WILLISTON, N.D. - Accompanied by four chaperons, 11 WSC students traveled to Japan on May 25 for an 18-day immersion program.
The program was made possible through WSC's partnership with its sister school, Kokusai Junior College (KJC). A private two-year institution located in Tokyo, KJC offers programs that focus on English and tourism as many KJC students intend to work in hotels, airlines and other areas of the tourism industry.
WSC students taught English while immersed in Japanese culture. KJC prepared five lessons for the WSC students to better understand Japanese customs. These classes included: Working In Tokyo, Calligraphy, Edo-Yuzen & Kimono, Origami and a traditional tea ceremony. The lessons included field trips to the Tsurugaoa Hachimangu Shrine, Yokohama and the Meijijingu shrine in Harajuku.
"I liked interacting with their students at English camp and having their students show us different tourist attractions," Maren Furuseth, CPA Program Coordinator, said. "They led us through the temple at Asakusa, showing us the proper way to receive the gods. It was a great experience!"
Two small earthquakes occurred during their time in Japan. "The chaperones we were with said that they usually only get one every three months," Megan Theis, Executive Assistant to the President, stated. "So this was rare for even them to have two in one week."
Kim Weismann, Arts and Human Sciences Department Chair, explained that her favorite part was seeing Tokyo Disney Sea and the Giant Buddha in Kamakura. Everyone agreed that the food, especially the shrimp tempura, sushi and the fresh soba noodles, was fantastic.
WSC is in the final year of its five-year agreement with KJC and is currently reviewing the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to continue their relationship in the future. The partnership was created in 2010 to give both international and WSC students a unique cultural experience. Some KJC students will visit WSC from September 2-13 and will stay with host families, while two KJC students will be enrolled for the Fall 2015 semester.
For more information contact, Kim Weismann at 701.774.4503
For additional information regarding WSC, please visit www.willistonstate.edu,
call 1.888.863.9455, or stop by 1410 University Avenue, Williston, ND.