Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute was founded in 1990 by Akira Kusaka, who created an American counterpart to the existing campus in Japan. The campus had previously been a military outpost called Fort George Wright before being purchased and turned into a four-year liberal arts college under the Sisters of the Holy names. The all-womens school’s goals are to increase English competency and cultural understanding of its students. The Mukogawa Institute has been a fixture in the community since its construction and admittance of students.
“The students who put in the most time, get the most out of the program,” said Akihiro Nakahara, vice president of Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute. “We try to give them the best tools to succeed.”
The students who attend are all English majors and take part in a four-month long ESL course while they are here. They also have many opportunities to converse with American college students at Eastern Washington University, Gonzaga University and SFCC. The school takes its attempts at engaging the students with English seriously, which is why the library of Mukogawa contains only English-based texts.
Most of the staff on campus is also primarily filled by English-speaking teachers. Seven of the original 13 teachers hired are still teaching at the school. It is also possible for the students to opt into an extension of their program at Mukogawa. Typically the students who go for extension are the ones who go out and interact with the community more.
Since it’s opening, Mukogawa has had more than 10,000 students. While in Spokane, the students can go out and see around town. They also take trips to the East Coast and Southwest United States. The students also take classes in the afternoon regarding American culture and history.
Mukogawa furthers the engagement with its many host families, some of whom have been hosting students for going on 20 years. On Bloomsday all of the students participate.
Many of the students attending Mukogawa wish to become English teachers and through their school they have a multitude of chances to volunteer to work in an elementary school with young students.
Mukogawa houses all of its students instead of with host families on campus. It employs 18 resident advisers from many of the schools and universities in and around Spokane. Being that it is an all women’s college, the RA’s are all women as well. The advisers fill the role of assisting the students in their daily lives, as well as planning activities for the students. Four nights a week the advisers will hold informal tutorials that are meant to compliment what the students have learned in their classes.
If the students are feeling homesick, the teachers can give advice to the students about overcoming some of the cultural differences. There is also a Japanese Cultural Center on campus. It is the only place on campus where both SFCC students and Mukogawa students can go. The center has many Japanese cultural objects, ranging from dolls to artwork, as well as more current attractions, be it magazines, manga or movies.
“We welcome (SFCC) students to JCC,” Nakahara said.