published Friday, June 14, 2024 by Adam Tanare Jr., Graduate Assistant
A message from the Director
Mark Levin
Dr. Sen Sōshitsu XV Director
University of Hawaiʻi Center for Japanese Studies
With so much to appreciate and remember, I get writer’s block for the J-Current Director’s messages. But while this past year also seems like a blur, a Big Three assemblage is clear: our Associate Director Gay Satsuma’s retirement after 28 years of service, the special recognition CJS’s Way-of-Tea Center was given in February at the Hawaiʻi State House of Representatives, and the incredible accomplishment of our students and faculty in producing performances for 100 Years of Kabuki in English in Hawaiʻi here and in Japan this Spring.
First, Gay’s retirement. It is hard to overstate the contribution that Gay made to CJS in her years working with Directors Sharon Miniciello, Bob Huey, Mary McDonald, Lonny Carlile, and myself, every CJS director to date aside from Pat Steinhoff. As I shared at her wonderful retirement celebration, I came to this role totally depending on her expertise and deep institutional knowledge and memory. Her office door was the starting point for nearly any decision I needed to make and we all benefitted from that. And with her exuberant laughter filling the office and even through the common building wall between our working spaces, she made CJS more cheerful every day. When Gay advised us of her retirement plans, Team CJS wondered how we’d get by. But in part owing to the good fortune of Joan Pan coming on board as a Program Coordinator while we move through the administrative process towards finding a permanent replacement, we are doing fine. Now when Gay drops in from time to time, she’s happiest looking retiree that you will ever meet.
Second, who gets to stand on the floor of the State House of Representatives with centenarian Dr. Genshitsu Sen to receive a unanimously approved and signed resolution of the members commending our Way of Tea Center and the 50th Anniversary of Jaku’an on the UH campus? Just as the smiles in the photos show, it was yours truly as a very fortunate CJS Director. Mahalos to House Speaker Scott Saiki, Representative Andrew Takuya Garrett, Way-of-Tea Instructor Akiko Ono Riley, our Way-of-Tea Club students over the years, and of course Dr. Sen for making this possible. If you come by our office, be sure to look at the framed resolution that we’ve proudly hung up on the wall.
Lastly, more of “how cool is this” were the performances put on in April by the UHM Department of Theatre and Dance in cooperation with the Department of Music of The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves, celebrating 100 years of kabuki in English at UH. Translated and directed by Professor Julie Iezzi, the program included several dozen of our students acting and in the production company, supported by in person master class training from award-winning kabuki actor Monnosuke Ichikawa VIII. Not resting there, the program coordinated with the East-West Center Arts Program for a multi-media exhibit on kabuki in Hawaiʻi running from a January opening event until May. Then they took this show on the road for live performances in Japan in Gifu Prefecture earlier this month – gaining local and national media attention. A full replay of the livestream event broadcast is online here with over 1,600 views as of this writing already.
In short, we have remained hard at work to present important studies that can give new and important understanding as to Japan, to support our students and faculty in their work, and to build stronger connections with our community locally and beyond, bridging the United States and Japan to Hawaiʻi. None of this would happen without the dedication of a phenomenal staff – this past year including Gay, our Fiscal and Administrative Support Specialist Sachiko Roos, Program Coordinator Joan Pan, and our Graduate Assistant Adam Tanare Jr. I am deeply appreciative for their help.
You can learn more from the pages that follow. And once again, we hope you will enjoy this report and welcome your comments and questions, and of course, your ongoing support.
Aloha,
Mark Levin
Dr. Sen Sōshitsu XV Director
UHM Center for Japanese Studies
Please consider donating to support CJS:
giving.uhfoundation.org/funds/12084604
Mark Levin, June 2024
Events
Below are highlights from the 2023-2024 academic year. Visit our news & events pages to view a complete archive.
Major Events
Associate Director Gay Satsuma’s Retirement
After 28 years of service to the University, a celebration was held in Dec. 2023 for Associate Director Gay Satsuma after she announced her retirement.
