Tanaka & Green Scholarship

Congratulations to the 2024-25 recipients of the Tanaka & Green Academic Scholarships!

🎓 Sydney Chen is a Japan Bowl alumni (2019 and 2020) going to the University of Minnesota, studying for a semester at Osaka Gakuin University.

🎓 Emma Cohen was a volunteer at the 2024 Sakura Matsuri, and is a Sakura Scholar at American University, studying for two years at Ritsumeikan University.

🎓 Sergianni Jennings is an academic with extensive Japanese-language and -culture extracurriculars, going to Bowdoin College in Maine, studying for a year at Doshisha University.

🎓 Jourden Jones is a DMV native going to Mt Holyoke College in Massachusetts, studying for a year at International Christian University.

🎓 Alanis Stapelfeldt is a Japan Bowl alumni (2021 and 2022) and DMV native, and has been a JASWDC member since 2021. She is going to William and Mary, studying for a semester at Osaka Gakuin University.

🎓 Ruby Thompson was an Info Tent Subcommittee member for the 2024 Sakura Matsuri, is a JASWDC member and a Sakura Scholar at American University, studying for two years at Ritsumeikan University.

This fall, our remarkable scholarship recipients began their study abroad programs in Japan, and we eagerly look forward to following their journeys. The competition was fierce, and while only a few could be selected, we are confident that all of our applicants will achieve great things and further strengthen ties between the US and Japan!

Applications for the 2025-2026 academic school year will open in May 2025.

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About

In 2014 JASWDC established the Tanaka and Green Academic Scholarships to support short-term academic study (one semester or one academic year) at colleges and universities in Japan. The scholarships are made possible thanks to the Society’s H. William and Lily Tanaka Scholarship Endowment and the Marshal and Lispenard Green Educational Endowment.

The Society will give up to $5,000 for one academic year and up to $4,000 for one academic semester for the 2024-2025 academic year. The scholarship may be used for any combination of tuition and other academic fees, room and board, travel and transportation (including travel within Japan), and other approved expenses.

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Featured Essays

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Applications for the 2025-2026 academic school year will open in May 2025.

Requirements for Applicants  

• Must be enrolled full-time in an undergraduate or graduate school in the United States. 
• Must provide proof of acceptance at a college or university in Japan as a full-time foreign exchange student for either one semester or one academic year. 
• Must provide proof that the program in Japan is an approved student exchange program of the applicant’s home college or university in the US. 
• Must intend to return to the college or university in the United States.
• May be majors in any subject, but must demonstrate that they have taken or plan to take academic courses related to Japan, whether in the US or at the college or university in Japan.
• Must be a citizen or permanent resident of the United States 

Application Procedure for 2024 – 2025

Applicants should submit the online application form  before the deadline of Wednesday, July 31st, 2024, at 11:59 PM EDT. All applicants will be requested to submit the following supplemental documents through the online application form:  

1. School transcripts from the past academic year.

2. (A) Proof of acceptance at a college or university in Japan and (B) certification that the proposed academic study is an official student exchange program of the college or university you attend in the US. This can be a letter or notice from either the home institution in the US or the Japanese college or university. 

3. One letter of recommendation from a professor or academic advisor.
   
4. A 1-page essay (Times New Roman, 12pt font, double-spaced, 1″ margins) telling us about your connection to Japan – past, present, and future. You may want to consider the following when writing your essay. 

• Why did you become interested in Japan?   

• How have you pursued your interest in Japan, both inside and outside the classroom?    

• Tell us about your study of Japan’s language, culture, history, and society. 

• What Japan-related courses have you taken in college/university, and how did they affect you?   

• What do you plan to study during your time in Japan, and how do you think that will benefit your plans for the future?   

• What kind of “Japan connection” do you hope to establish for yourself in the future, after you receive your degree?  

You do not need to submit these documents separately from your application. Failure to submit all required documents or to fully complete the application will render the applicant ineligible.  JASWDC will not follow up if an application is incomplete.  

Selection and Announcement  

The Scholarship Committee will review all applications in accordance with the requirements, priorities, and preferences listed above. JASWDC will inform scholarship awardees by August 30th, 2024.    

Payment will be made in two allotments. An initial payment of up to $3,000 (one semester) or up to $4,000 (one academic year) will be made before the academic study in Japan commences, and a second payment of $1,000 will be made after the study in Japan is over and the required report has been submitted to JASWDC. The required report (1-2 pages) should describe the student’s experience in Japan, both academic and non-academic, and how that experience has affected their thinking and knowledge about Japan and their plans for the future.  

