Message from the IUC to the Japan Foundation

The Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies (IUC) wholeheartedly congratulates the Japan Foundation on the 50th anniversary of the establishment of the Japan Foundation Awards. In 1982, the IUC was honored to receive a Japan Foundation Special Prize in recognition of “its great achievement in the improvement of mutual understanding between Japan and the United States.” Since our inception in 1963, the IUC has been the world’s premier institute for advanced Japanese language training. We are immensely grateful to the Japan Foundation for recognizing the value of our mission, not only with the Special Prize but also with institutional and scholarship support. From 1973 to 2017 a total of 334 students received Japan Foundation scholarships to study at the IUC. They have gone on to excel in Japan-focused careers in academia, government service, law, journalism, and many other professions, serving as bridges between Japan and the United States and other countries. The impact of the Japan Foundation permeates both the IUC and Japanese Studies as a whole. The vast majority of IUC governing board members, who comprise faculty from its 15 constituent universities, have either personally received support from the Foundation or had doctoral students whose research was so supported. One board member writes of his gratitude for “timely and crucial support for securing tenure at my first institution.” Another comments that support from the Foundation allowed him to “devote a year to research free from teaching responsibilities at a formative stage in my career, setting the foundation for much of my subsequent work.” A third writes succinctly and accurately that “the Japan Foundation has nurtured the entire field of Japanese Studies.” On behalf of the entire IUC community, it is our pleasure and privilege to celebrate the Japan Foundation’s remarkable achievements in promoting a deeper understanding of Japan.

Bruce L. Batten
Resident Director
The Inter-University Center for
Japanese Language Studies (IUC)

(Original text in English)

Awards and Special Prizes: Recipients List