Category: News

John Fry officially began his tenure as Temple University’s 15^th president on November 1, 2024. He was appointed to the role in July following a comprehensive national search overseen by the President Search Advisory Committee.

Fry is a nationally recognized leader in higher education, known for his innovation and strategic vision. With experience as a consultant, board member, chief operating officer, and president, he brings a comprehensive understanding of the challenges in leading major educational institutions.

Prior to joining Temple University, Fry served as president of Drexel University in Philadelphia since 2010. Previously, he served as president of Franklin & Marshall College of Pennsylvania from 2002 to 2010 and served as executive vice president of University of Pennsylvania. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Fry acquired a bachelor’s degree from Lafayette College in Pennsylvania and a master’s degree in business administration from New York University’s Stern School of Business.

Learn more about President Fry’s appointment on the Main Campus website.

■ About TUJ

Established in 1982, Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) is an integral part of Temple University’s main campus in Philadelphia, with students earning Temple credits and degrees directly from the main campus while studying in Japan. TUJ is the oldest and largest branch campus of a foreign university in Japan. In 2005, it became the first university to be officially designated a Foreign University, Japan Campus by Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology.

Currently, over 2,700 undergraduate and graduate students from nearly 80 countries and regions are enrolled, which has more than doubled in size over the past four years. In January 2025, TUJ will expand further with the opening of a satellite location in Kyoto.

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Other related stories

• Temple University Continues Setting New Enrollment Records, Exceeding 2,700 Degree-Seeking Students in Japan (October 23, 2024)
• Temple University, Japan Campus Expands in Tokyo, Adds New Location, Facilities to Accommodate Growing Student Body (August 5, 2024)
• Temple University, Japan Campus Unveils New Kyoto Satellite Campus Commencing from January 2025 (February 9, 2024)

Photography By: Joseph V. Labolito

Temple University announced on July 3, 2024 (EST) the appointment of John Fry, the president of Philadelphia-based Drexel University, as its 15^th president. The Temple Board of Trustees confirmed the appointment with a unanimous vote. Fry will assume the position after new leadership has been named at Drexel.

Fry has served as president of Drexel since 2010. He previously served as president of Franklin & Marshall College of Pennsylvania from 2002 to 2010, and as executive vice president of University of Pennsylvania. A native of Brooklyn, New York, Frey graduated from Lafayette College in Pennsylvania and earned a master’s degree in business administration from New York University Stern School of Business.

Read more at the Main Campus site :

• https://news.temple.edu/news/2024-07-02/temple-university-appoints-its-15th-president-higher-education-leader-john-fry
• https://president.temple.edu/university-leadership/presidential-search/meet-president-elect-john-fry

Scenery of the main campus in Philadelphia

On a mission to expand opportunities for students seeking to experience international education both in Japan and the United States, the Japan campus of Temple University (TUJ) has newly introduced a program that will enable more students to travel and advance their global understanding.

TUJ is excited to announce its new “Fly to Philly Program.” This program facilitates affordable and greater access to Temple’s main campus in the United States. It enables TUJ students to save about 900,000 yen ($1=115 yen as of March 7) per semester when studying at the main campus in Philadelphia for a select period.

Temple University is a top-ranked global institution located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. TUJ students can take advantage of a liberal arts education entirely in Tokyo while pursuing an American university bachelor’s degree. They also have the option of studying abroad at Temple’s main campus or Rome campus. TUJ also offers exchange programs in other countries too.

Starting in May 2022, the new Fly to Philly Program will provide greater access to an affordable experience in Philadelphia. TUJ students can take advantage of the new program for up to one academic year (fall, spring, and summer semesters in any order). Currently, the full-time tuition for non-resident students at the main campus is about 1.7 million yen a semester compared with 795,100 yen at the Japan campus.

Undergraduate students who have completed at least one semester at TUJ’s Sangenjaya campus in good academic standing will be eligible to study at the main campus through this program. Additional requirements may apply depending on a student’s program of study. TUJ is excited to offer the program for the foreseeable future.

Students wishing to study in Philadelphia for longer than one academic year can shift their home campus. In such a case, the standard main campus tuition and fees will apply.

