore over, but an unprecedented moment in history we’re living through. 

But back to the beginning. After participating in the RSP, I realized how essential it is to analyze stories from all facets.

RSP first introduced me to the concept that “history is told from the winner’s perspective,” and SKSP gave me the opportunity to delve deeply into that. I became intrigued with how history is taught and wanted to understand the “other” sides of stories I learned about in my textbooks. Weeks later, when we learned about the Japanese exploitation of Korean comfort women during World War II, I knew that learning about these issues from one side would simply not be enough to fully comprehend parts of history such as these. The way I learn history directly impacts how I view society and the relationships between groups of people.

Hence, each of the modules helped me craft a multifaceted perspective of Korea and U.S.–Korea relations. The lessons and lectures allowed me to understand and re-interpret modern and historical issues in a global context. From Shamanism’s evolving role in Korean society, to Japanese colonial rule in Korea, to the social impacts of the Miracle on the Han River, to class and socioeconomic strata in Korean education systems, I dove into a plethora of topics through readings, lectures, and class discussions. As a high school student, I never believed I would have the honor of learning from distinguished scholars and experts, but SKSP introduced me to a variety of academics with clear passions for Korean history and culture. My learning extended beyond lectures: in discussion boards, I learned from my classmates, who shared their diverse perspectives and experiences and fostered an inclusive and challenging learning environment. We were given the chance to analyze material on our own through readings and assignments, but it was in these virtual interactions with my peers that I discovered the most. The open and constructive group that Dr. Jang and Mr. Edman facilitated was one where we could respectfully engage with one another on any topic while acknowledging at the end of the day the friendships and bonds we’d made. Thus, I paired my self-led education from 91�Թ� with that of my public schooling and constructed a greater comprehensive understanding of the world.  

However, it was the Korean War and North Korea units that I believe played the greatest role in not only my intellectual development, but also my personal and political growth. These two units coalesced in my final research paper project, in which I wrote about the critical role of student activism in South Korean democratization. During my research and readings, I analyzed how the March First Movement set the stage for South Korean protest culture and democratization. I recognized that of the two factions of activists post March First, I might have been in the more radical faction, the one that ended up becoming North Korea. This realization, combined with the readings and lectures from the North Korea unit, completely changed my view of geopolitics in Korea. I learned about the U.S.’s role in the Korean War, and subsequently the Western portrayal of North Korea as a rogue, renegade state. I wondered, how much are we to speak about propaganda when students like me are taught lessons that shield Western imperialism with saviorism and American exceptionalism?

SKSP is not simply a fleeting online course with a broad overview of Korea, but an unparalleled opportunity to uncover Korea on an academic level few other high school students have. I hadn’t expected to undergo a personal and political reckoning within myself, but it is because of this growth that I am beyond grateful for SKSP, Dr. Jang and Mr. Edman’s instruction and advising, and all of my peers’ questions and discussions. Since then, I haven’t ceased to continue kindling my interest in Korean history and politics, questioning previously held beliefs, and broadening my worldview. And it is especially during a time like this—a global movement of Black Lives Matter, a local movement to change my high school’s Indigenous emblem, and everything in between, all within the context of a pandemic—that it is so crucial for me to critically analyze what I’ve been taught, and to keep learning as much as I can. In SKSP, I’ve developed the skills necessary to do so. It’s the “other sides” of stories, namely non-Western and non-white, that I am committed to studying, since understanding the nuances of the past can help guide us into a more equitable future.

Next fall, I begin at Stanford, hopefully on campus—it feels like coming full circle, having the privilege to attend college in an institution that first allowed me to foster a genuine love for learning. Now, while many of my friends begin their college careers, I have chosen to take a gap year with the U.S. Department of State’s National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y), a rigorous and competitive academic scholarship to study a critical language abroad. As of August, the in-country program has been pushed back to 2021 due to COVID-19, but I hope to find myself in Seoul in a few months. With everything ahead of me, I know SKSP is only the beginning, as I hope to continue bridging my education to the world.

Starting something new from scratch is always challenging. Though it requires huge amounts of effort and contains the possibility of not working out, I believe that it is absolutely worth exploring a new challenge because it has the power of creating chances of making people happier. This is the most important thing I learned from the people who took the initiative to establish the wonderful program, Stanford e-Japan.

Though it was the inaugural year of the program when I joined in 2015, I was truly impressed not only with the high quality of the academic content, but also with the rich opportunities of communication with prestigious leaders from various fields. Moreover, the program generously offered the top three students the chance to visit 91�Թ� for a ceremony.