Read more…
100 years of Kabuki-in-English productions at UH Mānoa
CJS Facutly member, Dr. Julie Iezzi, directed an amazing performance of The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves at UH Manoa Kennedy Theatre in Apr. 2024.
Read more…
Hybrid and Co-Sponsored Seminars
I Learned Japanese in a Classroom
Dr. Dina Yoshimi moderated great discussion on Japanese language learning with a fantastic panel including Judge Walter Kirimitsu, Attorney Stephen Dyer, and FaSST Coordinator and Study Abroad Advisor Kati Vasconcellos, M.A.
Read more…
Ryokan: Mobilizing Hospitality in Rural Japan
Co-sponsored with University of Hawaiʻi Press, CJS hosted a talk by Dr. Chris McMorran, Associate Professor of Japanese Studies at National University of Singapore, who shared fascinating details from his time working in a ryokan.
Read more…
The Oink in Okinawa: Rooting through changes in heirloom pigs and cuisine
Co-sponsored with the Center for Okinawan Studies, Dr. Sayaka Sakuma and Dr. Benjamin Schrager of Utsunomiya University gave an update on their latest research about the evolution of Okinawa’s relations to heirloom pigs and cuisine.
Read more…
Socials and Community Events
CJS Graduate Student Mixers
Held once every semester, this mixer is an opportunity for CJS Graduate Students to relax, hang out, and enjoy food and company.
Read more…
CJS Faculty and Graduate Student Luncheon
Held every Spring, this mixer is an opportunity for CJS Faculty and graduate students to chat over refreshments and take part in a fun activity; this year, it was a walking tour of the Kabuki in Hawai‘i: exhibit at the East-West Center.
Read more…
Ehime Maru Memorial Cleanups
CJS community members, faculy, staff, and other volunters gather once a semester to help clean the Ehime Maru Memorial in Kakaʻako.
Read more…
Bento Box Series
Started in Spring 2022 by CJS Director Mark Levin, this special seminar series provides a venue for graduate students to present their Japan-related research in an informal setting in front of their friends and other graduate students.
[ read more about the Bento Box Series on our our website ]
Bento Box VI: Thursday, October 12, 2023
Same-sex Marriage in Japan: A Constitutional Analysis of Five Major Trial Court Decisions
Brandon Marc Higa, S.J.D. 2024
William S. Richardson School of Law
Images of Tōhoku in Light of its Industrial and Economic Endeavors in Postwar Japan (Mid-1950s to Early 1970s)
Tokikake Ii, Ph.D. Candidate
History Department
Bento Box VII: Friday, March 8, 2024
Bones in the Earth
Richard Barnes, Ph.D. Candidate
History Department
The Development of Human Rights Education in Japan: A Comparative Case Study of Local Implementation of Global Educational Policy
J.D. Parker, Ph.D. Candidate
College of Education – Educational Foundations Program – Global and International Education
Read more about Bento Box VII…
Bento Box VIII: Monday, May 20, 2024
Murakami Haruki and Japan’s 1968
Dr. Adam Manfredi, Ph.D.
Japanese and Comparative Literature
Washington University, St. Louis, MO.
Decades of Resistance: Method and Motivation in the Struggle Against New Tokyo International Airport (1964-Present)
David Wallace, Ph.D. Candidate
Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures
University of Illinois Urbana Champaign
Read more about Bento Box VIII…
Nippon Culture Day
Nippon Culture Day is a free, annual event at University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa (UHM), organized by the Japanese section of the UHM Department of East Asian Languages & Literatures (EALL), with support from the College of Arts, Languages and Letters (CALL), the Center for Okinawan Studies, and CJS. Each year, the event welcomes students and visitors, attending from local high schools, colleges, and the community. Attendees this year enjoyed 10 plus workshops, such as calligraphy, origami, abacus, gift-wrapping, etc.
A new record of 800+ attendees was reached in 2023!
