St. Norbert College awarded funding for faculty-student research in Japan

From St. Norbert College, February 21, 2008
by Mike Counter, mike.counter@snc.edu, (920) 403-3089

St. Norbert College has been selected as one of 13 recipients for a summer 2008 ASIANetwork Freeman Student-Faculty Fellows Award. This $25,906 award will provide funding for Ikuko Torimoto, associate professor of Japanese, and four students to travel to Japan this summer to conduct research leading to the making of a documentary. The film will show how Japanese women are portrayed in both popular and traditional Japanese culture.

To apply for this award, junior Deziree Larson (Manitowoc), sophomore Alyssa Beyer (De Pere), sophomore Katlyn Jaeger (Kewaunee), sophomore Paul McEnaney (Kewaunee) and Torimoto had to propose a joint research project and apply as a team. Torimoto expressed her willingness to supervise student research, while the students identified how their backgrounds prepared them to pursue their research project and the importance of the proposed project for career preparation.

"Deziree, Alyssa and Katlyn are Japanese minors, and Paul has an independent study with me this semester. They have demonstrated a passion for the language and culture of Japan," said Torimoto, a native of Tokyo, Japan. "They are active members of the Japan and Anime Clubs and have organized many academic activities, such as inviting guest speakers, visiting elementary schools, and setting up the Japan cultural week.