Japanese Program Georgetown University

I heard from Eri-san, who is currently working at an IT consulting firm in Osaka! 😊 She said she sees Kathryn-san, who is studying in Kobe as a MEXT (Japanese Government) Scholar, almost every month. They even met up with another Hoya and took a trip together to Shimane!

It makes me so happy to see Georgetown connections continuing even after graduation. Hoya Saxa! 💙🩶

Sato-sensei’s brother was featured in the newspaper! He’s basically “a securities professional working on circular/sustainable agriculture,” which is such a unique combination! 😮

What he’s doing is so fascinating. Through Nomura Farm Hokkaido, he’s working on projects like using sweet potatoes that don’t meet market standards as animal feed for the zoo, then using compost made from the animals’ manure to grow more crops, creating a full sustainability loop. He’s also involved in community education and regional revitalization efforts through agriculture. Really impressive work!

If you’d like to read the full article in either English or Japanese, check out this link.

https://tinyurl.com/b62e3urt

Francis-san, who took First-Level Japanese in the fall semester before graduating in December, came back to campus for commencement! 😊 So of course he stopped by to visit Sato-sensei!

Aiko-san also came by to say goodbye. Omori-sensei was super disappointed not to be able to see her before graduation, but hopefully we can meet up in Tokyo or Taipei someday! 😊 (Visiting Taiwan is definitely on her bucket list!)

Congratulations to both of you on your graduation! We are so proud of you. Please keep us updated on your adventures!

And Susan-san, you’re next! 😄 Follow in your senpais’ footsteps and dream big!🫶

Jiawei-san stopped by the office to say hi and introduce his mom to Sato-sensei! 😊 Omori-sensei was so disappointed to have missed them 😭, but Sato-sensei said they had such a lovely visit! 😍

Congratulations on your graduation, Jiawei-san! You should be very proud of all you have accomplished, and I know your mom must be incredibly proud too! 🥰

Congratulations to all of our graduating students! 🎓🌸

We are so proud of each and every one of you and all that you have accomplished during your time on the Hilltop. Some of you joined us in your very first Japanese class not knowing how to say おはようございます, and now you are graduating after years of hard work, late night studying, language tables, skits, dreadful oral interviews 😆, sakubun, presentations, study abroad adventures, internships, friendships, and so many unforgettable memories. 🥹

We always tell incoming students, “Take Japanese because you’ll make lifelong friends in our classes!” We truly hope that turned out to be true for all of you. ❤️

Thank you for bringing so much energy, kindness, humor, and community to our program. Whether you were an undergraduate student, graduate student, Japanese major, minor, MASIA/MSFS student, or simply someone who loved studying Japanese, you helped make our program so special.

Watching you grow over the years has truly been one of the greatest joys for us as teachers. We will miss seeing you in the ICC hallways, Red Square, at the Language Table, and in our classrooms, but we cannot wait to see where life takes you next. We know you will do amazing things all over the world. 🌎✨

Please stay in touch and come visit us sometime! Once a Hoya, always a Hoya 💙🐶

Congratulations again, Class of 2026!!

With love and respect,
Mori-sensei, Omori-sensei, and Sato-sensei 🌸

A special shoutout to Jaime-san, who will be graduating from the MASIA program (Master of Arts in Asian Studies) next week! 🎓✨

It has been such an honor teaching you over the past two years at Georgetown. You have accomplished so much during your time here, and you have truly been like a big sister (姉御／あねご) to so many of the undergraduate students studying East Asian languages, especially Japanese 😊

Your presence will definitely be missed next year, but we are hopeful that you will still be around DC a little longer! Wishing you all the best as you begin your career as a U.S. diplomat. We can’t wait to see where in the world your journey takes you! 🌎

Please stay in touch! You know we expect occasional Georgetown Instagram appearances from you 😆 Congratulations, Jaime-san!! ❤️ .cantwell

(And Yinzhe-san, don’t worry, your special shoutout will come when you graduate too 🤣)

Congratulations, Aidan-san! 🎓 He just took his very last final exam at Georgetown, and somehow Omori-sensei had the honor of being his last professor 😆

It’s been such a joy having you in class this year. Wishing you all the best after graduation and excited to see what’s next for you! Don’t be a stranger and keep in touch 😊

Great news! 🎉 Omori-sensei submitted three haiku written in Japanese by her Level 3 students to the MAATJ (Mid-Atlantic Association of Teachers of Japanese) Haiku Contest, and Rania Zaman won 2nd place in the college division!! 🥈✨

「春風や　手の温もりと　なびく髪」🌸❤️

Such a beautiful and romantic haiku ☺️Congratulations, Rania-san! We are so proud of you! 👏

Sorry it took us so long to share Renee-san’s exciting adventures as a JET in Japan! From passing the JLPT N1 to exploring different parts of Japan and fully embracing “nui-katsu” life 😆, it has been so fun seeing all of her experiences! Thanks to Renee-san, Sato-sensei and Omori-sensei learned a brand new word, 「ぬい活（ぬいかつ）」🤣

She will be returning to DC this August for graduate school, and we are so excited that we will get to see her again soon 😊 Thanks for all the updates, Renee-san! 😍