Leadership Team

No soccer, no life!

Since I was preschooler, my dream was always to become a professional soccer player. I remember that one year I even wrote that down as my Tanabata wish! When I was in elementary school, I joined a boys soccer club and this was the start of my soccer journey. After graduating from high school I went to a university in Japan to study education and play soccer. If I were to be honest, a big reason why I went to that university was because of their reputation as a soccer powerhouse.

Studying abroad was a challenge that I always wanted to take on and I had an opportunity to study and play soccer at an American college when I was a university student. I thought studying abroad was expensive and only great players could do so. But it wasn't true. There are many universities and colleges in the US who recruit overseas players as well as offer scholarships. In my senior year, my team won the NAIA championship and that was a great experience.

From this experience, I learned and realized that information is really important and if you are really willing to do something, by having the important and valuable information it helps to make your dreams come true. I would like all children to know this and support them by working together with their families. Also I feel my role is to share my experiences and giving opportunities to all children. I do not want children to be scared of challenges especially when attempting something they like.

Learning is not just studying

I was a good student and my grades were not bad at all. But after becoming an adult and joining the workforce, I realized that there was a disconnect with what I learned from the Japanese education system and what I needed in society. My education was clearly for exams and not to build life skills or skills that would help me become a valuable member of the community who could make a difference. What I learned at school gave me an education. But I now know education is more than just acquiring academic knowledge: we also need to be critical and analytical thinkers who can navigate with others this complex world of ours.

Being able to critically think and analyze situations helps us to reflect and solve problems. If children are scared to make mistakes and hesitate to ask questions, then they are missing out on valuable learning opportunities. As an educator, it is important for me to give children an environment where it's not only okay to not know something but it's fun to learn in a safe learning environment.

During my time studying in the US, I was shocked by how low my English was compared to other international students. Their English was better than mine even though they had studied English for just a few years. I studied English at school so I knew grammar and spelling, but I did not have the skills nor the opportunities to use English as a communication tool. I strongly feel that studying and learning should not be as limited as memorizing information. It should also be about learning how to use the information as a skill or tool. Therefore I am happy that I am a part of CGK where can give these opportunities to our students. I wish all students can have the opportunity to enjoy learning with us at CGK.

Internationally minded from childhood

I have been very fortunate to be raised in a family that lived overseas, and also experienced living in Spain as a child. My family also stressed tolerance and diversity as an asset. My parents were a mixed race couple at a time when it was not as common in the States as it is now. I also have two Korean cousins that were adopted into the family, so my version of family has never been limited to people who look like me or even share my blood. This is part of why I was not only drawn to move overseas, but why I can genuinely consider Japan my home and some of the people I’ve met here my family.

I started working with children when I was 11. There was a volunteer program where we could work with kindergarten children (5 years old), assisting the teachers with reading, crafts, play, etc. I really enjoyed my time with them and found I had a natural instinct for caring for children. When I was 12 I started babysitting. This is not unheard of in the States. But I built a robust client list because of how much fun I had with the kids while also being able to keep them safe and respect the boundaries of the household.

In high school I did more volunteer work with children and began tutoring. I tutored other students in English, science, and math, sometimes tutoring students who were older than me. My volunteer work included a wide range of activities, but during my two years in the International Baccalaureate (IB) Diploma Program (DP) I volunteered every day after school with children infected/affected by HIV/AIDS. I then worked for that organization after I graduated before I moved away to go to university. While in university and after I continued babysitting, volunteering, tutoring, and teaching. Finally after years of teaching I was fortunate enough to teach at a school that introduced the IB Primary Years Program (PYP).