Creating a World-Class University | Jiro Kokuryo (Dean, Faculty of Policy Management)

2009.10.01

As the new campus executive team begins its term, I would like to share with you the ideas behind three initiatives I hope to undertake as the Dean of the Faculty of Policy Management during my tenure. The specific initiatives may be adjusted based on feedback from people both inside and outside the university, but I intend to remain firm on the fundamental concepts.

First is the development of the "Future Creation Campus." A plan is currently underway to make the land adjacent to the campus available for Keio University's educational and research activities. I hope to take this opportunity to advance the creation of residential educational and research facilities—the 24-hour campus that SFC has aimed for since its founding—where students, faculty, and visiting researchers from outside can live on campus and immerse themselves in learning and research in a safe and secure environment. It is not just about building facilities; by developing activities that make people from all over the world want to come to SFC to learn and conduct research, I want to make SFC a world-class university in both name and reality.

I would like to promote the Future Creation Campus as a "campus town" in collaboration with neighboring and local communities, extending beyond the land owned by Keio University. I believe that presenting a solid vision for this will also lead to the development of public transportation around the campus, which could be called SFC's long-cherished wish.

Second is internationalization. SFC is already a campus with a large number of international students within Keio University, but to fulfill the mission Keio University has to lead the world, we need to promote further globalization. In this regard, the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies is promoting initiatives within the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology's "Global 30" program, mainly by enhancing its English-language courses. The Faculty of Policy Management would like to support the Faculty of Environment and Information Studies' Global 30 program and promote the acceptance of international students. At the same time, as an initiative of the Faculty of Policy Management, we aim to become a hub for Japan studies for research institutions around the world by collaborating with "Japan studies" and "Japanese language education" programs at universities and high schools worldwide. This is a strategy that goes hand-in-hand with the "multilingualism" that SFC has promoted since its founding. The creation of societies and the policies for them that the Faculty of Policy Management explores are embedded in the cultural and linguistic contexts of each country and derive their meaning from them. I want to create an environment where Japanese students can develop the ability to understand the world in the local language, and where international students and researchers can understand Japanese society and the policies being promoted in Japan in the Japanese language.

Third is the development of organizations and systems that vitalize education and research. The recent trend toward compliance with laws and accounting regulations is something we must absolutely promote for the university to develop as a social entity. However, if this is not accompanied by systemic reforms that allow for diverse activities while ensuring compliance, educational and research activities will stagnate. Particularly important are the systems related to human resources. SFC has developed by providing a place for diverse human resources to play an active role through systems such as the special research faculty system and the system for visiting researchers at the Keio Research Institute at SFC, but I believe that the current situation is that systemic development has not kept pace with the growing demands for compliance, narrowing the scope of activity for our human resources. When seeking to enable diverse human resources to be active in education and research, I believe it is also important to recognize those who are dedicated to the school's administration. Education is like agriculture; it requires the effort of patiently responding to situations day by day. I want to make this a school that pays attention to those who are making efforts to support the learning environment behind the scenes.

To ensure that the three engines of education, research, and school administration run in a balanced manner, I want to create an environment where diverse human resources can freely develop their education and research according to their respective situations and engage in school administration with a sense of fulfillment.

There are many other things that need to be done, but for now, by advancing the points mentioned above, I want to create a university with rich educational and research activities that make students and researchers from all over the world want to come and study here, and a place where they feel comfortable living.

(Posted: 2009/10/01)