FIU's Japanese language program has received a prestigious salary assistance grant from the Japan Foundation.
On Dec. 1, the new Consul General of Japan in Miami, Kazuhiro Nakai, presented the check to FIU officials in a reception at the Green Library attended by students and faculty from the Japan program, which is housed in the Department of Modern Languages. The $24,285 grant will cover part of two adjunct professors' salaries.
In attendance were Shlomi Dinar, associate dean of the Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs, along with Pascale Becel, chair of modern languages, Steven Heine, director of the Asian Studies Program and Asuka Mashav, professor and program coordinator for the Japanese program.
Green School Associate Dean Shlomi Dinar receives check from Consul General Kazuhiro Nakai.
The Japan program has grown consistently over the past few years and now offers a minor in Japanese language and literature. FIU's Japanese program is also one of only eight university programs in the U.S. to offer the prestigious Japanese language proficiency test. About 200 students took the test at FIU this year.
Japanese is spoken by an estimated 130 million native speakers, and is approximately the 9th most spoken language in the world. With its strong business presence in the U.S., along with long running and well-established trade and communication networks, students of the Japanese language have access to many opportunities in international business and relations.