By Wonsuh Song
As a professor in my second year at Shumei University, I arrived with fresh eyes. Often, those who’ve been in one organization for long become too accustomed to its routines and blind to what’s missing. But I immediately felt the gap: the lack of interaction between international and Japanese students.
Shumei has more than 300 international students. Yet real exchange between them and their Japanese peers was minimal. People passed by each other, aware but distant. I knew from the start that something had to be done. Though I had no time to act last year, this year I led a project involving 26 students and several staff members to create something new: a campus-wide intercultural exchange day.
For a month, we met weekly, planning every detail. On the event day, students wore matching green vests, moved in sync, set up projectors, music playlists, banners, and helped distribute food and gifts. We organized quizzes about different cultures and rented a Korean-style “Hand Archery” game to bring people together and. For a few magical hours, students from Vietnam, China, Nepal, Bangladesh, and Japan stood side by side—laughing, cheering, and learning about one another.
The best moment? Watching students open up, seeing their eyes light up as they connected with people they had never spoken to before. Some even said it was their first time talking with a student from another country. Faculty and staff also smiled with pride.
This was more than an “event.” It was a statement about how we live in a multicultural society and how essential it is to understand and respect each other. International students are not outsiders—they are part of our shared space. Without efforts to build mutual understanding, global citizenship remains an empty phrase.
This experience reminded me that schools must not only teach knowledge, but also help students learn how to live with others. I realized how challenging and meaningful it is to bring people together, and I now feel even more motivated to do it again next year—with fewer mistakes and even more joy.
To the students and staff who helped bring this to life, I offer my sincerest thanks. Together, we created a small miracle.
Wonsuh Song (Ph.D.)
Full-time Lecturer, Shumei University / NKNGO Forum Representative
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