Tenure and Promotions
Congratulations to our faculty who received promotions in 2023-2024!
Tenure and Promotion
- Andre Haag, Associate Professor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
Promotion
- Shinichiro Fukuda, Professor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
- Masato Ishida, Professor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
Delegated Promotion
- Tomoko Iwai, Instructor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
- Emi Murayama, Instructor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
- Miki Ogasawara, Instructor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
- Yuka Wada, Instructor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
- Patrick Woo, Instructor, College of Arts, Languages and Letters
Faculty Awards, Presentations, and Publications
Congratulations to our CJS Faculty and Affiliate Faculty for all of their accomplishments in 2023-2024!
Lonny Carlile, Associate Professor, Asian Studies Department
Dr. Carlile was recognized for 30 years of service to the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 2024.
Dr. Carlile also chaired the Hokkaido 2024: Diversity, Transformation, Renewal workshop in June 2024.
Read more…
Christopher Yohmei Blasdel, Lecturer, Music Department
Professor Blasdel, CJS Affiliate Faculty member, published three works on the shakuhachi in April 2024: The Shakuhachi: A Learning Manual, Jiuta Sōkyoku Lyrics and Explanations, and Handbook of Japanese Music in the Modern Era.
Read more…
Haruko Cook, Professor, Japanese Language and Linguistics
Dr. Cook edited the book “Nihon ni okeru Genngo Shakaika Handobukku [Japanese Handbook of Language Socialization]” in 2023, co-edited with Dr. Akira Takada and published by Tokyo: Hituzi Syobo.
Dr. Cook also published a chapter titled “Shinjin wa nani mo shiranai: Nihon no kaisha ni okeru “shakaijin” e no gengo shakaika (New employees know nothing: Language socialization to “shakaijin” in Japanese companies)” (pp. 289-310) in the book “Nihon ni okeru Genngo Shakaika Handobukku [Japanese Handbook of Language Socialization]” edited by Dr. Haruko Cook and Dr. Akira Takada and published by Tokyo: Hituzi Syobo.
Dr. Cook also presented “Construction of shared affect in a Japanese research interview: Changes in participation framework” in a panel, “Getting Close in a ‘Formal Context’: Ideologies and Styling Practice in Japanese” at the 18th International Pragmatics Conference, Brussels, Belgium, July 9 – July 14, 2023.
Petrice Flowers, Professor, Political Science
Dr. Flowers presented “Roadblocks and Unicorns: Research Design and Methodology” in person at the IUC Nippon Foundation Fellows Seminar in Yokohama, Japan on April 12, 2024.
Dr. Flowers also presented “Doing Diplomacy: Gender, Hierarchy, and Food in US-Japan Relations” in person at Ochanomizu University Institute for Gender Studies in Tokyo, Japan on March 6, 2024.
Dr. Flowers also presented “Roundtable on Short Books and East Asian Studies,” in person at AAS Seattle, Washington on March 14, 2024.
Kristi Govella, Assistant Professor, Asian Studies
Dr. Govella published an article titled “Avoiding and Exploiting the Tragedy of the Commons: Fishing, Crime, and Conflict in the South China Sea” in International Politics.
Dr. Govella gave a keynote speech at the National University of Singapore on “The Quad and Public Goods in an Era of Minilateralism.”
Dr. Govella presented a number of different research projects at Saitama University, the NATO Defense College, the University of Washington, the Asia-Pacific Foundation of Canada, and the University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, as well as at a dialogue on Women, Peace, and Cybersecurity in the Philippines.
In April, Dr. Govella was selected to travel to Tokyo, Seoul, and Washington DC as part of a trilateral US-Japan-ROK delegation of women experts in security.
Elina Hamilton, Assistant Professor, Music
Dr. Hamilton, CJS Affiliate Faculty member, received the Presidential Citation for Meritorious Teaching at the 2024 UH Mānoa Awards Ceremony.
