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Latest News

2012 Austin Regional Japanese Language Speech Contest

Announcements

We are pleased to announce that the third Austin Regional Japanese Language Speech Contest will be held on Saturday, February 11, 2012. The Austin Regional Contest is hosted and sponsored by the Japan- America Society of Greater Austin (JASGA), and co-sponsored by the Austin Independent School District (AISD) and Asahi Imports, in cooperation with the Japan-America Societies of Texas, the Consulate-General of Japan at Houston, and the Japanese Teachers Association of Texas. Designed to promote awareness and understanding of Japanese language, culture and people, the contests are open to middle, high school and college/university students as well as adult contestants.

When: Saturday, February 11, 2012 1:00 - 4:00 pm
Where: Lamar Middle School

The Annual Texas Japanese Speech Contests are held statewide. First regional contests are held in Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio, then a State contest held is in Houston on March 10, 2012.

Co-sponsored by the Japan-America Societies of Texas and the Consulate-General of Japan at Houston, the State contest will offer participants an opportunity to demonstrate their oral communication skills in Japanese. The top two winners of Division III at the state level will compete at the National Japanese Speech Contest in Los Angeles.

To participate in the Austin Regional Japanese Speech Contest, please fill out the entry form and give it to your Japanese instructor. Entry Form is available here and flyer can be downloaded from the Japan-America Society of Greater Austin website.

The poem for Divisions I and II contestants can be downloaded from the Japan-America Society of Houston site .

The application deadline: Sunday, February 5, 2012

For the detailed information about the 23rd Annual Texas State Japanese Language Speech Contest, please click here.

2012 Austin Regional Japanese Language Speech Contest Sponsors:

Spring 2012 Japanese Language Classes

Thank you for your interest in Japan-America Society of Greater Austin Japanese Language Classes! We currently offer Japanese language class at various levels in Austin and Round Rock. Registration is now open!

At a glance

Spring 2012 - Hiragana and Katakana Workshop

LEARN TO READ AND WRITE HIRAGANA AND KATAKANA

These mini-workshops offer the beginning students of Japanese the opportunity to master quickly and efficiently the reading and writing of the two Japanese syllabaries, hiragana and katakana. It is these two writing systems, in combination with the more complex kanji (ideograms which represent meaning), which constitute the written Japanese language.

Hiragana Workshop: Sunday, 1/8/2012 2:00pm - 4:00pm Registration deadline: 1/7/2012

Katakana Workshop: Sunday, 1/22/2012 2:00pm - 4:00pm Registration deadline: 1/21/2012

Location: Murchison Middle School
3700 North Hills Dr. Austin, TX 78731 [map]

The handout will be prepared for the workshops.
We recommend that the participants who plan to take Japanese Beginning I and II classes in the Spring 2012 purchase Kana Workbook (rev. 3rd Ed.) along with the textbook "Japanese for Busy People" (JBP), (Vol 1, Rev. 3rd Ed)

The Hiragana and katakana workshops are taught by Ms. Chihiro Kamei Legris, who has taught the JASGA Hiragana and Katakana classes in Summer 2011 and Intermediate I and Pre-advanced II in Fall 2011.

2011 Aki Matsuri - Japan Fall Festival a Success!

Announcements

2011 Aki Matsuri - 秋祭り

JASGA's Akimatsuri - Japan Fall Festival was a great success!

Many thanks to all those who helped us to make JASGA's Aki Matsuri -- Japan Fall Festival 2011 -- such a great success. The effort and dedication of all groups, including performers, demonstrators, vendors, exhibitors, photographers, volunteers, English teachers in Japan, Japanese language class students from Liberal Arts and Science Academy, Austin High School, Fulmore Middle School, ACC, Jim Yatsu as well as the generosity of our auction and prize donors, are much appreciated.

Click on the picture to see more photos.

2011 Aki Matsuri
by Nancy Parker

2011 Japan Fall Festival
by Keith Goode

2011 Japan Fall Festival
by Aleks Ortynski

2011 Aki Matsuri

Yukata Photo Booth

JASGA 2011 Japan Relief Fund Update

Announcements

Japan-America Society of Greater Austin Donated US$9,000 for Japan Relief Efforts to Tohoku (northeastern) prefecture governments (Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima) in Japan

The Japan-America Society of Greater Austin (JASGA) thanks everyone who has donated so generously to our Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund over the past months.

We have been working hard to collect funds and help out the Japan relief efforts in this time of need since March 11th. We have had donation boxes at every event and program, and held two relatively big fundraising programs in March and April.

On behalf of the Japan-America Society of Greater Austin, we are pleased to announce that with the funds which have been generously donated to date, we have committed $9,000 to three Tohoku (northeastern) prefecture governments (Iwate, Miyagi, and Fukushima) in Japan to provide both immediate humanitarian relief and long-term recovery of the devastated areas. Each prefecture government received $3,000. We would like to thank City Bank, NA for outstanding advice and financial services in support of the 2011 Japan Relief Fund.