Author: Jennifer Musaji

The modern and classical languages and literatures department would like to congratulate the winners of the Heart of America Japan-America Society’s Japanese Contest, an annual contest held at Johnson County Community College. Every year, students from WSU participate in a variety of categories that include poetry, speeches, comics, grammar and reading, and culture. In total, over 90 students from Kansas and Missouri competed in the competition. 

This year’s winners include Gavin McCafferty, Thomas DiMattia and Izabella Grabell, who won first, second and third place respectively in the Japanese-language Tanka Poetry competition, and Litzy Solano, who placed first for her English-language tanka poem. For reading, there were reading contests for both kana and kanji (Japanese writing systems), and Elliot Terrell won first prize in the Hiragana contest,while Alyssa Moen won third place in the N4 level kanji competition. Alyssa Moen also took first place in the Japanese Culture Quiz.

MCLL would like to thank and congratulate everyone who participated and represented WSU in this year’s competition.

The Japanese Culture Association’s annual haiku contest is now open to submissions in both English and Japanese. Haiku is a traditional form of Japanese poetry that consists of three lines following a 5-7-5 sentence pattern. Traditionally, haiku were most commonly written about nature, often containing a “kigo,” or seasonal word. For the Photo Haiku Contest, we ask that you also submit an image to accompany your poem. Drawings or photographs are both accepted. While AI can be used to create the image, the poem itself should be an original poem.

Prizes will be given to the first-place winner in each category. Entries will be accepted through March 31, and winners will be announced in person at the Japan Festival April 11 in the RSC. Prize winners will also be announced on the submission page on Padlet following the festival.

For questions, email Jennifer Musaji at jennifer.musaji@gmail.com.

JAPN 323: Anime and Manga will be offered for the first time during the summer at the Old Town Campus. The class will be held at 9 a.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays. Flexibility is available for students who cannot attend in person.

In addition, new Japanese-language courses will be offered this fall. JAPN 104: Intro to Japanese (three credits) and JAPN 105: Elementary Japanese I (three credits) will replace JAPN 111. Students can choose between taking JAPN 104 as a 16-week course at the Old Town Campus, or taking both JAPN 104 and 105 in the same semester as 8-week courses on the main campus.

Finally, JAPN 324: Japanese Film will be offered in the fall as well. The course counts as a general education credit and will be taught on the Old Town Campus.

The Tatsumaki Yosakoi Japanese traditional dance team will be coming to Wichita State from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Friday, Sept. 22 for a performance and workshop in 143A Heskett Center. Tatsumaki Yosakoi will perform songs and also teach anyone interested. The event will be open to the general public and no dance experience is required. Spectators are also welcome.

Tatsumaki Yosakoi was established in 2005 and has been performing at festivals around the country and helping spread Japanese culture for 18 years. The Japanese Culture Association and the Asian Student Conference Dance Committee are sponsoring the event.

The Japanese Culture Association will hold its annual Japan Festival from 1 to 3 p.m. Friday, April 28 on the second floor of the Rhatigan Student Center. The festival will include arts and crafts projects such as calligraphy, origami, ikebana, and making a lucky charm; karaoke; and traditional Japanese pastries provided by local Japanese bakery Komugi.

The Society of Cosplayers will also join with tea, stickers and more, and the Japanese Culture Association will also have its annual raffle for attending. Results of the haiku contest and raffle winners will be announced at 3 p.m. in 233 RSC.

Presentations on the topics of study abroad at 12:45 p.m. and the JET program at 2 p.m. will be held in 262 RSC. A traditional martial arts demonstration will begin at 1 p.m. in the lounge area in the second floor of RSC. Work by students of the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures’ (MCLL) Japanese program will also be on display.

The festival this year is being put on by the MCLL department, the WSU Japanese program, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, and the Student Government Organization.

As part of the Japanese Culture Association’s annual Japan Festival, it will be holding a photo haiku contest. A haiku is a traditional form of Japanese poetry that consists of three lines in a 5-7-5 syllable pattern and traditionally includes a seasonal word, known as kigo in Japanese. The contest is free to enter.

To enter, participants must write a haiku in either English or Japanese and choose, take or draw an image or photo to go along with the entry.

Entries should include the participant’s full name. The deadline to submit is Monday, April 10, and the winners will be announced at the Japan Festival on Friday, April 28. Any questions about the contest can be directed to Jennifer Musaji, lecturer in Japanese, at jennifer.musaji@wichita.edu.

The Department of Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures and the WSU Japanese Language program extend a congratulations to the winners of the Heart of America Japan-America Society’s annual Japanese Language Contest. The contest was held on March 4 at Johnson County Community College. They are proud of the hard work that all the contestants put into the contest this year to represent Wichita State.

Students competed in several categories including poetry writing in both English and Japanese, karuta card games, online grammar and culture quizzes, calligraphy, 4-panel manga creation, and a speech presentation contest.

This year’s winners from Wichita State:

• Cameron Gillespie: First in speech presentation, second in Japanese-language tanka poem.
• Alyssa Moen: First in Japanese culture quiz, second in N5 karuta card game.
• Wren Johnson: Second in speech presentation.
• Quyen Tran: Honorable mention for calligraphy.
• Lilith Tackett: Honorable mention for English-language tanka poem.

The Japanese Culture Association will host it’s annual Japan Festival begins at 12:30 p.m. today, April 29 at the Rhatigan Student Center 233. Festivities will include a study abroad presentation, games, karaoke, arts, crafts, giveaways, Japanese baked goods, and a traditional Samurai-style martial arts performance.

On March 12, Japanese-language students from Wichita State participated in the annual Japanese Language Contest in Kansas City sponsored by the Heart of Japan-America Society. A total of 72 students competed from 11 schools in categories that included Japanese calligraphy, poetry, a karuta card game, culture quizzes, kanji bees, and four-panel manga.

The following WSU students won awards at the contest:

• Megan Dahna, second place for English-language Tanka poem and third place in the culture quiz
• Sheridan Peterson, third place for English-language Tanka
• Arianna Fonseca, an honorable mention for her Japanese Tanka poem

Japanese Culture and Society (JAPN 324) is now being offered for the first time for spring 2022 at 7:05-9:45 p.m. Wednesdays at the Wichita State South campus. The course is a hi-flex course that students can attend either virtually or in person.

During the course, students will learn about Japanese history, cultural background, arts and modern issues. The course counts toward a minor in Japanese and qualifies for general education credits.

No previous Japanese courses are required to enroll.