Hello, this is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku Office. The season has turned to autumn, and we can feel the cool breeze in the air. Today, I’d like to introduce some of the extracurricular activities that took place in September.

Not National Language, but Japanese

 On Wednesday, September 17th, 2025, Tsutsui sensei gave a special lecture titled “Not National Language, but Japanese”. Tsutsui sensei teaches a Japanese as a second (foreign) language classes for students whose first language is another language.
 This time, however, the lecture was aimed at native Japanese speakers. It focused on the fact that even the Japanese we use casually every day has complexities in word choice and grammatical structures. The lecture explored these points and examined how the function of words creates meaning.
 Tsutsui sensei commented: “Some students mentioned that they were not confident in Japanese or grammar, but everyone participated actively. I observed students thinking for themselves, gaining insights, and deepening their understanding through group discussions. I also learned new things from their efforts and comments. Unfortunately, we ran out of time and couldn’t cover one of the main topics, the difference between wa (は) and ga (が) so I plan to hold a second session in the next semester. I hope many students will join us again.”

Flower Arrangement and Ikebana Workshop

 On Friday, September 19th, 2025, a Flower Arrangement and Kado Class was held, organized by Takako Utsunomiya sensei and Fumi Kuroda sensei. Kazumi Minamikawa sensei (instructor) led the Flower Arrangement course.
 First, students created flower arrangements using summer tulip, roses, and statice. After learning from Minamikawa sensei how to use scissors and cut the flower correctly, students completed their own unique works by arranging flowers on special sponges, making the most of each flower’s characteristics and colors.
Next, students split into three groups and tried authentic Ikebana using a flower frog and a water basin, incorporating materials such as beans, lilies, sunflowers, asparagus, hiogi, and pincushions. Referring to Minamikawa sensei’s examples,
 students adjusted the height and angle of the flowers while considering overall balance. Each group had a different theme, resulting in a variety of creative and distinctive works.
 Students commented, “I was happy to learn about so many different flowers and to finish something beautiful.” Their works were displayed in the entrance and common spaces of the Hakusanroku Campus, creating a bright and elegant atmosphere throughout the school.

Career Support for KOSEN Students

 On Friday, September 19th, 2025, a lecture titled “Career Support for KOSEN Students” was held for 1st and 2nd year students. This lecture was giving by Mr. Tatsuya Taian from OLIENT TECH Co., Ltd.
 After graduating from a KOSEN, students generally have two main paths: employment or further education. Traditionally, most students choose employment, but in recent years, the proportion of students aiming for further studies has increased.
 Mr. Taian provided advice on both employment and further education, explaining their respective advantages and disadvantages, as well as how to approach job hunting and academic preparation. He concluded his lecture with the following encouraging words for the students: “Looking ahead to your future, gathering information early, and preparing in advance will lead to satisfying career and academic choices.”

The Secret of the Crest Vault: STEM Themed Escape Room

 On Monday, September 22nd, 2025, Domyson Abuan sensei and Sharmee Abuan sensei hosted an activity titled “The Secret of the Crest Vault: STEM-Themed Escape Room.” Students worked together to solve STEM-related puzzles and riddles in order to escape from a locked room.
 For each challenge they cleared, one digit of a four-digit passcode was revealed, with each digit representing a concept related to Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics.
 Using their knowledge, teamwork, and quick decision-making skills, the students successfully gathered all four digits, completed the passcode, and unlocked the door to escape. Impressively, the winning team solved the puzzles in just 3 minutes and 48 seconds!

Shall We Dance?

 On Friday, September 26th, 2025, Justin Han sensei and Stephanie Reynolds sensei hosted an activity titled “Shall We Dance?”. On this day, two professional dance instructors and two volunteer dancers were invited, and students learned the basic steps of four types of ballroom dance (Waltz, Blues, Cha-Cha-Cha, and Jitterbug).
 In these dances, the usual roles are that men lead and women follow, each performing complementary movements. The Dance instructors focused on teaching the students the steps in each type of dance that are performed by both the leader and the follower. After learning the fundamental movements and counts, students paired up and practiced to music, experiencing the joy of dancing.
 Justin sensei commented: “At first, the students struggled with the motions and rhythm of the steps, but as they practiced, they greatly improved. The students expressed their enjoyment of the class while some students even asked about making it more permanent!”

