WASHINGTON – Over the past 15 years, the number of Japanese students studying in the United States has decreased by 57 percent with Japan moving from the top country of origin for foreign students on U.S. campuses to the seventh-leading source market. While the number of American students studying in Japan has risen over this period, the absolute number remains small, and a significant need to expand educational exchange opportunities persists.

That is a driving factor behind TeamUp, a project of the United States-Japan Bridging Foundation (USJBF), funded through a grant from the Embassy of the United States in Tokyo, to build strategic partnerships between U.S. and Japan institutions of higher education and increase student mobility between the two nations.

As part of this initiative, Cultural Vistas and USJBF will bring six senior international officers and staff from U.S. higher education institutions to Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Okinawa for an eight-day familiarization tour, beginning Wednesday, June 22.  The group includes the representatives of the following U.S. institutions:

• University of Hawaiʻi Maui College
• University of Houston-Downtown
• IES Abroad
• LaGuardia Community College
• Lurleen B. Wallace Community College
• Spelman College

The tour will include a meeting with the U.S. Embassy in Tokyo and visits to universities and colleges in each region that reflect the diversity of higher education in Japan, where the group will meet with peers and students to better understand critical factors for successful collaboration, and, ultimately, to advance internationalization efforts at their respective institutions.

For more information about TeamUp’s efforts to encourage and build connections between American and Japanese institutions, visit teamup-usjapan.org.

About the United States-Japan Bridging Foundation
The United States – Japan Bridging Foundation, a nonprofit organization created in 1998, was established at the recommendation of the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission and CULCON (U.S.-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange). USJBF aims to expand the opportunities for student mobility between the two nations and to help prepare the next generation of global leaders and strengthen the U.S.-Japan relationship. — Learn more at bridgingfoundation.org.

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About Cultural Vistas
Founded in 1963, Cultural Vistas is a nonprofit exchange organization promoting global understanding and collaboration among individuals and institutions. Cultural Vistas develops international professional experiences that create more informed, skilled, and engaged citizens. Its programs empower people to drive positive change in themselves, their organizations, and society. Since 1990, Cultural Vistas has worked together with global partners to connect more than 3,000 Japanese and American citizens with opportunities to enhance their careers and promote a global perspective. — Learn more at culturalvistas.org.

Follow @CulturalVistas on Twitter