“Study abroad positively influences the career path, world view, and self-confidence of students,” TUJ Dean Matthew J. Wilson observed. “We are committed to provide TUJ students with distinctive international experience that prepares them for a global career. Studying in Philadelphia can broaden horizons, facilitate personal growth, and foster intercultural development. We hope our students will take advantage of this opportunity as valued members of the Temple University family.”

Temple University is an American public university based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania founded in 1884. Temple educates about 36,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students. TUJ educates nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students from 57 countries in Sangenjaya, Tokyo. It is the largest and longest-running branch campus of a foreign university in Japan. It celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.

Students studying in the TUJ cafeteria

Increasing its commitment to prioritizing students, the Japan campus of Temple University (TUJ) will roll out major enhancements to its Bridge Program for non-native English-speaking students seeking to enter the undergraduate programs from May 2022. Students enrolled in TUJ’s Bridge Program have the opportunity to accelerate their progress to a university degree from a globally renowned American university by taking university courses while being immersed in intensive academic English training.

TUJ provides a unique international learning environment in the heart of Tokyo with over 50% of its students originating from outside of Japan. Because TUJ students study in English and obtain their degree from Temple University’s main campus in Philadelphia (USA), they are expected to have a sufficient level of English fluency to gain admission (minimum score of 79 on TOEFL iBT or 6.0 on IELTS for non-English native speakers).

The Bridge Program provides a pathway for non-English native speakers with a strong academic record, but who cannot achieve sufficient language test scores for full admission, to gain conditional acceptance into a highly ranked global university. Although Bridge students are predominantly Japanese, students residing outside of Japan can also receive visa sponsorship and participate in the Bridge Program.

As Bridge students advance across the three levels in the program (Bridge 1, 2, 3), they progressively take more credit-bearing university courses while benefitting from concurrent academic language skills training. By coupling an actual classroom experience together with specialized English training, Bridge students can speed towards a degree from a top American institution while acquiring sufficient English fluency to succeed in the classroom and global workplace.

Going forward, Bridge students can earn up to 15 credits towards their 120-credit undergraduate degree. To date, Bridge students could obtain only six credits towards their degree. After completing the Bridge Program and seeing their English ability improve, students fully matriculate into the University. The revamped program also features a more flexible grading and advancement scheme including the ability to advance directly into the undergraduate program if a student shows sufficient progress on standardized language tests.

“As TUJ strives to equip students with the skills required to succeed in a global workplace, our upgrades to the Bridge Program will enhance the university experience,” TUJ Dean, Matthew J. Wilson said. “The upgrades reduce the overall time and costs associated with a university degree and language skills development. We are excited to assist Japanese and overseas students on their journey to an exciting global career.”

The planned upgrades pave the way for non-native English-speaking students to complete their undergraduate studies more quickly than the previous system. For a student participating in the Bridge program, the total tuition and fees until graduation will be lower in comparison to the current system.

TUJ is the largest and longest-running branch campus of a foreign university in Japan. The university celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Japan’s Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) designated TUJ as the first Foreign University, Japan Campus in 2005. The Japan campus of Temple University, located in Sangenjaya, Tokyo, educates nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students from 57 countries.

To learn more about the Bridge Program, click the following link:

Bridge Program (For Non-native English Speakers)

Temple University announced June 8 (EST) that it has selected Dr. Jason Wingard, former dean and professor of the School of Professional Studies at Columbia University, as its next president. A unanimous vote of confirmation by the Temple Board of Trustees on the day, Dr. Wingard will become the university’s 12th president, and will begin serving on July 1.

Read more at Main Campus site :
Temple University names Dr. Jason Wingard as next president

The Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the U.S. Embassy in Japan, Mr. Joseph M. Young, visited Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) on February 24, 2021. He met with Dean Matthew J. Wilson and other senior TUJ administrators to discuss current and future collaborations involving the University and U.S. Embassy. The delegations also talked about the importance of international education and benefits of studying abroad. After this key meeting. Mr. Young toured our new campus in the heart of Tokyo with members of the TUJ Student Government.

They toured the class rooms, art rooms, the university library, and student lounge, while discussing with Mr. Young about the situation under COVID-19, current student government activities, and future of TUJ.

