Message from the Donors

We are deeply honored to establish the Oka Fund through the Laurasian Institution to support the development of Japanese language education.

We lived in the United States for nearly forty years. During that time, Masao worked as a businessman, while Mayumi devoted her career to Japanese language education at American universities, including many years as Director of the Japanese Language Program at the University of Michigan. Japanese language education in the United States provided meaningful professional opportunities and connections throughout our lives.

After retiring and returning permanently to Japan in 2022, Mayumi began reflecting on how she might give back to the field that had shaped her career. Japanese language teachers work tirelessly to promote cross-cultural understanding and to support students who seek to learn about Japan and its language. We hope that this fund will help support those educators and encourage the continued growth of Japanese language education.

Another reason we chose to make this donation is that we do not have children or close relatives who would inherit our assets in the future. We therefore felt it would be meaningful to use part of our resources to support Japanese language education and the community of educators who sustain it.

Although our contribution is modest, we sincerely hope that the Oka Fund will contribute to the future development of Japanese language education and perhaps inspire others to support this important field.

We would also like to express our heartfelt gratitude to Mr. Bradley S. Smith, President of the Laurasian Institution. His thoughtful response to our proposal, his clear understanding of our intentions, and his ability to translate those ideas into a concrete plan made the establishment of this fund possible.

We hope that the Oka Fund will contribute to the continued growth of Japanese language education and strengthen connections among educators, students, and institutions around the world.