Ahead of training in Hawaii, Hiroshima Jogakuin High School students learn from superintendent about history of Pearl Harbor National Memorial
Mar. 29, 2024
by Minami Yamashita, Staff Writer
On March 28, students at the Hiroshima Jogakuin Senior High School, located in the city’s Naka Ward, learned about the history of the Pearl Harbor National Memorial from Tom Leatherman, superintendent of the national memorial, in an online seminar. The study session took place prior to the students’ scheduled visit to the U.S. state of Hawaii, the location of the memorial, for training. The Hiroshima City government planned the project to foster mutual understanding based on the Sister Park Arrangement signed between the memorial and Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park.
Participating in the online seminar from the school were 16 second-year students. The students, who attend an elective class in which they study about how to debate and so on in English, will engage in the training program during March 30–April 4. The training will include a tour of the Pearl Harbor National Memorial and meetings with Mr. Leatherman and others.
The roughly one-hour seminar, held as preparatory study for the training in Hawaii, was conducted behind closed doors except for the beginning, with the objective of allowing the students to better concentrate. According to the city government, Mr. Leatherman spoke in English on the lead-up to the former Imperial Japanese Army’s attack on Pearl Harbor and the history of the national memorial, explaining that promotion of peace was the memorial’s mission and that the Sister Park Arrangement was an initiative aimed at peace.
After the seminar concluded, Yuki Okadome, 17, shared her opinion on the Sister Park Arrangement. “Despite the fact that the meaning inherent in each park is different, I don’t think it was inappropriate to form a partnership because both are in pursuit of the same goal of peace,” said Ms. Okadome.
(Originally published on March 29, 2024)
On March 28, students at the Hiroshima Jogakuin Senior High School, located in the city’s Naka Ward, learned about the history of the Pearl Harbor National Memorial from Tom Leatherman, superintendent of the national memorial, in an online seminar. The study session took place prior to the students’ scheduled visit to the U.S. state of Hawaii, the location of the memorial, for training. The Hiroshima City government planned the project to foster mutual understanding based on the Sister Park Arrangement signed between the memorial and Hiroshima’s Peace Memorial Park.
Participating in the online seminar from the school were 16 second-year students. The students, who attend an elective class in which they study about how to debate and so on in English, will engage in the training program during March 30–April 4. The training will include a tour of the Pearl Harbor National Memorial and meetings with Mr. Leatherman and others.
The roughly one-hour seminar, held as preparatory study for the training in Hawaii, was conducted behind closed doors except for the beginning, with the objective of allowing the students to better concentrate. According to the city government, Mr. Leatherman spoke in English on the lead-up to the former Imperial Japanese Army’s attack on Pearl Harbor and the history of the national memorial, explaining that promotion of peace was the memorial’s mission and that the Sister Park Arrangement was an initiative aimed at peace.
After the seminar concluded, Yuki Okadome, 17, shared her opinion on the Sister Park Arrangement. “Despite the fact that the meaning inherent in each park is different, I don’t think it was inappropriate to form a partnership because both are in pursuit of the same goal of peace,” said Ms. Okadome.
(Originally published on March 29, 2024)
