Noriko is Associate Professor of Japanese Language at Kalamazoo, where she teaches courses including Advanced Japanese and Japanese Language in Society. Sugimori is a sociolinguist, currently working on videotaping interviews with Japanese and Korean people who were born in 1934 or earlier about their experiences during World War II.  She and her students transcribe the videos in Japanese, then translate into English. Her collection of video taped oral histories will be among the first bilingual project for the Oral History Metadata Synchronizer (OHMS), an open source tool from the Nunn Center at the University of Kentucky.

Click here for Noriko’s archive, posts, and tutorials.

Kiyoto is a recent graduate of Kalamazoo College with degrees in Chemistry and Mathematics. When Kiyoto arrived in the U.S. for high school, he struggled with the indifference some of his peers expressed toward war and other forms of human rights violations. He hopes his participation in Dr. Noriko Sugimori’s project makes direct accounts of World War II more available and help people look beyond facts and statistics to find the humans that were affected. Kiyoto’s research was supported by a Kalamazoo College Faculty & Student Summer Research Fund in 2016.

Takumi is a recent graduate of Kalamazoo College with degrees in Physics and Chemistry. Besides his interest in science, he also acts as an anti-war advocate. He is concerned about the apathy that the younger generation has towards war, and believes spreading the memoirs of soldiers and their families during World War II would enhance the anti-war movement. He contributes to Noriko Sugimori’s project by transcribing the interviews of Japanese or Korean people who experienced the World War II into English and provides technical assistance. Takumi’s research was supported by a Kalamazoo College Faculty & Student Summer Research Fund in 2016.

Christa Scheck is a recent graduate of Kalamazoo College, with a degree in Studio Art and a minor in Japanese. Ever since high school she has been strongly interested in working in translation of Japanese to English, and won 3^rd place in a state-wide Japanese speech contest for a speech on the issues of literal translation. She was very excited to contribute to Noriko Sugimori’s project both to further improve upon her translation skills and to learn more about Japan in the context of World War II accounts. Christa’s research was supported by a Kalamazoo College Faculty & Student Summer Research Fund in both 2016 and 2017.

Jamie is a recent graduate of Kalamazoo College with a degree in East Asian Studies. She has a passion for the Japanese language and believes that oral histories provide an important personal perspective that is often missing in academia. By participating in Professor Noriko Sugimori’s project, she hopes to improve her translation skills and encourage the valuing of oral histories. Jamie’s research was supported by a Kalamazoo College Faculty & Student Summer Research Fund in 2016.

Alex Fairhall is a Kalamazoo Class of 2019 student, majoring in Chemistry and minoring in Japanese. He joined the project working with Professor Sugimori in order to advance his understanding of the Japanese language and to improve his perception of world events, both past and present. He believes this project has the potential to revolutionize the sharing of culture and history, and hopes he can aid in doing so. Alex’s research was funded by a Kalamazoo College Faculty Student Summer Research Fund in 2017.

Min Soo Kim was born in South Korea and raised in Seoul. He graduated Hankuk Academy of Foreign Studies and studied mathematics for two years in Imperial College London. When he decided to pursue something other than mathematics, he attended Kalamazoo College in Michigan. He is currently studying chemistry with a concentration on biochemistry and molecular biology.  Min Soo’s research was funded by the Mellon Foundation/GLCA in 2016 and by a Kalamazoo College Faculty & Student Summer Study Fund in 2017.

Yoji Hayashibe is a Japanese student studying at Waseda University. He is interested in American liberal arts, and is in a liberal arts department in Waseda. For this reason he went to Kalamazoo college for 2016 to 2017, studying Journalism, Greek philosophy, Judaism, and Psychology. Through studying liberal arts and working as a Japanese language TA, he came to be interested in OHLA. Yoji’s research was funded by a Kalamazoo College Faculty Student Summer Research Fund in 2017.

Reika Murakmi is a fourth year student of Doshisha University, studying for a major in law and political science, particularly international law and international relations. She studied abroad in Kalamazoo College for a year, during which time she worked as one of the teaching assistants for the Japanese classes offered at the school. She has been to Hiroshima as her graduation trip at primary school and has heard about some stories from people who survived the WWII. From this experience, she strongly felt that we should not forget such real memories. She believes that OHMS should help provide people around the world with better understanding about the WWII. Reika’s research was funded by a Kalamazoo College Faculty Student Summer Research Fund in 2017.

Carolyn Topper is a recent graduate of Kalamazoo College with a degree in Studio Art and a minor in Japanese. She believes that in the United States, war is often discussed in terms of figures and ideology, often leaving out the people who are affected by it. She hopes that Noriko Sugimori’s project will bring light to the human aspect of war and inspire empathy for those who are the victims of it.