Read more…
Atsushi Hasegawa, Associate Professor, East Asian Languages and Literatures
Dr. Hasegawa presented “キャリアにつながる留学を目指して： 夏期インターンシッププログラムの設計と運営の可能性と課題 (Designing and Administering Summer Internship Program for Career-Oriented Education Abroad)” at Princeton Japanese Pedagogy Forum (PJPF) in-person on May 4, 2024 in Princeton, NJ.
Bob Huey, Professor Emeritus, East Asian Languages and Literatures
Dr. Huey led a three-year collaboration between faculty and students in UH’s Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures, a group of scholars in Japan, and the Honolulu Museum of Art, leading to a bilingual cross-platform publication, its results published in March 2024 in a bilingual book entitled The Heian Cultural Revival in Edo: Reading the Jūban Mushi-awase scrolls in the Honolulu Museum’s Lane Collection (Tokyo: Bungaku Tsushin, 2024).
Read more…
Julie Iezzi, Professor, Department of Theatre and Dance
Dr. Iezzi curated the exhibit “Kabuki in Hawaiʻi: Connections Through Time and Space” at the East-West Center Gallery. The exhibit was open from January 28 through May 5, 2024. Enter “backstage,” travel through a timeline of 130 years of kabuki in Hawaiʻi highlighting many Japanese and nikkei artists who have nurtured this unique local tradition, and enjoy the visual, tactile and aural experience of kabuki up close and personal.
Dr. Iezzi skillfully directed a remarkable cast and crew, including several CJS graduate students, in a stellar production of The Maiden Benten and the Bandits of the White Waves at UH Mānoa’s Kennedy Theatre in April 2024.
Read more…
Michael Mohr, Professor of Religions & Ancient Civilizations
Dr. Mohr received a Fulbright U.S. Scholar Award to conduct research and teach at National Taiwan University (NTU) as a Visiting Professor in the Department of Philosophy, 2022–23.
Mitsutaka Nakamura, Japan Studies Librarian, UH Mānoa Hamilton Library
Mr. Nakamura gave an online presentation on March 22 about his collaborative project at his previous institution, Washington University in St. Louis, on cursive handwritten Japanese (Kuzushi-ji) transcriptions with the Ritsumeikan University AI-assisted transcription system at “the 13th Forum for Knowledge, Arts, and Culture in Digital Humanities” organized by Japan Art Documentation Society.
Kevin Nute, Professor, School of Architecture
Dr. Nute was featured in the University of Hawaiʻi News for his new book, Embodied Time: Temporal Cues in Built Spaces, which has been shortlisted for a 2024 Architectural Book Award.
Read more…
John Szostak, Associate Professor, Art and Art History
Dr. Szostak served as convenor/organizer for the Visual Arts section of the 2023 European Association of Japanese Studies conference held in Ghent, Belgium.
Yumiko Tateyama, Japanese Language Instructor, East Asian Languages and Literatures
Dr. Tateyama, CJS Affiliate Faculty member, was recognized for 30 years of service to the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa in 2024.
Pier Carlo Tommasi, Assistant Professor, East Asian Languages & Litereatures
Dr. Tommasi presented “Poetry as Tool: An Experiment in Classical Language Pedagogy” (in Japanese, “文語教育ツールとしての短歌創作：『令和四年三校十三番歌合』の実践報告とそれに基づく若干の考察”), with Marjorie Burge (University of Colorado Boulder) and Jeffrey Niedermaier (Brown University) at Tōhoku University, held virtually on August 13, 2023.
Dr. Tommasi also presented “The Stolen Robe: Copyright and its Metaphors in Medieval Japanese Literature.” Invited talk at ISEAS/EFEO & Institute for Research in Humanities, Kyoto University, held virtually on May 9, 2023.
Dr. Tommasi also hosted the Fall 2023 EALL Talk Series, including “Haiga: Japanese Comic Verse, Its Illustrations, and Its Influence Upon Modern Manga”, and “Sōtō Zen Buddhism and the Culture of Secrecy in Premodern Japan.”
