Q&A with TOMODACHI Program Participants and TOMODACHI Alumni: Hannah Fulton

For this interview, we talked with Hannah Fulton, who is an Alumni of the Toshizo Watanabe Study Abroad Scholarship Program 2022-2023. She is also currently a TOMODACHI Alumni Program Intern, and is part of the TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Framework that aims to connect and empower alumni in their respective regions across Japan and the United States. Under this framework, she is a Core Committee member representing the California Region. She is graduating from California State University Monterey Bay this month with a B.A. in Japanese Language & Culture, and will be moving to Japan in August to work as an Assistant Language Teacher through the Japan Exchange & Teaching (JET) Program.

 

Q1: What sparked your interest in Japan?

So for me, when I was about 12 years old, I was introduced to some Japanese pop culture and media through my friends. At the time I thought that it was just very interesting, and very different from American culture. I thought it was really fascinating, and I wanted to learn more about it. So the more that I became interested, the more I started to learn about other things outside of just mainstream pop culture. I began to learn about the history and more traditional parts of Japanese culture and society and things like that. After that, at that point I was in high school, and about to enter college. I knew that I wanted to study abroad at some point, but I didn’t really know exactly what I wanted to major in yet. But through the university that I decided to attend, they have a lot of great study abroad programs and a lot of agreements with different universities in Japan, and I really liked that. They also have a Japanese Language & Culture major. So it’s not just studying only the language, but the culture as well. And I thought that was really interesting and what I wanted to pursue. There’s definitely been a lot of challenges along the way, as I transferred in during 2020 right in the middle of COVID. In 2022, I was really happy to finally be able to study abroad, and that was such an amazing and life changing experience.

 

Q2: How was your experience as a Watanabe Scholar?

I really attribute a lot of my success while studying abroad to the Watanabe scholarship, because without it I would not have been able to truly achieve my dreams and goals there. Originally I had applied for this scholarship because I just heard about it randomly, and I was already applying for scholarships at the time, and so I thought I should try to apply for this one as well. I thought it’d be great if I were able to receive something, and I remember originally I was placed on the alternate waitlist. They basically said, “We really like your application [but] we don’t have spots right now at the moment, and if someone decides to cancel, would you still want to receive [the scholarship]? And then about 2 weeks later, they responded again offering their acceptance to be one of the scholarship recipients. So I was really glad and surprised! And not only being able to receive the scholarship, but also being introduced to the TOMODACHI community where, at the annual conference in Tokyo that year, I was able to meet a lot of other American students who were also studying abroad, and we were able to really connect with each other, and we still keep in touch today too. We were able to spend a few days in Shibuya, and it was my first time to be in that area, which was such an amazing experience. That’s basically how I got introduced to the U.S.-Japan Council and TOMODACHI, and ever since then I’ve just been incredibly grateful to not only the staff and people who make this possible, but also of course Mr. Watanabe himself.

 

Q3: Do you have a favorite memory from your time in the program?

During the conference there was one night where the other scholars and I were at the hotel that we were staying at. And I think that night we had gotten really good food, and were able to just walk around and explore Shibuya. And then at the end of the night, we were at the hotel that’s right near the big famous crosswalk. So we were standing at one of the top floors just looking down at this big window with a great view of the crosswalk, and we were just talking about how we couldn’t believe where we were, and how far we had come to make this study abroad journey possible, and that we were super glad we were able to meet and connect through this experience, as without it we probably would have never ever crossed paths with each other, since we are all from different states and schools. And so that’s, I think, one of my favorite memories to look back on during my time in the program. We were all really happy.

 

Q4: What ways does your experience help you in your future?

I think, being able to meet other students who were studying different things and seeing different perspectives through TOMODACHI really opened my mind to different experiences and different possibilities that I could pursue in the future, and I think it made me become more interested in pursuing a career in the field of International Relations as well. So if that’s something that I decide to pursue in the future, that’s one thing that really helped me. And also just knowing that I had people and a community to rely on while I was abroad in a different country. I had friends from my home university that were in Japan too, but knowing that there were other people that were also experiencing the same thing as me, that were also from my home country was really helpful. And so that’s something I would like to continue to contribute to, and I would like to continue to give back to TOMODACHI and the U.S. Japan Council. And I think that’s part of the reason why I’ve been continuing to stay involved with them after my program ended.

 

Q5: Do you have any advice to those who would like to study abroad?

I think they should definitely go out and do it if they are interested in studying abroad. If someone is kind of hesitating about it, I would say to just do as much research as they can on the place that they’d be going to, and as well as learn more about what to expect and prepare for. But I think everyone that I know who has studied abroad has always said that it’s been a really unforgettable experience, and I feel the same way. So I would just definitely try to do as much research as you can, but also just enjoy it. And know that there will be challenges there too as not everything is going to be perfect or go the way you thought it would, but you’ll definitely get through any challenges and learn so much.

