In their inaugural appearance at the Boston Common festival, Professors Sono and Shiomi and a team of student volunteers drew hundreds of visitors, gave away 100 buttons, and may have won over at least several future Minutemen.
The Japanese Program at UMass Amherst made its debut at Japan Festival Boston on April 25 and 26, and the first outing could hardly have gone better. With record-breaking attendance across the two-day festival on Boston Common, all 100 "UMass" (spelled in Japanese) buttons — awarded as prizes for a short cultural quiz — were claimed on the first day alone, and 107 copies of the program's brochure were picked up by visitors who read through them on the spot.
Prof. Reiko Sono and Prof. Yasuko Shiomi, both of the Japanese Program, staffed the booth on Saturday alongside Amaya Ajas, a student volunteer. On Sunday, Prof. Sono returned with three additional student volunteers--Momoka Ishida, Drew Carter, and Ryo Yamaguchi. The booth attracted a continuous flow of visitors across both days, offering a four-question cultural quiz — with one question drawn from each of the program's most popular courses — along with a fact-filled answer sheet that visitors were eager to take home.
Among the many visitors, the team spoke with high school juniors just beginning their college searches, some of whom were surprised and energized to learn that majoring in Japanese is a realistic path, both academically and professionally. Several high school seniors who had already been accepted to UMass also stopped by — some still weighing their options, others not yet aware of what the Japanese program had to offer.
One encounter stood out in particular. A high school student considering environmental science — and undecided between UMass and Amherst College — was won over by the program's faculty and students alike. "I believe I was able to persuade him to choose UMass," said Prof. Sono, "and my students persuaded him to study Japanese."
The booth also drew considerable interest from adults curious about Japanese language courses. While the team had to explain that UMass is based in Amherst — about two hours west of Boston — and currently offers online instruction only at the introductory level in summer, many visitors said they were glad to have discovered the program. Alumni from across the UMass system, including many from UMass Lowell, also stopped by to connect.
For the student volunteers, the experience proved as enriching as it was for visitors. Momoka Ishida, currently
enrolled in Prof. Sono's course, enjoyed sharing what she is studying with the public. Another made connections with UMass alumni. All of them, by Prof. Sono's account, simply had a wonderful time.
Given the success of this inaugural appearance, the program plans to return in future years and is exploring additional institutional support to expand the effort. All in all, the booth offered a direct channel to prospective students, strengthened the UMass network, and helped spread awareness of Japanese culture to thousands of visitors on Boston Common.