Mr. Young answered student’s questions and gave encouragement to the students who are struggling daily in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic. The students and Mr. Young smiled at each other through their masks.

This conference examines themes, methods, and constructive possibilities linking François Laruelle’s non-standard philosophy with the work of the philosophers of the Kyoto School including but not limited to Kitarō Nishida, Hajime Tanabe, Jun Tosaka, Keiji Nishitani, and Miki Kiyoshi. Topics for proposed papers are free to focus on metaphysical, epistemological, ethical, or aesthetic questions and may involve comparative studies of Laruelle and specific thinkers from the Kyoto School regarding such themes as:

• Shinran Buddhism
• Basho
• Nothingness
• Zen
• Mu
• Radical Immanence
• Sufficient Philosophy
• Philosophical Decision
• The Real and the One

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Anne-Françoise Schmid (Paris Tech)
The conference will be held online via Zoom, please use the registration link provided. Papers presented at the conference will be eligible for publication in a proposed edited volume. Additional contributions to the volume will be solicited after the event.
This conference is organized by Professor Jordanco Sekulovski (TUJ) and Professor Rocco Gangle (Endicott College, US).

The TUJ Philosophy Lecture Series is a non-profit forum of Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) for the promotion of critical thinking. The lectures are free, open to the public, and feature speakers from various universities around the world. The lecture series is a great way to learn about recent research in philosophy and in the humanities as a whole.

Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) held a U.S. Presidential Election Viewing Event on Nov 4. It took place on campus respecting social distancing rules due to COVID-19, and many students who could not come to campus attended from their locations using Zoom.

Ken Moskowitz, adjunct professor of political science at TUJ, started the event by delivering a talk entitled “Spin and Manipulation in the U.S. Presidential Campaign.” He examined the tone of political advertising and communication. The lecture also included discussions of moderation and extremism, distortion, persuasion, and the role of the internet and social media.

Forty students, including thirty attending remotely, were asked to critically analyze a YouTube political video. The lecture was followed by viewing a live broadcast of election results.

The event was covered by Japanese media. Several TUJ students were interviewed and presented their perspective and opinions.

The Japan Times | Desire to see Trump ousted prods Gen Z voters in Japan to back Biden
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/11/04/national/japan-us-election-generation-z/

NHK News
https://www3.nhk.or.jp/news/html/20201104/k10012695051000.html

Asahi Shimbun
https://www.asahi.com/articles/ASNC45R8LNC4UTIL036.html

George Miller, Associate dean of TUJ, said, “The presidential election in the United States will not just impact Americans. As a western institution based in Japan, it’s important for us to provide a place where people can congregate, communicate and share the experience of this historic event.”

Student Intern Profile

Name: Mingli Huang

Country: Taiwan

Major: International Affairs

Internship at: Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo

—Please describe the internship program you participated in.

In Fall 2019 I did an internship program at Vanguard Lawyers Tokyo, based in a busy area in Yuraku-cho.
They deal mostly with business-related cases such as employment issues and contract negotiations for multinational corporations, some of them are actually quite large.

—What were your responsibilities and projects at the internship?

At the firm the associates and partners have communication with clients, often times these letters exchanged between the different offices are written in English. So my task mostly was proofreading these exchanges between the associates and clients.

—What did you enjoy the most at the internship?

I think it would have to be the professional atmosphere that I was exposed to. Thanks to all my co-workers and superiors at Vanguard, I had a great time understanding what it takes to become a lawyer here in Japan and perhaps lawyers everywhere around the world.

I think something that jumps out to me about this professionalism would be the document that I was asked to draft for an associate.

This would have to be something that they presented the clients directly or after they proofread. Starting out with just a blank piece of paper, I think I put a lot of pressure on myself to try to do my best to represent Vanguard to the best of my ability.

—How did TUJ’s education and your experiences contribute to the success of your internship?

I’ve studied Japan’s history a little bit in Professor Kingston’s class and this is my personal opinion, but I think every country’s laws are more or less based on its history. And given Japan’s history with lifetime employment, I think learning about that at TUJ and understanding the reasons behind it helped me understand what some of the documents are talking about and understanding that gave me a better idea of how to proofread the article in terms of representing what the associates and partners wanted to say and to produce a better result.

