By Starla Pointer, courtesy of The News-Register
Yuzo Yoshioka, consul general from the Japanese consular office in Portland, visited Linfield University’s McMinnville campus Monday to promote Japanese language and culture studies.
Linfield is one of only a few Oregon schools to offer majors in Japanese language and Japanese studies. It also offers minors in those fields and in Asian culture and Chinese, along with a major in global culture.
Many Linfield students spend a year or semester abroad at Kanto Gakuin University in Yokohama, a school that’s had a sister relationship with Linfield since about 1980. Several other Japanese universities also are open to Linfield students.
“Linfield has a 50-year history with the Japanese language,” said Yoshioka, who came to Portland in 2023 after serving in embassies in Canada, Poland, Nepal and, in the U.S., Boston.
Yoshioka, a native of Japan’s Saitama Prefecture, said studying Japanese is beneficial because it teaches not only language that can be used in a career, but also teaches about the people who speak that language. It helps broaden understanding of and empathy of other people, and appreciation for diverse cultures and views.
The consul general said he also travels around Oregon to promote tourism and business connections between the U.S. and Japan and to meet members of the Japanese American community.
Many people emigrated from Japan to Oregon in the late 19th century, he said. Accordingly, Japan opened its Portland embassy in 1902.
Many Japanese companies, including computer chip manufacturers and other high-tech firms, opened outlets in Oregon in the 1980s. There’s also a well-developed connection between Japan and Nike.
“Our business ties are very strong,” he said, adding that he hopes Oregon’s governor will visit Japan this year.
Masayuki Itomitsu, associate professor of Japanese, told the consul that he hopes to bring more students to Linfield to study the language and culture. He talked with Yoshioka about high schools that offer Japanese classes and events that might pique students’ interests in the subject.
The consul general’s visit was a great honor, according to Itomitsu, who came to the U.S. from Okinawa and has been teaching at Linfield for 15 years.
“He’s very keen on Japanese language education. Having him as an advocate” is a benefit to language teachers, Itomitsu said.
Itomitsu hosted the consul general’s visit. He invited Yoshioka to sit in on a class — “My students loved it,” he said — then to have lunch in the college dining hall.
They were joined at lunch by several university officials from the International Programs office and Department of Global Languages and Cultural Studies.
They told the consul general about Linfield and its offerings. Tyson Takeuchi, a 2014 Linfield graduate who is back as an intern in International Programs, talked about his experiences both at Linfield and in Japan, where he worked for eight years teaching English.
He worked for two programs, including the well-known JET. He is one of several Linfield students who’ve worked with JET after graduating, said Professor Wendy Sagers, who also attended the luncheon. Several are currently in Japan, added Itomitsu.
Takeuchi, who is originally from Hawaii, majored in international studies at Linfield. He said he hopes to start his career in the Pacific Northwest, then return to Japan eventually.
During the afternoon, Takeuchi served as a tour guide, showing Yoshioka some of the campus, such as Walker Hall, where the language programs are based, and Michelbook House, the admissions office.
The consul general said the Linfield campus, like those of many other American schools, is very different from most of those in Japan.
Japanese universities have baseball fields, but not a lot of space between academic high rises; dorms are rare, with most students commuting from home or living in their own apartments. At Linfield, there is plenty of room between buildings, with large parking lots and green spaces.
“Linfield is like a small city,” he said.
