President's Office

Dare to Hope, Dare to Love

With the March 11, 2011 East Japan earthquake and tsunami, so much that we had always taken for granted fell apart. The future was uncertain, and we were as if adrift in a boat, feeling our way through thick fog.

Hope is hard to find in this day and age. Kierkegaard wrote that “Despair is the Sickness unto Death,” yet if “hope” is the opposite of “despair,” then hope can be considered the path of life. Lu Xun, often called the father of modern Chinese literature, ends his short story “My Old Home” with the following passage: “I thought: hope cannot be said to exist, nor can it be said not to exist. It is just like roads across the earth. For actually the earth had no roads to begin with, but when many men pass one way, a road is made.” As more people embrace hope, so is hope born for society at large. I know many students who took hold of their dreams during their time at University, and went out into the world with hope in their hearts. The power of hope unleashes the potential that lies dormant within these young people, giving them the strength to live and inspiring them to acts of courage and valor. It is those very times when the future is vast and unknown that hope gleams most brightly.

There is much to learn as a university student. Here at Meiji Gakuin University, we do our best to offer our students a variety of opportunities. For students wishing to study at overseas universities, we have an excellent study abroad system. Those interested in volunteering can become involved through our Volunteer Center, which we established well ahead of other universities as a leader in volunteer activities. These are merely examples. Seek out an active, positive student life and you will find countless opportunities. Cultivate your intellect, your physical strength, your communication abilities, your endurance, and all other basic skills. Most of all, no matter how difficult it may be, learn another foreign language in addition to English. Language ability is the most fundamental of foundations. When we study a foreign language, we improve our skills in our native language as well.

Meiji Gakuin is a university founded on Christianity. The Bible states, “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). Perhaps what is important above all else is learning how to love one another. We have to learn how to love to live as human beings.

Hiroyoshi Udono　President

Messages from the Vice Presidents and the Director, President's Office

• Yasuo Matsubara　Vice-President
  I took over the duties of former Vice President and Professor Inoue. Although this is my second time serving in this position, I assume the role of Vice President responsible for educational reform, self-evaluations, faculty development, research, volunteer activities, and related areas under President Udono. I believe that meeting the educational needs of its students and sponsors is essential to the University’s growth. In order to ensure that these needs are met, educational reform is a matter of urgent concern. Improving the quality of the research and instruction provided by our faculty serves as the basis of that reform. Preparing for our Certified Evaluation and Accreditation by the Japan University Accreditation Association in FY2015 will also form an integral part of these efforts. I will do my utmost to ensure that the University can look to an even brighter future beyond its 150-year anniversary together with students, graduates, guarantors, faculty, and officials.

  

• Leo Murata　Vice-President
  I oversee entrance examinations and coordination with high schools. Creating a student body composed of students who truly love learning is of the utmost importance to universities in their role as educational institutions. Meiji Gakuin University currently uses several different methods to select its students, and I will continue to work on our selection methods, coordination with high schools, and related areas to ensure that we can consistently accept students of the highest caliber in great numbers. I also consider ways to better implement and improve our facilities in order to provide a more pleasant environment to the students and faculty engaged in classwork, education, and research on our campuses.

  

• Atsushi Yoshii　Vice-President
  I oversee international exchange, the Yokohama Campus, alumni associations, and coordination with local communities. As I work to further enrich the education offered by this University, I hope to enhance opportunities for international exchange in particular. To this end, I will promote the establishment of an environment that encourages students to study abroad at foreign universities, robust relationships with our partner institutions, and improvements to the learning and living environment for international students enrolled at our University. I also intend to make further improvements to the Yokohama Campus to develop it as an eco-campus, as well as other improvements to ensure that students and faculty remain safe in the event of a disaster. Healthy alumni associations are an essential part of a university’s operations, and as in years prior, we will maintain an active calendar of events this fiscal year for both Tokyo and local alumni associations. I hope to contribute in any way I can to help Meiji Gakuin grow into an even greater university.

  

• Makoto Kanda　Director, President's Office
  The Office of the President serves the University’s administration, consisting of the President and Vice Presidents, in a supporting capacity by making their work go more smoothly and allowing them to make decisions even more swiftly and accurately. To aid in this, I also serve as Director of the General Planning Office, where I collect and analyze information and make proposals. In addition to supporting education and research, the General Planning Office also plays a part in the University’s internal and external public relations and coordination with local communities by aiming at unity and consistency in the University’s activities. The fundamental mission of a university lies in its education and research. Faculty and staff must think and act in solidarity with one together in order to achieve fundamental goals such as improving the quality of education and the caliber of research. I will continue to work closely with the Secretary General to support the further growth of the University.