My major coordinator at school, Professor James Brown, who was also my supervisor in this internship, helped me a lot throughout the internship, specifically when I had questions regarding work or how to present myself. I would always go to him and he gave me great advice on how to solve these potential issues.

—If you were to give advice to prospective interns, what would you say?

Talking to people, be active, don’t be afraid to talk. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Just try to be as curious as possible, be as friendly as possible.

• More Student Internship Interviews

The summer semester, which started on May 25 at Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ), was featured in a popular morning program “Ohayo Nippon” on NHK in their May 27 news broadcast.

During the news segment, TUJ’s summer-only special options were introduced, including accommodating those students who had to return to Japan from overseas universities due to COVID-19 but wanted to continue their studies as visiting students at TUJ. An online class held by Communication Studies Associate Professor Ron Carr was covered as an example where Mayuko Sadanaga, a sophomore from Denison University, Ohio, is enrolled. Prior to enrolling at Denison, Mayuko studied English in TUJ’s Academic English Program.

Dean Bruce Stronach and Mayuko are both quoted in the Japanese article below:

『帰国した留学生 アメリカの大学が支援 新型コロナ(American University to Help Returning Students due to COVID-19 )(NHK Web)』

<TUJ’s responses to COVID-19>

• What We Can Do Now: TUJ’s “Students First” Policy in Response to the COVID-19 Outbreak (as of April 30) (May 8, 2020)
• TUJ Holds Its First Online Bilingual Career Fair in Response to COVID-19 (April 30, 2020)
• In the Face of COVID-19, Temple University Adapts (April 14, 2020)
• Summer-only Special Options Available for Students Returning to Japan from Overseas (5/25-7/29) (April 1, 2020)
• A Week has Passed – TUJ Classes Online: Preventive Measures Taken by a Foreign University in Japan (March 11, 2020)
• Coronavirus Preventive Actions – Classes to Be Held Fully Online (March 2, 2020)

Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) welcomed Dr. Terry MacDougall, Emeritus at Stanford University, as a Visiting Professor of Political Science in fall 2019. Professor MacDougall has been teaching and researching Japanese politics and studies both in Japan and the U.S. for many years. He has taught at Harvard, the University of Virginia, and Boston University, and also served as a director of the Stanford Center Japan in Kyoto.

TUJ Dean Bruce Stronach has known Professor MacDougall for decades as a mentor and friend. This interview video includes extracts of their conversation on their past, present and future.

(Filmed and edited by Cory Sparks, senior communications major / December 2019 at TUJ, Setagaya, Tokyo)

More than 90 Temple University student musicians, including faculty members Terell Stafford and Dick Oatts, performed on a Grammy-nominated record composed by superstar artist Vince Mendoza.

Temple’s Boyer College of Music and Dance is hopeful that come the Grammy Awards on Jan. 26, its recipe of more than 90 musicians, 50-plus hours of rehearsals, a 12-hour recording session and one superstar composer will turn to Grammy gold for the Temple University Studio Orchestra and the college’s record label, BCM&D Records.

Read the full article on the Temple Main Campus news page

Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) announced today the formation of two new Doctoral Cohorts, one at the TUJ Tokyo Center (Cohort XIII), the other at the TUJ Osaka Center (Cohort X). Both will lead to the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Education, Concentration in Applied Linguistics. Applications for admission will be accepted from March 2, 2020 and must be submitted by Monday, April 13, 2020. Final selection of candidates will be announced on or before Friday, June 12, 2020. Classes will begin on Friday, September 4, 2020.

Application information and materials are available on the TUJ Graduate College of Education website. Hardcopy packets are also available at the Graduate College of Education Office at both TUJ Tokyo Center and Osaka Center.

For additional inquiries about the application please contact:

Application materials are also available in the Graduate College of Education Office at TUJ Osaka Center:

On November 6, Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) held a ceremony to commemorate the completion of its new campus on the grounds of Showa Women’s University (SWU) in Sangen-jaya, Tokyo. A delegation of nearly 40 officials from Temple University Main Campus (in the U.S.) and Board of Trustees Chair Mitchell Morgan and President Richard Englert attended the ceremony. They were joined by approximately 250 guests on the new campus. The ceremony included a ribbon-cutting and Kagamiwari, the customary opening of a barrel of sake.

