{"id":14264,"date":"2021-03-05T08:51:21","date_gmt":"2021-03-05T12:51:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/?p=14264"},"modified":"2025-02-05T16:09:59","modified_gmt":"2025-02-05T21:09:59","slug":"virtual-japanese-speech-contest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-japanese-speech-contest\/","title":{"rendered":"Peers, Faculty Cheer K Student to Third Place at Japanese Speech Contest"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Japanese
Uyen Trinh ’21 finished third in February at the Japanese Speech Contest conducted by Detroit’s Consulate General.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Grace
Grace Frazier ’23 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

For the third consecutive year, at least one Kalamazoo College student has placed among the top three finishers in a prestigious Japanese Speech Contest organized by Detroit\u2019s Consulate General of Japan.<\/p>\n

Uyen Trinh \u201921 was K\u2019s only contestant in the 25th<\/sup> annual event on February 20, finishing third overall, in an opportunity she\u2019s sought for a few years, especially since returning from a study abroad<\/a> experience at Waseda University<\/a> in Tokyo.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been taking Japanese courses since my first year in college, and I\u2019ve been attending the contest in Novi since my sophomore year,\u201d Trinh said. \u201cI had planted in my mind the idea that I wanted to compete myself, and that desire had only gotten bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n

Contestants from Michigan colleges and universities drafted their own speeches in Japanese to present in front of the judges. Trinh\u2019s speech, titled “Freedom in the Family,” discussed her family in Vietnam and her host family in Japan, while comparing the relationships between the parents and children.<\/p>\n

\"Josseline
Josseline Vazquez ’22 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Anexy
Anexy Koizumi ’22 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cI really wanted people to feel my experience because it included a lot of personal encounters, things I witnessed in Japan and situations I have back home,\u201d she said. \u201cI was thinking a lot about the best ways I could read the speech aloud for people to understand what I want to communicate. My goal wasn’t really to place. I was just really happy when I finished my speech because I felt like I delivered it how I wanted it to be.\u201d<\/p>\n

Despite a virtual format for the contest this year, many of Trinh\u2019s K peers and professors helped her prepare before the event, which was streamed live through YouTube. Kanase Matsuzaki \u201923 organized a special lab before the contest, inviting Trinh to attend as a guest speaker. Students from two Japanese classes attended, hearing the English translation of Trinh\u2019s speech in advance, and then asking Trinh questions in Japanese. Several attended the contest remotely to cheer her on, including three peers who watched despite personally experiencing the ongoing winter weather emergencies happening in Texas and Mexico.<\/p>\n

\"Visiting
Visiting Student Beatriz Contreras watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Angela
Angela Hernandez ’23 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Faculty members, including Associate Professor of Japanese Noriko Sugimori<\/a>, listened meticulously to Trinh recite her speech in advance and offered synonyms for the most difficult words if her pronunciation wasn\u2019t perfect.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very grateful to Sugimori Sensei and all the Japanese faculty who helped me, along with the other Japanese students,\u201d Trinh said. \u201cTheir support made the speech possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

Spinning her experience forward, Trinh said she hopes to return to Japan this summer to work at Summer Olympics events, especially after COVID-19 cut her study abroad plan short. She then will graduate from K in fall and plans to work in the finance field after graduation.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are so many things I still want to do in Japan,\u201d she said. \u201cThe program cancellation was announced only about two days before my departure from Japan. I hope I can relive that memory and meet my host family again.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

