No.

103

July2024

KITAKYUSHU FORUM ON ASIAN WOMEN
Kitakyushu Otemachi Building 3F, Otemachi 11-4,
Kokurakita, Kitakyushu, Fukuoka 803-0814 JAPAN
PHONE +81-93-583-3434 FAX +81-93-583-5195
E-mail: info@kfaw.or.jp URL: https://www.kfaw.or.jp/en

Kitakyushu Forum on Asian Women (KFAW) Online Newsletter

Creating Hope
- Kenichiro Ogawa（Osaka YMCA General Secretary & CEO）
International conferences are held frequently at
the YMCA, which operates in 120 countries andterritories worldwide. When the meetings arechaired by the Australian CEO, whether global oronline, they began by saying, “We understandIf you look into a classroom at a Japanese school,
you will see that the desks and chairs for students
are neatly lined up, and students are facing theblackboard. Students sit facing the blackboard,and the teacher faces the students with his or herthat the place where we are now is the land of theIndigenous people, and we begin the meeting bypaying respect.” This saying seems to be common in Australia. It is meaningful for the people

back to the blackboard. Even when there arecases to do something in a group of students, therelationship between teachers and groups of students remains that teachers take leadership andwho have a history of domination not to forgetthe people who have been dominated and should
imagine and respect the feelings of minority, notjust in a particular country or region, and make ita habit to remember them.

teach students, and students are taught by teachers.
In the case where adults decide what students
should learn, tell them how to study, and even
imply that the students will become successful
people by doing such and such kinds of work andliving their lives in the future, young people will
no longer have room to think for themselves. In
the first place, the mental growth of young peo-According to a survey by the “Japanese Ministryof Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT),” the number of people who did
not attend elementary and junior high schools
was approximately 300 000 in the year 2022,
which was 1.7% in primary schools and 6% injunior high schools; an increasing trend. It is remarkable that young people are having pronounced difficulty in living. While it is true thatthe value of a person's life will always not change
at any time, as the birthrate declines and the proportion of working-age people supporting the elderly decreases, society's expectations of eachple who reach puberty cannot keep up with theunstoppable and rapid physical growth of theirbodies. Young people going through puberty are
more stressed and anxious than adults. Whatshould we do to help so many young people who
find difficulties in life?
One of the subsidiary organizations installed by
Osaka YMCA is the Osaka YMCA School Organization which manages five schools. These
are Osaka YMCA International College, YMCA

and every young person are increasing.

1Asian Breeze No.103 Online Newsletter
Gakuin High School (using the correspondencelearning system), Osaka YMCA Gakuin (Japanese language school for international students),
Osaka YMCA International School (international school accredited by the International Baccalaureate) and Osaka Prefectural Suito International Junior and Senior High School (publicschool prioritizing the Inquiry-Based Learning(IBL) and accredited by the International Bacca-

there are diverse genders. For example, whencalling students, teachers call their names with“san” which we use for any gender in Japan. Student activities are not divided by gender. Students can choose their own uniform, whether
trousers or skirts. During events that involve
overnight stays, the school is dialogue-oriented
with students. Teachers listen to the voices of
LGBTQ students and value diversity, includinglaureate).

gender equality. Students themselves, as well asteachers, think and make suggestions about what
they should be like.

The Osaka YMCA International College offers
the Expression and Communication Course as ahigh school education. 70% of the students haveexperienced being unable to attend classes at jun-Osaka YMCA International School once advertised worldwide for selecting a new principal.

ior high school. At the entrance ceremony, theprincipal of the college declares the following
promises. “Since this school does not have uniforms, we do not measure the length of yourThen, a proposal was made that they would liketo include parents and students as a part of theinterview process for a new principal. I accepted
the proposal timidly. Students asked questions

skirts. We do not check the color of your hair.
What the teachers are looking at is the face of thestudents.” “You may have a lot of anxieties rightnow. But your current worries will turn into relief
and peace of mind through your school life.” “Instead of blaming yourself for failing, let’s startworking on what you want to do and what is interesting, even if it is different from others. We
are here to support you in making that dream alike “How do you want to deal with students as aprincipal?” Parents asked questions not only
about communication with parents and theirviews on education but also “What are yourthoughts on how to exist as a school in the community?” During the interview to select a newprincipal, various questions were raised from diverse perspectives. This interview also became aprocess for candidates to take the principalshipreality." These are messages from teachers also
to parents who are worried that the parenting
they have been believing in and done is not successful in raising their children. These parents
ask themselves whether they have imposed any
uniform values in which they have believed.
These parents try to restore hope through thesemessages.

more seriously. It was also a good opportunity forus as recruiters to consider what the school
should aim for.
As I am in a position responsible for an organization, I am faced with a decision on how to deal
with proposals based on diverse values, including gender equality. It is important to set goals
and establish rules and commitments to realize
the goals. It is important to adhere to these rules

The Osaka YMCA is promoting initiatives ineach class and each school to communicate that2Asian Breeze No.103 Online Newsletterand commitments. However, our attitude of stepping away from the above routine and listening
to diverse opinions with an open mind will create
new perspectives and values to realize inclusiveness and diversity. I want to consider the future
not only with the people currently living in thesame community but also with the people we will
welcome into our community in the future.

【Profile of Mr. Kenichiro Ogawa】
Graduated from Toyo University in 1994, with a degree in Business Administration from the Faculty ofBusiness Administration of the Business Administration Department of the university. During his
student days, he was engaged in the Terakoya (temple)-school establishment activity in Bangladesh toincrease literacy rates in the country and visited
Bangladesh twice in pursuit of this goal.
After graduation, he started working at the TokyoYMCA. At the YMCA Hotel Vocational School,
where he worked as a school management staff, heled overseas training programs visiting the UnitedStates and Europe and was also appointed as thehead of the career guidance office of the school.
From 2001, he has participated in the redevelopment project “Training and Accommodation Institution for Young Men” (Seishonen-no-ie) of the Tokyo Metropolitan Government by collaboratingwith a private company as a staff member of theTokyo YMCA. At the same time, he was responsible for organizing outdoor activities for children
with developmental disabilities and autism, and acquired knowledge about the joys and concerns ofthese children and their families.
In 2004, he moved to the Kitakyushu YMCA where
he was given the responsibility for all operations of
the Kitakyushu YMCA. He visited China, Vietnam,
Mongolia, Nepal, and Sri Lanka frequently and repeatedly as principal of the Japanese language
school of the Kitakyushu YMCA, for the purpose ofrecruiting students and planning the future with theapplicant students and parents.

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Asian Breeze No.103 Online NewsletterIn the Moji-port area in Kitakyushu where aging isprogressing, he ensured success in operating thenew after-school childcare facilities by reinforcing
conversations with the Kitakyushu City and the local autonomous federations. In 2008 he became
General Secretary of the Kitakyushu YMCA andcontributed to the internationalization of the area
and the well-balanced development of children's
minds and bodies.
In 2018, he was appointed as General Secretary ofthe Osaka YMCA. Since then, he has been working
on social education operations, school education operations, and welfare project operations of theOsaka YMCA. The YMCA is committed to providing “Holistic Education”. To achieve this goal, theOsaka YMCA is challenging itself to solve theproblem of school non-attendance by removing barriers between education and welfare. The Osaka
YMCA is also facing challenges in developing its“Educational programs” that promote international
perspectives by decreasing the barriers between
school education and social education.

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