It was exhilarating to be in the program due to the endless surprises and new learnings that I encountered throughout the course. 

Since then, I have resolved to initiate new challenges myself in order to contribute to younger students just as Stanford e-Japan Instructor Waka Brown did for me. After I returned to Keio University from a one-year university exchange program at the University of California, San Diego, I established a student-led organization with several members at Keio from diverse backgrounds. Our student-led organization aims to cultivate young global citizens of Japan by allowing students attending Japanese high schools to have meaningful interactions with international students from Japanese universities like Keio.

In addition to encouraging the high school students to explore new challenges, I also wanted to share how interesting it is to learn about different cultures, including the histories of foreign countries and the benefits of interacting with people who have different backgrounds. We focus on designing an environment so that high school students can actively discuss and exchange ideas with international students in person while also building their English presentation skills. Through our program, we believe every high school student has the opportunity to learn something new like communication skills with individuals of different backgrounds, the ability to reach a mutual understanding with people of differing opinions, and leadership skills to lead discussions in a diverse community.

During our programs at several high schools, I have been able to hear many voices from the high school students, international students, and even high school teachers that suggest that they have fortunately had meaningful and fruitful experiences during our programs. Despite some initial struggles, I now strongly believe that even small programs like ours can make a difference in our society. I will never forget the precious lessons learned from Stanford e-Japan, and perhaps the most important lesson is for me to continue to explore new challenges and to encourage young students to do so as well.

In collaboration with , Stanford Medicine, and the University of California, San Francisco, 91�Թ� is helping to develop the , which seeks to provide free online videos to educate the general public about the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. 91�Թ�’s work is focused on the development of teacher guides for the Series. Leading the Series is , CEO & Founder, TeachAids. The first three speakers and their topics are Dr. Anurag Mairal, Director of Global Outreach, Stanford Biodesign, “COVID-19 and Global Health: Facts and Myths”; Shuman Ghosemajumder, Global Head of AI at F5, “Cybersecurity and Privacy in the Era of COVID-19”; and Anne Firth Murray, Founding President, Global Fund for Women, “Violence Against Women.”

Read a recent article from The Stanford Daily about this .

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The following reflection is a guest post written by Jun Yamasaki, a Spring 2017 alum and honoree of the \Stanford e-Japan Program, which is currently accepting applications for Fall 2020. He is now a student at Northwestern University.

My journey with Stanford e-Japan began with my enrollment in the fall session of the course when I was in the second year of high school in 2017. “Journey” may not be a word that is usually associated with the taking of a class, yet, my usage of it here is deliberate. Three years have passed since I was a student in Ms. Waka Brown’s class, and I have since graduated high school to pursue a college education in the United States at Northwestern University. As I reflect on my experience with Stanford e-Japan, the word “journey” seems ever more appropriate, for the program has been and will continue to be interlinked with my personal development as I look towards my future path.

The initial motivation behind my enrollment in Stanford e-Japan was rooted in my background as a kikokusei or kikokushijo, Japanese words that are used to describe students who have returned to Japan from a long period abroad. When I was five years old, I was suddenly told by my parents that we would be moving to the United States. To say that I was shocked or surprised would be an understatement; after all, my “world” at the time had consisted of a set of small bubbles, all on the scale of a few kilometers: my immediate neighborhood and the cities where my grandparents resided. A bullet train station linked those two discrete bubbles together during summer and winter breaks. Understandably, as a kindergartener, my knowledge and command of the English language was not even close to rudimentary.

A few months saw my repertoire slowly increase, and with it, my comfort in my new environment. The openness, friendliness, and hospitality of the people I met during my time in the States helped me feel that I belonged there, that I was not just some outsider from another country, and that I could consider where I lived in Florida, and later California, as my new homes. These experiences were perhaps my first encounter or involvement with U.S.–Japan relations.

My return to Japan in 6th grade unexpectedly proved to be more difficult for me than going to the United States. My entire experience with my attempts at reacclimation is another story altogether, but essentially, I experienced what many kikokushijo term as “reverse culture shock” due to the significant differences in culture and behavioral expectations in the United States and Japan. This led to a period that involved many questions about my own identity, as a result of those experiences, as well as the inevitable question that many kikokushijo are asked when they bring up their upbringing outside of Japan: “So do you consider yourself Japanese or American?” I have yet to come up with a satisfying answer. Sometimes, for the sake of conversation, I briefly consider just giving a simple answer. However, I almost never do so, because a simple answer does not do justice to the significance and weight of the topic for kikokushijo like me; not to mention that an answer aside from “It depends” would grossly fail to take into account the complexity of the concept of culture itself, and the many philosophical considerations that have to be made in such a discussion.