For the third consecutive year, at least one Kalamazoo College student has placed among the top three finishers in a prestigious Japanese Speech Contest organized by Detroit\u2019s Consulate General of Japan. Uyen Trinh \u201921 was K\u2019s only contestant in the 25th annual event on February 20, finishing third overall, in an opportunity she\u2019s sought for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":147,"featured_media":14274,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[233,231],"tags":[65],"post_formats":[],"class_list":["post-14264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-faculty-staff","category-students","tag-japanese"],"yoast_head":"\r\nJapanese Speech Contest: Peers, Faculty Cheer K Student to Third Place<\/title>\r\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"For the third consecutive year, at least one Kalamazoo College student has placed among the top three finishers in a prestigious Japanese Speech Contest\" \/>\r\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\r\n<link 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aria-label=\"archive of category Faculty & Staff\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/category\/faculty-staff\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Faculty & Staff<\/a><a aria-label=\"archive of category Students\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/category\/students\/\" rel=\"category tag\">Students<\/a>","tags_info":"<a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/tag\/japanese\/\" rel=\"tag\">Japanese<\/a>","social_share_info":"<a data-share=\"facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-japanese-speech-contest\/\" class=\"pl-facebook-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-facebook-f\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/share?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-japanese-speech-contest\/\" class=\"pl-twiiter-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-twitter\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a><a data-share=\"linkedin\" href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/shareArticle?url=https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/virtual-japanese-speech-contest\/\" class=\"pl-linkedin-share social-share-default pl-social-share\" target=\"_blank\"><i class=\"fab fa-linkedin-in\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><\/i><\/a>","wordExcerpt_info":"<figure id=\"attachment_14266\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14266\" style=\"width: 353px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-14266 \" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Japanese-Speech-Contest-Participant-Uyen-Trinh-next-to-a-cherry-blossom-in-Tokyo-300x450.jpg\" alt=\"Japanese Speech Contest Participant Uyen Trinh next to a cherry blossom in Tokyo\" width=\"353\" height=\"524\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14266\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Uyen Trinh ’21 finished third in February at the Japanese Speech Contest conducted by Detroit’s Consulate General.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14271\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14271\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-image-14271 size-medium\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Grace-Frazier-23-300x300.jpg\" alt=\"Grace Frazier '23\" width=\"300\" height=\"300\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14271\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Grace Frazier ’23 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>For the third consecutive year, at least one Kalamazoo College student has placed among the top three finishers in a prestigious Japanese Speech Contest organized by Detroit\u2019s Consulate General of Japan.<\/p>\n<p>Uyen Trinh \u201921 was K\u2019s only contestant in the 25<sup>th<\/sup> annual event on February 20, finishing third overall, in an opportunity she\u2019s sought for a few years, especially since returning from a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/k-plan\/study-abroad\/\">study abroad<\/a> experience at <a href=\"https:\/\/www.waseda.jp\/top\/en\/\">Waseda University<\/a> in Tokyo.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been taking Japanese courses since my first year in college, and I\u2019ve been attending the contest in Novi since my sophomore year,\u201d Trinh said. \u201cI had planted in my mind the idea that I wanted to compete myself, and that desire had only gotten bigger.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Contestants from Michigan colleges and universities drafted their own speeches in Japanese to present in front of the judges. Trinh\u2019s speech, titled “Freedom in the Family,” discussed her family in Vietnam and her host family in Japan, while comparing the relationships between the parents and children.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14272\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14272\" style=\"width: 225px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\" wp-image-14272\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Josseline-Vazquez-22-300x400.jpg\" alt=\"Josseline Vazquez '22\" width=\"225\" height=\"297\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14272\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Josseline Vazquez ’22 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14269\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14269\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14269\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Anexy-Koizumi-22-300x225.jpg\" alt=\"Anexy Koizumi '22\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14269\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Anexy Koizumi ’22 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cI really wanted people to feel my experience because it included a lot of personal encounters, things I witnessed in Japan and situations I have back home,\u201d she said. \u201cI was thinking a lot about the best ways I could read the speech aloud for people to understand what I want to communicate. My goal wasn’t really to place. I was just really happy when I finished my speech because I felt like I delivered it how I wanted it to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite a virtual format for the contest this year, many of Trinh\u2019s K peers and professors helped her prepare before the event, which was streamed live through YouTube. Kanase Matsuzaki \u201923 organized a special lab before the contest, inviting Trinh to attend as a guest speaker. Students from two Japanese classes attended, hearing the English translation of Trinh\u2019s speech in advance, and then asking Trinh questions in Japanese. Several attended the contest remotely to cheer her on, including three peers who watched despite personally experiencing the ongoing winter weather emergencies happening in Texas and Mexico.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14273\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14273\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14273\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Visiting-Student-Beatriz-Contreras-300x225.png\" alt=\"Visiting Student Beatriz Contreras\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14273\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Visiting Student Beatriz Contreras watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<figure id=\"attachment_14270\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14270\" style=\"width: 300px\" class=\"wp-caption alignright\"><img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14270\" src=\"\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/files\/2021\/03\/Angela-Hernandez-23-300x225.png\" alt=\"Angela Hernandez '23\" width=\"300\" height=\"225\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-14270\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Angela Hernandez ’23 watches Uyen Trinh participate in the Japanese Speech Contest.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Faculty members, including Associate Professor of Japanese <a href=\"https:\/\/eas.kzoo.edu\/\/about\/people\/#sugimori\">Noriko Sugimori<\/a>, listened meticulously to Trinh recite her speech in advance and offered synonyms for the most difficult words if her pronunciation wasn\u2019t perfect.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m very grateful to Sugimori Sensei and all the Japanese faculty who helped me, along with the other Japanese students,\u201d Trinh said. \u201cTheir support made the speech possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Spinning her experience forward, Trinh said she hopes to return to Japan this summer to work at Summer Olympics events, especially after COVID-19 cut her study abroad plan short. She then will graduate from K in fall and plans to work in the finance field after graduation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere are so many things I still want to do in Japan,\u201d she said. \u201cThe program cancellation was announced only about two days before my departure from Japan. I hope I can relive that memory and meet my host family again.\u201d<\/p>\n","comment_info":"No Comments","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/147"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14264"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14264\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24064,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14264\/revisions\/24064"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/14274"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14264"},{"taxonomy":"post_format","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.kzoo.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_formats?post=14264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}