On March 22, 2025, the 2025 JASCO Speech Contest was hosted by the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at Case Western Reserve University, in collaboration with the Japan-America Society of Central Ohio (JASCO). JASCO is dedicated to “enriching lives by bringing Ohio’s Japanese and American communities together,” and has been organizing the annual Ohio Japanese Speech Contest since 1999. This year, 12 finalists competed to promote Japanese language learning in Ohio. Among them were two students from the CWRU Japanese Studies Program, Chih-Cheng Lin and Junhao Zhen, who participated as finalists. Chih-Cheng Lin won first place with his speech, “Japan’s Regional Revitalization Policy.” Congratulations to both Chih-Cheng Lin and Junhao Zhen for their outstanding performances! We would like to express our special appreciation to the Japanese studies section and Tsunagari Japan for their efforts in organizing the event in collaboration with JASCO, as well as for the generous support from the Department of Modern Languages and Literatures.

Chih-Cheng Lin

Chih-Cheng Lin

Chih-Cheng Lin & Junhao Zhen

Junhao Zhen