Dr. Tommasi also published “Neither Plagiarism nor Patchwork: The Culture of Citation and the Making of Authorship in Medieval Japanese Poetry.” Monumenta Nipponica 77:2 (2022), pp. 207–58. http://doi.org/10.1353/mni.2022.0047.
Dr. Tommasi also receieved the OVPRS Award for Excellence in Mentoring Undergraduate Research & Creative Work at the 2024 UH Mānoa Awards Ceremony.
Read more…
Donald Womack, Professor of Music Composition and Theory, and Chair of the Music Department
Dr. Womack received the premiere performance of his quadruple concerto 7 (月火水木金土日) in Seoul, Korea on November 19, 2023. The piece, for koto, guzheng, gayageum, and geomungo soloists with large ensemble, was commissioned by the Asia Zither Musicians’ Association in celebration of the group’s 30th anniversary, bringing together musicians from Japan, Korea and Taiwan.
Dr. Womack also received the Board of Regents Medal for Excellence in Research at the 2024 UH Mānoa Awards Ceremony.
Read more…
Aloha
We bid Aloha to four CJS faculty.
Gay Satsuma, Associate Director, Center for Japanese Studies
Congratulations to Dr. Satsuma on her retirement in December 2023 after 28 years as the Associate Director of the Center for Japanese Studies! We are so appreciative of you and your decades of knowledge and experience that helped bring the Center of Japanese Studies at UH Mānoa to where it is today.
Haruko Cook, Professor, Japanese Language and Linguistics
Congratulations to Dr. Cook on her retirement after the conclusion of the Spring 2024 semester! Thank you for all you have done for UH Mānoa advancing Japanese language education and the field of Japanese linguistics.
Kristi Govella, Assistant Professor, Asian Studies
Congratulations to Dr. Govella who will be taking an Associate Professor position at the University of Oxford in the UK! Thank you for your tireless work at UH Mānoa advancing Japanese studies and Indo-Pacific region studies.
Pier Carlo Tommasi, Assistant Professor, East Asian Languages and Literatures
Congratulations to Dr. Tommasi who will be taking an Assistant Professor position at Vassar College in New York! Thank you for your innovative and passionate work supporting East Asian Languages and Literatures at UH Mānoa.
Student News
Congratulations to all of our CJS graduate and undergraduate students for their academic accomplishments in 2023-2024!
Brandon Marc Higa, S.J.D. 2024
Brandon received his S.J.D. at the Spring 2024 University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa commencement ceremony! Many accomplishments have followed Brandon over the last academic year:
UH President’s Emerging Leaders Program (PELP) 201 Certificate of Completion (commemorating the successful completion of the 18-month intensive leadership training in the inaugural cohort of PELP 201 leaders across UH campuses).
White House Initiative: U.S.-ASEAN University Connections Initiative, 2023.
Panelist at the Okinawan Studies: Past, Present, and Future Symposium hosted by the Okinawa Prefectural Government in D.C. Office & George Washington University (virtual) on December 6, 2023.
IDEAS for Indigenous Inclusion in Education Abroad, Diversity Abroad Global Inclusion Conference, November 3, 2023, Chicago, IL (presenting project findings for indigenous student inclusion for the IDEAS grant, Militourism and Indigenous Identities in Hawai‘i and Okinawa).
Brandon Marc Higa & Joshua Faumuina, Japan’s Same-Sex Marriage Cases (2021-2023) & the Fight for Freedom of Marriage in Japan, Asian-Pacific Law and Policy Journal, Vol. 25, Issue 2.
J.D. Parker, Ph.D. Candidate, College of Education – Educational Foundations – Global and International Program
J.D. was awarded the Crown Prince Akihito Foundation Scholarship for 2024-2025!
Currently, J.D. is a visiting student researcher at Kyoto University where he investigates human rights education (HRE) as a global educational trend in the context of teacher training in Japan. J.D. will utilize the Crown Prince Akihito Scholarship to explore how international frameworks and discourses of human rights are integrated or contested in local constructions of human rights in Japan.
