About Us
The Japan Society of Boston, Inc, is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to promote cultural and economic ties and active interchange between Japanese and Americans for mutual understanding, benefit and enjoyment. We serve as a programming nexus for a network of individuals, institutions, and businesses that are linked together by a strong interest in Japan and a shared recognition of the importance of the U.S.-Japan relationship.
Staff
Yuko Handa
Executive Director
Julia Napier
Programs Manager
(Langauge and Podcast)
Sandy (Yen-Yun) Jen Public Relations Coordinator
Naoko Takayanagi
Operations Manager
Emily Buttner
Programs Manager
(Events)
Tim Morrissey
Communications
Manager
Chris Ellers
Special Events Associate
Yuko Handa has been a business professional for over 20 years, with experience in both the for profit and not-for-profit sectors. Born and raised in Japan, in the Shonan region of Kanagawa prefecture, from a young age, she was educated in International Schools in Yokohama. She attended Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, where she earned her BA degree in Sociology. Returning to Japan after graduation, she worked for three years at an Asian Airline, before joining Analog Devices in Japan. In 2005 she relocated to the United States with her family and now calls New England her home.
Julia Napier has a BA in East Asian Studies and a minor in Art History. She has spent three years in Japan and loves learning about Japanese pop culture, traditional culture, literature, film, and food.
Sandy has a bachelor’s degree in Communication with a concentration in public relations at Boston University. Following that, she continues pursuing a master’s degree in media science at Boston University. She has spent one semester studying abroad at Doshisha University in Kyoto and wishes to apply fundamental knowledge of public relations with fluency in Mandarin, English, and Japanese to achieve media relations goals for organizations.
Naoko Takayanagi was born and raised in Tokyo. She received a B.A. in Modern Languages from McGill University and an M.A. in International Public Administration from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. She worked in corporate banking, asset management, and financial translation, and later taught Japanese at Berlitz and tutored through Wyzant. She is CELTA certified.
Emily is a 2021 M.A. graduate of the Department of Theater & Performance Studies from Stanford University. She also holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature from Columbia University and spent four years in Ibaraki Prefecture on the JET Programme. In addition to working with JSB, Emily currently teaches Japanese Performance as a remote adjunct instructor at Rikkyo University. She hopes to work in Japan again in the future.
Tim Morrissey is a 2020 Graduate of Boston College with a degree in English and an interest in Urban Planning and Sustainable Development. He began working with the Japan Society of Boston in September of 2021 and hopes to work in Japan in the near future.
Christopher is a student at Boston University, where he majors in both Voice Performance and Japanese. He wishes to bridge his studies together to explore and spread Japanese music and culture throughout the world.
Board
ADVISORY BOARD
Michael H. Armacost
Lawrence K. Fish
Heisuke Hironaka
Seiji Ozawa
John Curtis Perry
Robert D. Reischauer
PRESIDENT EMERITUS
Peter M. Grilli
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
*denotes Executive Committee
Brian Chiappinelli*
Nicholas Elfner
Glen S. Fukushima
Megan Gates
Andrew Gordon*
Todd Guild
William W. Hunt, Chairman*
Kiyoshi Kurokawa
Midori Morikawa
Kiyoko Morita*
Susan Napier
Bernard Pucker
Toby Rodes, Treasurer*
Roger T. Servison*
John A. Shane, Vice Chair*
John Sinclair
May Takayanagi
Hirotaka Takeuchi
Keiko Thayer
Mikio Yoshimura
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JSB History
Founded in 1904, The Japan Society of Boston began as an informal discussion group sympathetic to Japan in the Russo-Japanese War. Until it disbanded during World War II, the Society was primarily an informal social organization, and mainly hosted visiting Japanese dignitaries.
Under the leadership of the late Ambassador Edwin O. Reischauer, the Society was revived in 1953 and was legally incorporated in 1958. In the late 1970s, the Society began to expand, acquired office space, and hired its first part-time staff member. Beginning in 1980, the Society received a series of grants from the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission that enabled it to hire a full-time executive director, expand its membership, increase its level of programming, and introduce new publications and other services.
Since operational support from the Commission ended in 1986, the Japan Society of Boston has continued to thrive and grow, and currently offers its members and the general public an annual slate of more than 30 programs as well as publications and informational services.