Okinawa’s Itoman High School Students Visit Washington State

Okinawa’s Itoman High School Students Visit Washington State

By Yoko Sakomoto, Consulate-General of Japan in Seattle
Translated by Yuka Foley, NAP Contributor

The Kakehashi Project is a people-to-people exchange program between Japan and North America funded by the Japanese government. Promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan, the Okinawa Program connects high school students from the United States and Okinawa, Japan, through school visits and cultural exchanges. This time, two schools nationwide were selected including one from Renton. Lindbergh High School was selected since it is the only school in the Renton School District that offers a Japanese language program.

Itoman students in a Japanese class at Lindbergh exchange differences and commonalities. Photo credit: Consulate General of Japan in Seattle staff.

Nine students and a teacher from Okinawa’s Itoman High School visited Washington state on January 22-28. Their itinerary included experiencing American school life and culture through classroom visits and homestays in Renton, along with courtesy visits to the mayor of Renton and superintendent of Renton schools.

Group shot with Lindbergh High School Principal Thomas Caudle. Photo credit: Dick Birnbaum.

Lindbergh High School Principal Thomas Caudle welcomed the group, who then joined Noriko Nasu’s Japanese class. There, the Itoman students gave presentations introducing their school life and some interesting “Wasei Eigo” (Japanese-style English). The students performed a skit to explain how “laptop” is called “notopasokon” in Japanese and “bread” is referred to as “pan.” In the skit, the students humorously acted out a scene asking, “Does ‘pan’ mean frying pan?” which the Lindbergh students enjoyed. During group discussions, students from both schools explored topics like hobbies and favorite foods. Their earnest efforts to communicate, switching between English and Japanese, were truly inspiring.

Itoman High School students visiting Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone at city hall. Photo credit: Consulate General of Japan in Seattle staff.

Renton Mayor Armondo Pavone welcomed the group at Renton City Hall and presented each student with commemorative city badges. At the Renton School District, Superintendent Damien Pattenaude held a discussion with the group about their observations on the differences between Japanese and American schools following their visit to Lindbergh. The students mainly focused on dress codes and school rules. It was particularly interesting to hear that while Itoman has strict rules regarding uniforms and hairstyles, creating dress code rules at Lindbergh is practically impossible. The superintendent was surprised to learn that students at Itoman can be expelled for having tattoos. Before leaving, the superintendent presented them with commemorative gifts.

Itoman High School students and teachers at the Renton School District office chambers with superintendent Damien Pattenaude.

The students further enriched their visit by learning about consular operations at the Consulate-General of Japan in the Seattle office. They also attended lectures on the history of Japanese immigrants at the Panama Hotel and the Japanese Cultural & Community Center of Washington in Seattle.

A heartfelt thank you to all the students of Itoman High School and teacher Matsuo Miyata, who played active roles as goodwill ambassadors!