FUTI’s Board and Advisory Committee Joint Meeting Held
A joint meeting of the Board of Directors and Advisory Committee (AC) of FUTI was held on March 8th, 2012 at 5:00 pm-7:00 p.m. in the Nippon Club, New York City. The meeting began with a report by Prof. Akihiko Tanaka, Vice President of UTokyo and Director of FUTI, on recent developments at UTokyo: 1) the proposal to change the beginning of the academic year from April to September, 2) new degree-granting programs instructed only in English; 3) UTokyo’s office recently opened in Bangalore, India, and (4) UTokyo’s plan to offer several joint-degree programs with major foreign universities. Then Prof. Hisashi Kobayashi, FUTI president, reported on interim results of the 2011-2012 fundraising campaign. The total amount of donations went up considerably higher than last year, due mainly to gifts from a larger number of alumni in Japan and greater dividends distributed from Shintech’s Trust Fund. Kobayashi’s analysis shows, however, that donations from the alumni living in New York City and its vicinity remained disappointingly low. Dr. Masaaki Yamada, Director of University Relations, reported on the summer scholarship programs. In addition to such programs arranged by UTokyo’s “study abroad program office” as GSP (Global Summer Programs, held at UTokyo, UC Berkeley and Yale) and Yale’s ELI (English Language Institute), FUTI will grant scholarships to outstanding students in the following two new categories of programs this summer: 1) The UTRIP (University of Tokyo Research Internship) program organized by UTokyo’s School of Science, which undergraduate students at U.S. universities can participate in, and 2) other good summer programs hosted by other U.S. institutions, which UTokyo students may find out about by themselves and attend individually. Dr. Masako Osako, FUTI staff, discussed opportunities and challenges in working with the NY Ichokai and suggested that we host more alumni events and nurture “Aikoshin” (or love for our alma mater). Mr. Y. Okamoto, President of NY Icho-kai and FUTI Advisory Member, emphasized also the importance of cultivating “Aikoshin” and increasing FUTI’s visibility to the alumni in New York. Mr. Motoatsu Sakurai, Chair of the Advisory Committee (AC) remarked that it is necessary to clearly define the role of the AC vis-á-vis that of the Board of Directors. Dr. Yamada suggested that FUTI’s current by-laws should be amended, by adding an article on the AC. President Kobayashi asked Messrs. M. Sakurai, Y. Watanabe (Secretary) and M. Yamada to prepare an amendment draft for discussion and approval by the Board. Because of shortage of time, some items in the original agenda were not discussed and were deferred until the next Board meeting. Articles in this newsletter:
Mr. Sakurai resigns from the Advisory Committee
Mr. Motoatsu Sakurai, who had been a member of the Advisory Committee (AC) since its establishment in June 2009, and had chaired the Committee since April 1, 2011 announced his resignation on April 5, because his duty as the President of Japan Society in New York City does not allow him to spend enough time on FUTI matters, he says. “It is regrettable that Mr. Sakurai cannot continue serving FUTI. I take this opportunity to thank him for his distinguished services of the past years. The Board of Directors is in the middle of clearly defining the role of the AC, by reviewing the draft of an amendment of FUTI bylaws that Messrs. Sakurai, Watanabe and Yamada recently prepared. We would like to reach a conclusion by the next Annual Board Meeting, which will be scheduled in September or October,” said President Kobayashi. Articles in this newsletter:
Mr. Shuta Kobayashi becomes Secretary of FUTI
On April 10, 2012, the FUTI (Friends of UTokyo, Inc.) Board elected Mr. Shuta Kobayashi as a new Secretary of FUTI. He has succeeded, effective April 15, 2012, Mr. Yasuhide Watanabe who had been an interim secretary since May 2011. Mr. Shuta Kobayashi received LL.B. and LL.M. degrees in Public Law in 2001 and 2004, respectively, both from the Faculty of Law, UTokyo, and an LL. M. from Harvard Law School in 2006. He is a senior associate at Pricewaterhouse Coopers LLP’s New York office, where he joined in 2007 after an internship at the Law Offices of Shen-Shin Lu, Boston for about a year. He specializes in international tax planning for U.S. and Japanese multinational corporations. Mr. Kobayashi is an Attorney in New York (admitted in 2007), and has authored several articles related to Japanese and U.S. tax law, ranging from tax & social security policy to tax shelters. Regarding his appointment as Secretary, Mr. Kobayashi says, “I am honored to join the FUTI. It means a lot to contribute to the University of Tokyo while living overseas. ” Prof. Hisashi Kobayashi, FUTI President stated, “We are much delighted to have this young and brilliant alumnus join FUTI as Secretary. I would like to thank Mr. Watanabe for having graciously served FUTI for the past one year, and also for recommending Shuta-san as his successor. Articles in this newsletter:
The FUTI Board appoints Dr. Masako Egawa as a new member
At the Board meeting held on February 27, 2012, the FUTI Board elected Dr. Masako Egawa, Executive Vice President of UTokyo, as a new Director. She succeeded, effective April 1, 2012, Prof. Akihiko Tanaka, Vice President of International Affairs, who had been an FUTI Director since January 2009, and became the president of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). Currently Dr. Egawa is responsible for alumni relations, development, public relations and international affairs. Prior to joining the University of Tokyo in April 2009, Dr. Egawa served as the Executive Director of the Japan Research Center of the Harvard Graduate School of Business Administration (Harvard Business School). Before joining the Harvard Business School in 2001, Dr. Egawa worked in the investment banking industry for 15 years in New York and Tokyo, advising corporations and governments on M&A and capital raising transactions for Salomon Brothers and S.G. Warburg (now UBS). Dr. Egawa graduated from College of Arts and Sciences, the University of Tokyo, in 1980 with major in international relations. She received a Masters in Business Administration from Harvard University, and a Ph.D. in management from Hitotsubashi University. Dr. Egawa has served on the Tax Council (advisory body for the Prime Minister), the Financial System Council (advisory body for the Ministry of Finance), Council on Economic and Fiscal Policy (expert member) and Self-Regulatory Board of the Japan Securities Dealers Association. Her major publications include “Management with Weak Shareholder Orientation” (Nikkei, 2008) and “Case Studies of Japanese Companies” (Diamond, 2010). Regarding this appointment Dr. Egawa says, “I really appreciate FUTI’s support for UTokyo’s academic exchange with the United States. I am excited to serve on the board of FUTI and look forward to working with President Kobayashi and other board members.” FUTI President Hisashi Kobayashi remarks, “We are very grateful that Dr. Egawa can join us as a new member of the Board. She is personally much involved to strengthen academic exchange programs between UTokyo and major universities abroad and has been actively promoting oversea study programs for UTokyo students as well . With her help we can better coordinate UTokyo’s efforts and FUTI’s scholarship programs for students who attend summer seminars or internships. We can work more aggressively than ever with the Development Office for our fundraising efforts in both U.S. and Japan.” Articles in this newsletter: