The First Ladies of the U.S. and Japan Visit Great Falls Elementary School

GFES Immersion Classroom Visit

First Lady Michelle Obama and First Lady of Japan Akie Abe visited Great Falls Elementary School (GFES) on April 28, 2015. GFES is one of two public elementary schools with a Japanese Immersion Program (JIP) in Fairfax County, Virginia. Since 1989 students in Grades 1-6 have had the option to spend half of the day learning science, math and health in Japanese and the other half of the day learning subjects in English. The First Ladies’ visit included observation of a Japanese Immersion Program classroom and a school assembly with speeches, Taiko drumming and vocal performances.

Taiko

Taiko drumming performance by GFES students

Mrs. Obama told the students that “building friendships between people is how we truly build friendships between entire countries.” She was also impressed with the “powerful” performance by the taiko drumming students.  

GFES SingingSinging songs in Japanese

While this was the first visit to the school by Mrs. Obama, Mrs. Abe and Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have been long-time supporters of the Japanese immersion program. Mr. and Mrs. Abe were instrumental in establishing a sister school relationship between Great Falls Elementary School and the Kake Educational Institution in the Fukuyama area of Hiroshima. In 2010 the友情の庭 (Friendship Garden) was created at GFES with funding from a Japan Foundation grant, and then former Prime Minister Abe attended the ceremony. Unfortunately, Mrs. Abe was unable to attend the ceremony in 2010 and wanted to plant a cherry tree at the Friendship Garden during her time in Washington in 2015. The Abes have also welcomed students from GFES during their annual 6th Grade trip to Japan to the Prime Minister’s residence.

GFES First Ladies and Tada-san

CEPEX President Yukio Tada (right) and his wife, Hiroko, also attended the special visit to Great Falls Elementary School, along with Sojitz Washington, DC General Manager Ken Kuribayashi (pictured on the left). This school visit by Mrs. Abe and Mrs. Obama comes at an important time for public schools with language immersion programs as budgetary pressures and declining interest in Japanese places immersion programs such as GFES at risk. The continued support and friendship from high profile education advocates such as Mrs. Abe and Mrs. Obama is truly appreciated by supporters of the U.S.-Japan community.