SFC in 2004 | Tomoyuki Kojima (Dean of the Faculty of Policy Management)
2004.12.17
It is already December, and this year is quickly coming to a close. At SFC as well, many things have happened over the course of 2004 in both education and research.
For me personally, one of the biggest events was scoring one goal and making one assist in futsal. Inter-laboratory futsal games began last October during Homecoming Day, and as a condition for our team's participation, I was forced to play. However, after running for just two minutes, I was severely out of breath and could barely even take a shot. This year, the ball happened to hit my outstretched foot, went past the keeper, and into the goal. Furthermore, when I slipped and fell, students from the opposing team rushed over to see if I was okay. In that opening, one of our students scored a goal, earning me an assist. I must be careful not to get overconfident about being able to score a goal after turning sixty.
Even at the ever-running SFC, there were times this past year when we paused for both sorrow and joy.
The time we paused for sorrow was for the passing of Professor Magofuku of the Faculty of Policy Management. Professor Magofuku was not only involved in the founding of SFC from the preparatory stages as the head of the administrative side, but he also returned to SFC as a faculty member and contributed to its development through research and education in areas such as university evaluation and university management. As the president-designate of Yokohama City University, he collapsed while dedicating all his efforts to creating a "second SFC" outside of SFC. It was a blessing that "The University That Creates the Future," for which Professor Magofuku served as chief editor, was finally published and could be offered at his memorial. The decision to publish a 10-year history of SFC was made in 2002, so it was a project that took nearly two years. However, because of the delay, the 10-year history became a 15-year history that also includes "Version 2.0," allowing us not only to look back on SFC's past as "the university that creates the future" but also to include a blueprint and outlook for its future development.
The time we paused for joy was to celebrate our achievements in education and research. Keio University won championships in the Tokyo Big6 Baseball League and the All Japan Intercollegiate Basketball Championship. For the basketball team, coached by Professor Sasaki, most of the regular players, including captain Shimura and leading scorer Takeuchi, are SFC students. In baseball as well, key players like pitcher Kato and catcher Okazaki are from SFC. I was deeply moved to see the SFC students' embodiment of "bunbu-ryodo"—excellence in both academics and sports. I participated with Professor Kumasaka in the victory parade and the celebration party at Mita, where I drank beer poured from the Emperor's Cup. However, seeing the students' excitement at the celebration party in Mita made me want to provide a place for all SFC students to experience that same sense of unity as Keio students.
In research, the COE (Center of Excellence) program "Formation of a Center for Next-Generation Media," led by Professor Tokuda, was the only one among all of Keio University's COE programs to receive an "A" rating in its interim evaluation. This rating signifies that the program is expected to achieve its planned world-class research results if it continues on its current path. Next year, the Policy COE will undergo its interim evaluation. We hope to receive an "A" rating as well.
Next year, SFC will no doubt continue to be a campus that is always on the move. I pray that we will have many more occasions to pause for joy, not for sorrow.
(Date Published: 2004/12/17)