J.D. also presented “Implementation of Global Educational Policy” at the 2024 International Conference on Human Rights: Youth in Asia (ICHR) held in Tokyo.
Joseph Iseri, Ph.D. Candidate, East Asian Languages and Literatures
Joseph teaches Japanese language courses at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.
Joseph received the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) 2024 Summer Fellowship and the Dai Ho Chun Fellowship.
Joseph also presented at the American Association of Applied Linguistics (AAAL) 2024 Conference in Houston, Texas about his paper “Reading alone, reading together – Reading as an interactive phenomenon.”
2024 Ehime Prefectural International Center (EPIC) Interns
2024 EPIC interns Mr. Matthew Andres (UHM undergraduate majoring in Business Management and minoring in Japanese) and Ms. Kaitlyn Tokunaga (UHM undergraduate majoring in Accounting, Management Information Systems, and Japanese language) are currently completing their internship Ehime prefecture this summer.
Japan National Honor Society Inductees
Congratulations to our UHM CJS students who were inducted into the Japanese National Honor Society-College Chapter (JNHS-CC) this past academic year! The JNHS recognizes and encourages achievement and excellence in Japanese language study.
Spring 2024 Inductees
Kevin Tabuchi
Rochelle Jokura
Aren Pai
Rune Yanagisawa
Quinn Sumida
Luke Hamano
Jasmin Crawford (not pictured)
Fall 2023 Inductees
Anna Suzuki
Minqi Chen
Liv Peralta
Melody Matsumoto
Bryson Hamada
Christopher Feeny
Marcy Tokunaga
Read more…
Collaboration with the Honolulu Museum of Art
In 2023, the Center for Japanese Studies began a collaborative partnership with the Honolulu Museum of Art (HoMA), working together with HoMA’s Curator of Japanese Art, Stephen Salel, to design seasonal cards in digital format that showcase valuable and rare art from HoMA’s unique collections with the CJS community.
[ visit our HoMA Collaboration page to view all of our digital collaborations in full ]
Spring
Summer (sneak preview)
From the Way of Tea Center
The Way of Tea Center had a remarkable Spring 2024! Take a look at some of those key moments below.
First of Year Tea Ceremony “Hatsudate” Held in the Jaku’an Tea House
State Representative Garrett joined CJS Director Mark Levin at the Jaku’an Tea House for their first tea ceremony of the year.
Read more…
Dr. Sen’s Spirit of Tea and Peacefulness Lecture, and recognition in the Hawaiʻi State House of Representatives
Dr. Sen delivered his lecture “The Spirit of Tea and Peacefulness,” and was recognized, along with the Jaku’an Tea House, by the House of Representatives.
Read more…
Kabuki Masters Invited by Way of Tea Club for a Special Ceremony at Jaku’an
The Way of Tea Club invited CJS Faculty Dr. Julie Iezzi, along with Kabuki Masters Ichikawa Monnosuke VIII, Mrs. Yukika Soma, and Kabuki Master Ichikawa Komazo XI to the Jaku’an for a special tea ceremony.
Read more…
Visit our Way of Tea Center page to see all past events.
The UH Mānoa Way of Tea Club
The Tea Club at UH Mānoa is an undergraduate-run recognized independent organization (RIO) dedicated to the study of traditional Japanese Chadō, under the instruction of sensei Akiko Ono. The members practice Urasenke-style tea ceremony at the Jaku’an Tea House weekly, where the space is also used to hold Chadō classes for students at UH. They had an active past year, including having participated in the Nippon Culture Day in Fall 2023, and holding a “Maui Strong” Tea Ceremony to raise funds for victims and survivors of the August 2023 Maui wildfires. Please follow their updates on their website, and YouTube channel.
J-Current reports on the achievements and activities of UHM Japanese Studies faculty and students as well as our Japan-related events, research, scholarships and overseas programs. Please send corrections and submissions to cjs@hawaii.edu