 

Q6: How do you stay connected with your TOMODACHI alumni?

Since August of last year, I’ve been back in America from studying abroad. Since I really appreciate the organization that has supported me so much, I wanted to give back and stay connected with them in any way that I could. So I decided to apply for the TOMODACHI Alumni Affairs Internship Program, and ‘ve been doing that for almost 9 months now. It’s been a really great learning experience for me, to not only learn more about all the great programs that TOMODACHI has, but also about the people that are involved and the community that they’ve been trying to continue to build. I was also able to attend the 2023 Annual Conference in November of last year, which was held in Washington D.C.. It was my first time on the east coast, and I was really glad I received the opportunity to go to the conference again and meet or reunite with many of the staff and alumni that made all of this happen. And as of March,
this year I began supporting as a Core Committee member for the California region of The TOMODACHI Alumni Regional Framework. Through this, I and many other Regional Representatives and Core Committee Members throughout different regions in Japan and the U.S. work together to help maintain the alumni community, since there are so many alumni, and we want to keep that connection as many have moved to different places and are doing great things. My role just started, but I’ll be doing that for the next year, and I’m pretty excited to see where that goes too.

 

Q7: What does TOMODACHI mean to you?

Even though I’ve done these interviews with other alumni before, and I’ve been able to hear their responses, it’s hard to describe and put into words what it means to me! But I think for me I would say it means community and family. Because although tomodachi means friend, I think in this way through this program, it can kind of have multiple different meanings. Having a community, having family, and having a support system to fall back on, or people that support you that you can look up to for advice and inspiration. I think it also includes having and sharing many resources and opportunities and things like that. I think it’s really inspiring, and I’m very lucky to have so many amazing tomodachi.

 

Q8: As an intern for the TOMODACHI alumni, what are some of the challenges within your community, and what opportunities do you think TOMODACHI/USJC can do to help address?

As an intern it’s been interesting work to keep all of the alumni connected after their programs have ended. And for challenges, I think for me personally, and some of the people that I’ve grown up with, financial challenges and restrictions have been one of the biggest hardships I’ve seen too many people have to go through in their lives. Financial hardship, I think, is one of the biggest challenges, in both Japan and the United States. And I think, with TOMODACHI, that they already do a really great job with financial support, with scholarships and various opportunities, as well as with other programs, too like with the wildfires in Maui, they’ve been really working and donating to help victims of these natural disaster events. In fact, when I first heard the news about the fires breaking out in Hawaii last year, the U.S.-Japan Council was one of the first organizations I saw to respond so quickly, and one of the few that actually seriously reached out and supported those that were affected. So I think that they’re already doing a really great job, and I would say that if they can continue to do that and continue to create and support more programs that would give aid to those in need, whether it be students, or people going through hard times, or people with disabilities, I think that would help to continue to make this world a better place.

 

Q9: What are your plans for the future after graduating?

I now graduate in less than a month, and I’m very excited! But it’s also been very overwhelming recently. As for my future plans after graduating, I’ll be spending time over the summer with my family before I fly out in August to teach students learning English in Japan as an Assistant Language Teacher through the JET program. I can’t wait to begin the next chapter of my life, and I know it’s going to be a lot to prepare for but I think, having had the previous study abroad experience really helped me prepare for what to expect. So I’ll be pretty busy with everything until August, but I’m looking forward to it, and I’m excited to be closer to TOMODACHI on the other side of the world again!

 

Q10: Do you see yourself back in Japan?

I think I do, for sure. Since I came back to the United States for my last year of undergrad I’ve been missing it a lot. I know that not everything was perfect there, but there are definitely things in Japan that I prefer there over America. And I’m not exactly sure how long I’ll be there for yet, but I can do the JET Program for a couple of years, and we’ll just have to see what the experience is like. I can’t say for sure right now, if I would want to be there forever, like for the rest of my life, but as of right now that’s where I would like to be, and in the future I’d also like to experience going to other countries as well. So if I ever came across a working opportunity in a different country, I would be excited to do that as well.
Q11: Do you have any advice or anything you’d like to share with the TOMODACHI community?

I would say to not give up on your hopes, dreams and goals in life. Whether it’s just a personal goal, or maybe a professional or educational goal, I would say to not give up because you have a huge community of fellow alumni with people that are supporting you with whatever you do, and any accomplishment that you have. I think that my time in university has been very, very challenging over the years, but it’s thanks to the people that have supported me, that I was able to not give up and keep going. So I would say to do your best, and try not to be hard on yourself if you feel like things are really difficult, or if you make a mistake. Don’t give up and keep doing your best!

 

This interview was conducted by Yaakash Akito Inoue on April 25th 2024. Yaakash is currently a TOMODACHI Alumni Intern 2024-2025.