It was these experiences, or more specifically, the questions that arose from these experiences, that led me to enroll in Stanford e-Japan.

While I was enrolled in the course, each module of Stanford e-Japan helped me construct a multi-dimensional understanding of U.S.–Japan relations. This was not only helpful in satisfying my own curiosity, but especially today, I appreciate how solid of a foundation this course has given me to understand, interpret, and construct informed opinions about current events. Modules such as “U.S. High Schools and Education,” “Diversity Issues in the United States,” “Civil and Human Rights: The Martin Luther King, Jr. Legacy,” and “The Japanese American Internment,” have offered me perspectives about the background and significance of some of the crucial racial injustice issues in the United States today that I would not have been able to have access to had I not taken the course. In addition, as countries around the world struggle against the global health emergency that is COVID-19, modules such as “Healthcare in the United States” have become ever more relevant.

Stanford e-Japan’s efforts to help increase the number of Japanese students studying abroad have also impacted me both directly and indirectly. The “Studying Abroad” module and the subsequent discussions with my fellow classmates about our future plans with regard to college and how we will continue to strengthen the U.S.–Japan relationship were very informative and productive. This was especially helpful because around this time, I was not sure if I wanted to stay in Japan as most of my classmates at school were planning to do, or go to the United States. Although I had some idea at that point about the quality of U.S. college education, spending six years back home in Japan had made me slightly hesitant at the prospect of living for four (or more) years away from my group of friends and family.

Participating in Stanford e-Japan gave me a glimpse into what I could experience at a college in the United States, and the turning point in my decision came in August of 2018, when I attended the joint Stanford e-Japan and Reischauer Scholars Program (RSP) awards ceremony on the Stanford campus. I was simply awestruck by the quality and depth of the analyses that the Reischauer Scholars had conducted for their presentations. I distinctly recall Ms. Brown and Ms. Funahashi (RSP Instructor) remarking that the level of research that they had conducted was near the level of a university or graduate school paper.

After the awards ceremony, the e-Japan and RSP students had a chance to tour the Stanford campus. At one point, we talked about our experiences with the U.S.–Japan relationship and our future plans. I distinctly recall that this was one of the major turning points in my decision to apply to colleges in the United States; in that moment, sitting there and conversing with the other award winners that sunny California afternoon, I had a powerful realization that this was the college life that I wanted to experience over the next four years.

Even after my graduation, Ms. Brown and the other instructors have been kind enough to invite me to return to the Stanford e-Japan virtual classrooms to talk to the current students about topics such as studying abroad and education in the United States. I always tell them that it was important to me that whatever field I went into, I wanted to be involved in some shape or form with the U.S.–Japan relationship. Taking Stanford e-Japan and examining the U.S.–Japan relationship from so many different perspectives and dimensions helped me “connect the dots,” and realize that my seemingly disparate interests were not necessarily mutually exclusive.

This leads me to the current stage of my journey. As a stepping stone towards the future goal that I was able to identify through my participation in Stanford e-Japan, I am currently studying mechanical engineering and applied mathematics, with plans to obtain further education and research experience in the form of a PhD in aerospace engineering after my undergraduate studies. Although I have enjoyed all of the classes I have taken so far, one class called “Design Thinking and Communication” stands out to me in particular. In this class, students are split into groups of four students, and are tasked with devising a solution for real, outside clients. In my case, my group was paired with a project partner from the Shirley Ryan Ability Lab, a rehabilitation research hospital in downtown Chicago. As we went through the design process to create a solution for our client’s patients, we had to research and approach the problem from multiple different perspectives, such as societal impacts and financial concerns; not just the more tangible, technical-oriented considerations. Although they may be slightly different in subject matter, I am currently enjoying studying engineering for the same fundamental reasons that I enjoyed Stanford e-Japan.

Stanford e-Japan is truly unique in that it is a course that has been, and will continue to be relevant for its students even years after the conclusion of their enrollment. I am always happy to hear that Ms. Brown, Dr. Mukai (91�Թ� Director), and 91�Թ� have been continuing their efforts to bring such a great program to increasing numbers of students. As someone who is fortunate enough to attend college in the United States thanks to the generosity of the , I am pleased to hear that Mr. Yanai is also supporting Stanford e-Japan. It is my hope that 91�Թ� will continue to offer such courses to students who are as motivated and driven as those I studied with when I was a student in Stanford e-Japan.

