Mr. Sasaki Roberto Izumi is one of the Japanese blind soccer players for the Tokyo Paralympics. He is one of the graduates of our school in 2008. That same year, Mr. Chen Yumin (Hong Kong), who is totally deaf also graduated from our school. To celebrate Sasaki’s graduation, Ruy Ramos, who is also Brazilian and used to study at the school, came to congratulate him.

Mr. Sasaki has since become a Japanese citizen and will represent Japan at the Paralympics.

I think it is a great thing as on the day of the graduation ceremony in 2008, the teachers tearfully said, “We were the ones who were taught the most”.

Thus the whole school would like to support Mr. Sasaki’s success.

The students continuously teach us a lot, such as the meaning and importance of human life.

I will never forget Mr. Sasaki’s effort and sincerity in realizing his dream as he came to school every day despite the crowded train.

From the campus newspaper at that time :
On March 20, 2008, the graduation ceremony for the 2008 academic year was held at Arcadia Ichigaya, a private academic building.

The total number of graduates was 254.

This year’s graduation ceremony was a little different from the usual ones.

There were three graduates who left a lasting impression on me.

For the first time, I was honored to have Mr. Tanaka, President of Bonjinsha, and Mr. Osamu Sato, Executive Director of the Immigration Bureau of Japan, as guests of honor.

One of the three students who left a lasting impression on me was Mr. Zhang Lin (China), who delivered newspapers for two years without being late or absent even on rainy or windy days. He was a good example for students who were late with the only excuse of oversleeping.

The next student I will never forget is Mr. Chen Yumin (Hong Kong).

He is totally deaf.

He came from Hong Kong to study in Japan in order to enter a vocational school.
There were two reasons why he chose to study at Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute.

One was that the school offers a preparatory course designated by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. The other reason was that he knew that the Ezoe method was effective for the deaf.

Armed with this information he started learning Japanese from zero, completed one year of study at the school, and successfully entered a vocational school. He also completed a perfect attendance record.

Another student who applied for the Preparatory Course designated by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology was Mr. Sasaki Roberto Izumi from Brazil.
He lost sight in both eyes in a car accident and decided to become an acupuncturist during his rehabilitation. He attended the school for a year without a break, only missing one day for a friend’s wedding.

At the graduation ceremony, Mr. Ruy Ramos, also from Brazil, came to congratulate him as a graduate of the Shinjuku Japanese Language Institute and a senior of Roberto. Mr. Ramos gave a heartwarming speech to the graduates on the stage, including his memories of those days.

A student who delivered newspapers for two years without being late or absent. A student who studied at the school and went on to a vocational school even though he was deaf. And even though he is blind, he studied Japanese and went on to Tsukuba University. All three of them have given courage and inspiration to many of their schoolmates and have brightened up the whole school.

This year’s graduation ceremony was one of the most moving I have ever attended.
I hope that the graduates will never forget the excitement of this day and will play an active role in society.

There were also several students who participated in the graduation ceremony wearing kimonos and hakama, as female students do in Japan. Foreign students came to Japan well aware of how to enjoy the Japanese student life which really impressed the faculty members.