Wittenberg's tradition of excellence in student admission to the highly competitive Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) program continues as two more recent graduates prepare to head to the island nation. Kayla Johnson and Sierra Mazurowski, both class of 2018, will head to Japan this August.

“The JET Program is quite prestigious and known for its competitiveness,” said Terumi Imai-Brandle, associate professor of Japanese in the department of world languages and East Asian studies at Wittenberg. “Wittenberg has been very fortunate to send at least one student to Japan through this program every year for the past 15 years or more.”

Founded in 1987, the JET program, managed by the government of Japan, has sent more than 60,000 global participants, including nearly 32,000 Americans to work in schools, boards of education and government offices throughout Japan, according to its website. The program offers a unique cultural exchange opportunity to meet people from around the world who are living and working in Japan. In order to apply for the program, students must have obtained a bachelor's degree or be a senior in college set to graduate before beginning the program.

Johnson, from Springfield, Ohio, graduated with double majors in East Asian studies and religion with a minor in pre-modern and ancient world studies. She has been involved in the East Asian Studies Club intermittently as well as with the East Asian Studies Journal.

“The JET program is an extremely competitive program so being selected feels like a dream come true,” she said. “The application process is incredibly lengthy as I actually started it around October 2017 and didn't receive confirmation of acceptance until March 2018. In February, I had to travel to Detroit for my interview with the Japanese consulate. It was very nerve-wracking because the interview really only took about 30 minutes, but it was this momentous yes-or-no situation, which decided my future after graduation. I believe I was chosen because I engaged with the interviewers confidently and made my best attempts at being humorous. I guess it worked.”

Johnson will be acting as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) in a classroom.

“This basically means I get to help a Japanese-English teacher guide and educate the classroom,” she said. “I first heard about the program during a career forum in 2015. It’s sort of funny because the moment I heard it was competitive, I gave up hope on ever being accepted. But I decided that I was going to do it despite doubts, and I dedicated a lot of my college career to prepping for the job.

“Wittenberg is where I learned about the program and all my Japanese language and culture classes helped me engage with Japan in a really in-depth and unique way. I think Wittenberg played a very large part in my acceptance because of the opportunities I had here - whether it be studying abroad or community service work geared toward my major. All of that really helped to cultivate my understanding of East Asia, as well as achieve this opportunity.”  

Mazurowski, from Munroe Falls, Ohio, graduated with three majors including a self-designed Japanese major, the second in East Asian studies and the other in international studies. She also achieved a minor in Spanish.

“I was admittedly rather nervous during my interview because I went by myself to Chicago, which is a really popular location for the interview. I thought the competition would be tough. I was a little scared,” she said. “A friend was kind enough to put me up for the time that I was there, and he helped me practice for my interview, which calmed my nerves a bit. I remember going up to the desk to ask where the consulate was, and the man at the front desk immediately knew what I was there for, smiled and told me not to be nervous, and that I would do fine. I can't imagine how many nervous students he had seen over his time working there.”

Mazurowski was involved with the Gender and Sexual Diversity Alliance (GSDA), American International Association (AIA) and the East Asian Studies Club. Additionally, she was a member of the Diversity Action Committee and completed community service at Hayward Middle School teaching Japanese language and culture with two of her peers (one of them was Johnson) during her time at Wittenberg,

“I actually heard about [JET] back when I was in high school,” she said. “In the summer before I came to Wittenberg, I actually participated in a program called the JET MIP, an affiliate of the JET program, which was created after the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The disaster killed two JET participants, and the program was estabished in honor of them. We were meant to act as bridges between the U.S. and Japan, and interacted with a number of survivors of the disaster of all ages, went to schools to meet students, got to experience some traditional cultural arts in addition, and met current JET participants working in both positions the program offers.

“I was very unsure of what I specifically wanted to do when I was a senior in high school, only that I wanted to continue my study of Japanese, which is why I chose Wittenberg,” Mazurowski added. “This trip introduced me to the JET program and had a profound impact on the plan I made for college and for the time after. I had been set on applying for JET since that short trip and returning to Japan as soon as I could. JET is a very well-known program and looks good on resumes, but I think my motivation to apply came actually from how much the JETs we met on that trip loved their jobs and the experience. My plan though is essentially to immerse myself in Japanese culture and, although I'm planning on teaching English, it will give me opportunities to speak Japanese so I can improve my language abilities and work as a translator or interpreter in the future.” 

Mazurowski will be working as an ALT in a Japanese classroom in Minamisanriku, in the Miyagi Prefecture, a northeastern region of Japan. She will be working with a Japanese teacher to organize lessons and activities and with student organizations at the school.

“Through my community service and through my job as a tutor in the LLC, I have worked with students of different ages teaching language and cultural subjects, such as when I taught Japanese language and culture at Hayward Middle School,” Mazurowski said. “My experience living abroad in Japan also helped since it allowed me to engage with the country where I would be teaching to learn more about the culture and language, and to learn to adapt to new living environments -- something important to the job.

“I also have been able to form bonds with my professors, such as Dr. Imai, as well as Dr. Zuidema,” she added. “A lot of people helped and supported me throughout the process here at Wittenberg and along the way I have been given a lot of opportunities that helped me prepare for living and teaching abroad, and I honestly feel very lucky to have had so much support throughout this.”