Igarashi Takenobu Archive

 On Friday, September 26th, 2025, five 1st and 2nd year students visited the Igarashi Takenobu Archive at KIT. This archive, established in 2023 for the purpose of fostering aesthetic education, houses approximately 5,000 works and materials donated by the sculptor and designer, Mr. Takenobu Igarashi.
 The students toured the gallery and received explanations about the exhibited works and the artist. In the workshop, students brought four small everyday items, arranged them on graph paper, and looked for commonalities. They organized the items by aspects such as color, shape, and chronology, and then summarized differences in thinking within their groups.
 Through this experience, the students cultivated observation and creativity through the act of “seeing.

Soft Volleyball & Volleyball Tournament

 On Monday, September 29th, 2025, a hike to Mt. Hakusan and Mt. Sanpoiwa was originally planned, but due to rain, it was canceled. Instead, a Soft Volleyball & Volleyball Tournament was held, organized by Philip Cadzow sensei, where 1st and 2nd year students and faculty enjoyed playing together.
 The event started with soft volleyball. Seven-minute matches were played one after another, with teams giving their all and cheering each other on. Next came the volleyball matches, where every successful spike or receive drew cheers and loud support. Teachers and students teamed up, encouraging each other and playing with a sense of unity. An original game was also introduced, where all participants split into two large teams and everyone joined the court. This game featured a special rule allowing up to four touches before returning the ball to the opponent’s side, making full use of the large number of players and fostering teamwork to keep the ball in play. Finally, an intense match between 1st and 2nd year students took place! From the start, the 2nd years dominated with strong teamwork and powerful plays. The 1st years fought back bravely, but ultimately, the 2nd years’ coordination and focus led them to victory.

Book Review Presentation by 1st Year Students

 On Wednesday, September 25th, 2025, a book review presentation was held for 1st year students. The students presented for up to 3 minutes on the books they read during summer vacation (with no restrictions on genre), sharing what they learned and their impressions. Japanese students read English books and presented in English, while international students read Japanese books and presented in Japanese. The students presented about a variety of genres, including fantasy, adventure, biography, and mystery. Some students created animations based on the book’s storyline, while others showcased pencil sketches depicting a scene from the story.
 After the presentations, a vote was held among the students and faculty to select the best presentations. Two students were chosen as the winners of the English presentations (Japanese students) and one student was chosen as the winner of the Japanese presentations (International students). The results are as follows.

English Presentation Winner: Taiki Sasaki

English Presentation Winner: Shunta Tamura

Japanese Presentation Winner: Burba Anthony Revatta

Yuri Makada

 Hello, this is Arihiro Kodaka, and I am in charge of Engineering Design II for 2nd year students. At ICT, we place great importance on practical learning in collaboration with the local community. In Engineering Design II, students tackle agricultural challenges faced by the region and explore solutions from both technological and business perspectives. The Tech Team provides technical support for wildlife damage prevention to protect sweet potatoes, while the Business Team works to revitalize the community by marketing the protected sweet potatoes as a local brand product.

 In this class, students are expected to accurately understand the current situation, identify new approaches to revitalizing the local community, and establish clear design objectives to realize those ideas. To achieve this, it is essential for them to gain a multifaceted understanding of the significance and impact of cultivating crops in this region, as well as the resources and effort required. As a first step, the entire class participated in creating ridges in the field, planting sweet potatoes, and installing electric fences to prevent wildlife damage.

Please also refer to the Hakusanroku Journal written by President Maasaki Shikada,
“2nd Year Engineering Design: Beniharuka Sweet Potato Planting (May 26th, 2025)"

 Although it was already mid-April this year, more than 50cm of snow remained in the field, and the temperatures were still low, making it difficult to plant the seedlings. However, thanks to a miraculous period of continuous rain, the snow melted just in time for the scheduled delivery of the seedlings, allowing us to proceed with planting. However, the temperatures this spring were in the low 10℃, which was quite cold and not ideal for root development or growth. The seedlings didn’t look very healthy, and I was worried. Fortunately, in May, the temperatures finally started to rise, and I was relieved to see the seedlings beginning to grow.

 Even after the seedlings had taken root, we continued to monitor their condition. This year, I noticed that some seedlings had been pulled out. Upon researching online, we found reports indicating that newly planted seedlings can be an easy target for crows, which may be what happened in our field as well. Additionally, we observed that the electric fence had become loose due to the wire mesh getting caught on the binding wire used to secure it to the poles. Next year, we plan to install a camera to closely monitor what happens in the field after planting. We will be selling sweet potatoes again this year, so please enjoy our exceptionally sweet Kosen Beniharuka!

