On April 16, JICUF opened its Japan Office on the ICU Campus. The office is located in the northeast corner of the first floor of the Education and Research Building (room 123). Hideko Matsuyama has been appointed the Program Manager of the JICUF Japan Office. 

Going forward, the Japan Office will play a major role in implementing JICUF’s programs for students and faculty. In particular, the Japan Office will offer guidance to students applying for funding opportunities such as the SDG Projects, Othmer Research Fellowship and Social Impact Internship. We are also planning to host regular events that advance our mission of “nurturing global citizens who contribute to the well-being of humanity.”

Hideko Matsuyama graduated from Gakushuin Women’s Junior College and worked for the Industrial Bank of Japan (predecessor of Mizuho Bank) for 10 years. After that, she lived in Connecticut for 10 years with her family during which time she worked as a Japanese language teacher in a public middle school. Upon her return to Japan, she became a staff of the Administrative Affairs Group at ICU and mainly supported the Chair and the Managing Trustees of the Board as well as JICUF for six years. She was also involved in welcoming Ukrainian students to ICU through the Japan-Ukraine University Pathways program. She is looking forward to engaging in creative activities with ICU students.

The Japan Office is now accepting applications for JICUF Student Ambassadors. JICUF is hiring three Student Ambassadors to help spread the word about JICUF programs and funding opportunities, curate content for our social media highlighting the impact of our work, and plan and implement events at ICU. All degree-seeking ICU students (both undergraduate and graduate) are eligible to apply. For more information and to apply, please click here. The application deadline is Friday, April 19.

We are planning to host a series of opening events during the week of May 13, including an open house, reception, grants showcase and a special exhibition and talk on the history of JICUF and ICU. The full schedule will be available soon!

We would like the office to be a welcoming space for everyone in the ICU community including students, faculty, ICU staff and alumni. We will post our office hours on the office door and our website soon. Please stop by to say hello!