During multiple periods of economic crisis, the U.S. economy has depended on Mexican labor. The Bracero Program began during World War II during a massive labor shortage largely due to the military draft and the internment of Japanese Americans, a high percentage of whom worked in agriculture. Over 4.5 million contracts were awarded to over 2 million young male Mexican immigrants from 1942 to 1964 to work primarily in agriculture. The work of braceros, or “individuals who work with their arms,” to harvest fruits and vegetables across the United States was deemed essential. It was the largest guest worker program agreement in U.S. history. President Franklin Roosevelt noted, “Mexican farmworkers, brought to the United States in accordance with an agreement between our two governments,… are contributing their skill and their toil to production of vitally needed food.” Moreover, during the current COVID-19 pandemic, agricultural workers have been categorized as “essential workers” by the federal government. Yet, many of these workers lack legal status to work in the United States.

On June 2, 2020, Dr. Ignacio Ornelas Rodriguez, Archivist, 91�Թ� Special Collections and University Archives, spoke about the history of the Bracero Program and shared reflections on the current status of agricultural workers in a webinar to over 40 people, including many educators. He began by noting that because of writers like John Steinbeck, Americans have come to learn about the agricultural regions of the larger Monterey Bay Area, where Ornelas has focused his research. “Yet,” he stated, “little is known about the majority of the laborers who worked in these regions.”

Ornelas set the historical context for his talk by providing a broad sweep of the history of farm workers in California. He touched upon the work of indigenous people in the 18th century to grow the vast agricultural economy that surrounded the missions; Chinese immigrants who had previously worked on the Transcontinental Railroad from 1863; Mexican, Japanese, and Filipino agricultural workers in the late 19th and early 20th centuries; African Americans who were initially recruited to develop cotton growing techniques in the Central Valley during the late 19th century; and White migrants arriving from Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, and other states during the Great Depression.

Following this overview of California’s agricultural landscape, which Ornelas described as an “ethnic mosaic of the world,” he began his comments on the Bracero Program. He noted, “My interest… was ignited by my grandfather’s personal bracero journey. Who were these men? What were their contributions and why is so little known about how they view their work?" During his extensive research and conducting of oral histories with former braceros, he noted that he began to uncover previously underdiscussed perspectives that were often at odds with the most popular narratives regarding braceros. Ornelas noted that most of the braceros remembered their work “with dignity as opposed to viewing themselves as victims… Their stories were about hope and the opportunity to improve their lives and to make a lasting contribution to their family through difficult working conditions.” Ornelas’s grandfather, José Guadalupe Rodriguez Fonseca, for example, shared stories of betterment and progress and spoke about working with honor in the fields of Salinas Valley. Ornelas continued, “Yes, the work was very difficult but my family members learned to navigate the arduous labor and took great pride in their skill, work, and production of vegetables.” Some former braceros shared stories of using the experience in the program as a “launching pad” to greater opportunities in the agricultural industry.

The Bracero Program ended in 1964 but today the H-2A program is recruiting thousands of Mexican farmworkers. Section 218 of the Immigration and Nationality Act authorizes the lawful admission into the United States of temporary, nonimmigrant workers (H-2A workers) to perform agricultural labor or services of a temporary or seasonal nature. Ornelas posed the question, “So how far have we ultimately come since the labor crisis in 1942?” During the current pandemic, farm workers are deemed essential while many don’t have permanent legal status.

Ornelas, who concurrently teaches history at Willow Glen High School while working at Stanford, has the objective of helping young students critically consider issues surrounding H-2A guest worker status in the context of lessons learned from the Bracero Program. Ultimately, he has the goal of providing instruction that is more culturally inclusive. To help realize this goal, he recommends the following resources for use in schools: the 12-minute film , the , and the primary sources of the at Stanford.

During the Q&A, a teacher in Colorado mentioned that she is teaching about agricultural workers through a virtual agricultural field and interviews. Ornelas reacted with enthusiasm, saying “I am fascinated by your work.” In a post-webinar conversation, Ornelas stated that it was immensely gratifying for him to hear about the work already being done by teachers to heighten students’ awareness of the contribution of agricultural workers past and present. I also learned that Ornelas’s grandfather José Guadalupe Rodriguez Fonseca had died unexpectedly just a few days prior to the webinar. My hope is that the of this webinar will help to keep his memory alive and to help preserve the legacy of braceros.

91�Թ� is grateful to the at 91�Թ� for co-sponsoring this webinar. Special appreciation is extended to Sabrina Ishimatsu, Event Coordinator, 91�Թ�, for planning this webinar, and to Jonas Edman, Instructional Designer, 91�Թ�, for moderating.

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