Arihiro Kodaka

 Summer is here, and with it comes the season of insects. Even in winter, we encounter stink bugs on the Hakusanroku Campus, but summer insects are truly in a class of their own, aren’t they?
 Hello, this is Tsutsui. At the end of June, I joined an after-school activity for Hakurei elementary school students organized by the local community center, together with students from ICT students.

 On a Wednesday afternoon after third period classes ended, four students—Madoka Nakazawa (2nd year), Kai Osawa (1st year), Reo Sakai (1st year), and Kotaro Higuchi (1st year)—visited a forest behind a nearby elementary and junior high school, just a three-minute drive from Hakusanroku Campus to enjoy insect catching with local children. Kai even brought his own insect net!
 When we arrived, the younger Hakurei students were already energetically catching insects, and the forest was filled with lively voices. Later, older grades hakurei students joined in, and the forest became even more vibrant as everyone began catching insects together.
 When you think of “insect catching,” you might imagine chasing butterflies and dragonflies with a net, or catching cicadas, beetles, grasshoppers, and crickets. However, the younger hakurei students were finding tiny insects quietly hiding on leaves and branches. They would point and say, “Here it is!”—but the insects were so small and blended in with the leaves that I couldn’t see them, especially with my aging eyes. The Hakurei students skillfully used a tool, which has a capsule at the end of a pair of tweezers, to catch them quickly and easily.
 Perhaps because it was early summer, the insects were still in the process of growing. But to the hakurei students, even the tiniest insect was a real “bug.” Their excited cheers and sparkling eyes when they found one were truly memorable. 
 That day, the hakurei students caught not only tiny insects, but also grasshoppers, crickets, beetles, ladybugs, pill bugs, stick insects—and even a frog! 

 The ICT students enjoyed interacting with the hakurei students in their own unique ways. The sky and forest they usually see from campus must have looked quite different that day.
 Although Hakusanroku Campus is surrounded by nature, students mostly study indoors during the week, and don’t often have opportunities to interact with the local community or nature. Moreover, due to limited transportation options, it’s not easy to explore the area on weekends. 
 This short experience gave the ICT students a chance to feel like part of the local community and to truly connect with nature. 
 I wonder if those tiny insects have grown bigger… Maybe now, even I could spot them.

 Three months have passed since we went bug catching. I wonder if those tiny insects have grown... Maybe now, even I could see them with my own eyes.

Tsutsui Masako

 Hi, my name is Kotaro Higuchi, a 1st year student at the ICT. Recently, five high school students from the state of Missouri, USA, visited our campus. Today, I would like to share my memories with my buddy, Isaac.

 I first met Isaac on the evening of Saturday, June 7th, 2025, the day they arrived at the Hakusanroku campus. My first impression of him was that he was tall and had such an adult aura, so I couldn’t believe that he is a high school student.  However, when I tried to speak with him, I found out that he was interested in Japanese culture. While we were explaining our school, he listened aggressively and frequently asked questions.

 I was relieved that we were able to become friends so quickly. The next day, we went on a trip to Kanazawa. During the bus ride, Isaac was curious about everything he saw in Japan. He said the rice plants growing in the paddy fields were beautiful and we had an exciting conversation about the differences between school life in Japan and America. In Kanazawa, he was impressed by the clever design of Kanazawa Castle and saying, “This castle must have been really hard to attack.” I thought that was a very interesting and unique observation. At the end of the trip, he became hooked on Japanese food, and he ate Dango and bought lots of Onigiri and snacks at 7-Eleven.

 After that, we spent our weekdays together attending some classes. We also played basketball and American football after school, which made the rest of the time we shared really satisfying. I hope we can meet again someday.

Kotaro Higuchi

 Hello, this is Yuri Makada from the Hakusanroku Office. This time, I would like to introduce a project created by 1st year student Taiki Sasaki using Autodesk Fusion.

 In the Computer Skills IA course for 1st year students, students begin working with Autodesk Fusion to create 3D models right after entering ICT. In this class, students learn the fundamental computer skills necessary for engineers. Taiki Sasaki, a 1st year student, applied what he learned in class and spent two months creating a 3D model of a V8 engine! I've put together a video showcasing his work—please watch!

Yuri Makada