Inquiries

Any questions about the JASWDC Tanaka and Green Scholarships Program should be submitted in writing to JASWDC at [email protected] for response by the Scholarship Committee. Please do not call.

Priorities and Preferences for Reviewing and Screening Applications  

In reviewing applications, the JASWDC Scholarship Committee will give priority and preference to applicants who can demonstrate a combination of any of the following factors:   

• Are legal residents of the District of Columbia, Maryland, or Virginia (i.e., you may be studying at a college or university anywhere in the US, but your home/parents’ home is in DC, MD, VA) 
• Are members or are children of members of the Japan-America Society of Washington DC 
• Have interned with the Japan-America Society of Washington DC 
• Have volunteered with the Japan-America Society of Washington DC 
• Have participated in the National Japan Bowl® 
• Have studied and/or are currently studying the Japanese language 
• Have studied and/or are currently taking academic courses on Japanese history, culture, society, politics, arts, literature, etc. 
• Have participated in extra-curricular activities related to Japan outside the academic classroom (for example, ikebana, tea ceremony, or Japanese cooking lessons; Japanese martial arts; Japan culture clubs, etc.)  

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The study abroad reports written by previous recipients of the Tanaka and Green Academic Scholarships can be viewed by clicking the “report” link next to their name below.

Recipients for 2023-2024

Adam Gruner – University of Maryland (Waseda University) (report)

Connor Iorio – Montana State University (Kwansei Gakuin) (report)

Joseph Lind – American University (Ritsumeikan University) (report)

Eliana Pisons – American University (Ritsumeikan University) (report)

Praharshitha Thumati – University of California, San Diego (Hitotsubashi University) (report)

Recipients for 2022-2023 

Mariana Salas – American University (Ritsumeikan University) (report)

Adriel Perez – Georgetown University (Keio University)

Kai Thompson – Drexel University (Sophia University) (report)

Rebekah Blume – University of Maryland (Waseda University) (report)

Benjamin Wolstein – Columbia University (Doshisha University) (report)

Charity McLaughlin – Temple University (Temple Japan) (report)

Kaitlyn Yuan – George Washington University (Akita International University) (report)

Recipients for 2021-2022 

Franchesca Johnson – The College of William and Mary (Keio University)

Lauryn Mcmeans – Randolph-Macon College (Kansai Gaidai University) (report)

Mina Mori – University of Virginia (Hitotsubashi University) (report)

Recipients for 2020-2021 

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, no scholarships were awarded.

Recipients for 2019-2020 

David Austin Aguilar – University of Texas-Austin (Kyoto University)

Rachel Flatt – Middlebury College (International Christian University) (report)

Peri Johnson – University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Nanzan University) (report)

De-Jia Long-Hillie – University of Maryland, Baltimore County (Nanzan University) (report)

Jacqueline Marquis – George Mason University (Aoyama Gakuin) (report)

Alice Perrine – University of Virginia (Waseda University)

Kelly Shea – The College of William & Mary (Keio University) (report)

Recipients for 2018-2019 

Dair Cruz – University of Maine (Waseda University) (report)

Heather Heimbach – Columbia University (Doshisha University) (report)

Tatem Hughes – University of North Texas at Denton (Kwansei Gakuin University) (report)

Rowena Kobrak – American University (Waseda University) (report)

Gabriel Lovejoy- Saint John’s University (Bunkyo Gakuin University) (report)

Recipients for 2017-2018 

Gabriela Trimble-Quiz – University of Texas at Austin (Sophia University)

Jenna Reed – California State University, Chico (Shinshu University) (report)

Hannah Jeong – George Mason University (Sophia University) (report)

Gabrielle Oliver – Howard University (Kansai Gaidai University) (report)

Maya Rao – University of Maryland (Waseda University) (report)

Hayley Snowden – The College of William & Mary (Keio University) (report)

Lendell Williams – George Washington University (Waseda University)

Recipients for 2016-2017

Crystal Brooks – Shepherd University (Akita International University) (report)

Emily Howard – The George Washington University (Waseda University) (report)

Elizabeth Thorne – American Univeristy (Waseda University) (report)

Amy Wei – Johns Hopkins University (University of Tokyo) (report)

Kevin Yuan – Georgetown University (Waseda University) (report)

Recipients for 2015-2016

Phoebe Bui – George Washington University (Waseda University) (report)

Amanda Buker – University of Maryland (Nanzan University) (report)

Emily Markley – University of West Florida (Kansai Gaidai University) (report)

Mia Saidel – American University (Waseda University) (report)

Frank Pallone – Kenyon College (Waseda University) (report)

Kima Sluchansky – University of Hawaii at Manoa (Chuo University) (report)