The ceremony then moved to the SWU Hitomi Memorial Hall, where Temple University awarded an honorary doctorate to SWU Chancellor Mariko Bando.

Temple Main Campus President Richard Englert gave the conferral ceremony’s opening address. He declared TUJ’s new campus in Sangen-jaya, Tokyo and Main Campus’s cutting-edge Charles Library as two key facilities completed this year by Temple University. He went on to praise Chancellor Bando, saying, “Through your writing, your public service, and your work as the head of an institution of higher education, you have had an impact not only on yourself and your family, but on many people in Japan and around the world, and have shown us all the way forward.”

Former Prime Minister of Japan Yasuo Fukuda was present as a special guest, and gave a commemorative speech. Mr. Fukuda’s time as Minister of State for Gender Equality and Social Affairs coincided with Chancellor Bando’s service as the first ever Director-General of Japan’s Gender Equality Bureau. In his speech, Mr. Fukuda reflected on Chancellor Bando’s achievements, while also extolling her ongoing work in higher education. “I believe that going forward, Temple University and Showa Women’s University will continue to grow and play an ever-greater role in the community,” he concluded. Acting Deputy Chief of Mission Nicholas Hill from the U.S. Embassy in Japan also spoke of the embassy’s belief that the facilitation of more meaningful interactions between the U.S. and Japan is one of its most important duties. After touching upon the essential role played by educational exchanges, the speech concluded with an expression of the embassy’s recognitions on these new steps taken by the two institutions. “Once again, congratulations on the opening of this beautiful new campus. I wish you the best of success as you begin the next chapter of this distinguished university’s history.”

 

The degree conferral ceremony at the Hitomi Memorial Hall was graced with a celebratory performance by a quartet from The Philadelphia Orchestra. TUJ served as an official education sponsor of the orchestra’s tour of Japan.

 

After the conferral ceremony, an evening reception was held at the new TUJ campus’s student lounge and cafeteria, where over 300 people gathered to celebrate the new journey upon which TUJ is embarking, bringing the day’s events to a fittingly convivial close.

 

Photography by Derek Peco / TUJ senior Communication Studies major

This lecture will explore the philosophical legacies of modernism by considering its theoretical and stylistic consequences on Japanese literature during the Shōwa period. Specifically, this will be done through an inquiry into the topographies of writing and identity as depicted in the work of Kobo Abe. To this end, the speaker will focus on Abe’s novel The Boxman, which will show to be of significant value in assessing the legacies of modernism, and his theoretical writings on identity and literature found in The Frontier Within. Most importantly, however, is the intention to read Abe through the lens of Kojin Karatani’s notion of inversion, with particular emphasis on the topographical centrality of the concept of “landscape” and its role in the development of the space of interiority. Central to both of these exceptional thinkers is the question of the role that literature plays in the creation of a subjectivity premised on the idea of interiority. Given the importance placed on the expression of the interiority of the writer during the Taishō period, this lecture will argue that a systematic engagement with Abe’s work, in particular, his notion of “sustained flight” and its relation to the act of writing, is the ideal context for considering, and perhaps reconsidering, the central concepts of Japanese modernism.

This is the eleventh installment in the “TUJ Philosophy Lecture Series,” organized by Professor Jordanco Sekulovski. The TUJ Philosophy Lecture Series is a non-profit forum of Temple University, Japan Campus (TUJ) for the promotion of critical thinking. The lectures are free, open to the public, and feature speakers from various universities around the world. The lecture series is a great way to learn about recent research in philosophy and in the humanities as a whole.

A short video on Temple University, Japan Campus’ move from Minato-ku to Setagaya-ku in August 2019.“

I am thankful that I had the opportunity to use my perspective to show TUJ’s move. It’s a great feeling to share this and I hope viewers enjoy it.”

• Watch the Video on YouTube

Dean Bruce Stronach’s comment:
“I really enjoyed watching this movie, not only because it truly catches the momentous nature of TUJ’s move to the new campus, but also because it is student-made and is a wonderful example of the great work our students produce.”