Chaplin Memorial Award for Excellence in Japanese Language Teaching

The Hamako Ito Chaplin Memorial Award, administered through the Association for Asian Studies, will again be conferred in 2008. In accordance with the wishes of the Chaplin family, each year a prize of $1000 is awarded to either a current graduate student or a full-time instructor of Japanese for excellence in Japanese language teaching. A full-time instructor who has completed graduate study within the last three years in an area that directly involves Japanese language teaching is eligible. Possible academic fields of specialization are Japanese language pedagogy, linguistics, anthropology, or literature. Current graduate students must demonstrate their intention to enter the teaching field in a North American university. Professor Noriko Iwasaki (University of California, Davis) serves as Chair of the Selection Committee, Professor Jan Bardsley (University of North Carolina) serves as representative of the Northeast Asia Council of AAS for the committee, and Professor George Chaplin serves ex-officio. Individuals interested in applying—and faculty members interested in nominating a student—should write to Professor Noriko Iwasaki at University of California at Davis, East Asian Languages and Cultures, One Shields Ave., Davis, CA 95616, or email niwasaki@ucdavis.edu for application forms. Completed applications must be submitted by February 15, 2008. The award will be announced in the AAS Newsletter. Persons interested in contributing to the award fund should send their contributions to: The Hamako Ito Chaplin Memorial Award, c/o AAS, 1021 Huron Street, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.

The Japanese School at Middlebury College will have another round of full scholarships for 2008 session. These scholarships are applicable to both the 9-week language session and a 3-week graduate course on IT in Japanese pedagogy. If you are interested in either session, we urge you to take advantage of these scholarships. (Thirteen students received them in 2007.) More information: www.middlebury.edu/academics/ls/fellowships_scholarships/kwd.htm.