Welcome back!

PTA会長からの挨拶 


サンフェルナンドバレー日本語学園の新しい年です。 


私は5年めのPTA会長を務める渡辺陽茂（キヨシゲ）です。 
新しい生徒さん、在園児の 生徒さん、御家族の方々を歓迎いたします。我が家の２人の娘達もこの日本語学園に通わせてます。 


サンフェルナンドバレー日本語学園のことは噂では聞いていましたが、自分の子供たちを通わせるなど考えてもいませんでした。ある日、PTAのお母様から日本語学園を紹介され本当によかったと感謝しております。それからの楽しい土曜日、それ以外にも普段のお付き合いの友達家族が増える毎日です。 


日本語学園の先生方、事務長、そして私達ボランティアは真剣に皆さんの学んだことが“将来力になる”ことを信じ、それ以上に楽しく過ごせる事を忘れず、語学と日本の文化を提供しております。 


皆様にもカレンダーの中にある会議、楽しい行事などに気軽く参加していただければとお願いいたします。多くの人から相談や意見、提案などあり新しく進んで行くことができたら光栄です。 


今年の学園は、コロナのパンデミックの中にあるオンラインスクールとなり、先生方、生徒とご両親にも相当な負担をかけてしまう事になりましたが、何とか皆さんで力を合わせて、いつかその事も一つの良い思い出になる事を信じて努力しましょう。 


日本語が苦手なり、話せないけれどもPTAのボランティアになり、子供達を応援したい方々にもお誘いの言葉を是非お願いいたします。８月２9日の PTA会議に一人でも多く参加してくださることをお願い致します。９7年目となる歴史と長い伝統あるサンフェルナンドバレー日本語学園の園児、アダルト会話の生徒さん、御家族の皆様方に挨拶いたしました。 
​

PTA会長 
            渡辺陽茂 


A Message from the PTA President 


It’ a New School Year at the SFVJLI！！ 


I want to welcome all of the students and parents back to the San Fernando Japanese Language Institute and introduce myself to the new students and parents.  I am Kiyo Watanabe, SFVJLI PTA President.  I have two kids at the SFVJLI, Tenka in T1 and Asuka in T2 classes. 


I heard about Japanese Language School for our children but did not really think about giving them a chance to try to attend until one of the parents from this school told me about this school.  Since they started few years ago at age 4, they have been having a great time here at the school and off school days with classmates and other schoolmates. 


This year, we must continue our School activities and classes online until we are sure that it’s over the Pandemic and it’s safe to get back to normal school campus activities.  This is very difficult, we never done this before as school, school stuff and school parents and students.  Let us hear your concerns, ideas, suggestions and all in our PTA meeting or submit to us by email.  More we hear, better we get another new idea to make our school efficient and safe.   


As the PTA President, I want to continue to pursue the goal at the SFVJLI for the students, and the parents, to have a “little fun” while learning the Japanese language and culture.  I know the teachers and our volunteers, office manager at the SFVJLI make an effort to make learning Japanese fun for the students and sometimes for the parents, too. 


I encourage and invite all of our parents and family members to participate in the PTA, events hosted by our school and San Fernando Japanese American Community Center, and during our children’s learning experiences. Please take a moment and look at the SFVJLI School Calendar and note the various events on your family calendar events at home.  While a few of the events are mandatory, please share in the experience with other events such as the student’s cooking classes, the “Mochi-tsuki ” and Yard Sale.  Please come and join us on our first PTA meeting on August 29, 2020, and our Back to School Day/ Parents Welcome forum on September 12, 2020. (may get canceled due to our situation) 


One of the unique things about being involved in the PTA is great food made by parents to share for our meeting and events!  Friendship within the PTA goes long way to call each other with the first name - san or -chan, someone by nicknames!  It is always good to find other PTA member to keeping eyes on your children while you may not be able to attend school events and activities. 


Although many of the parents are fluent in Japanese that is not required to be our great members in the PTA.  For those parents who might feel a little uneasy by not being able to speak Japanese fluently, please don’t.  Let’s have a great greeting like 
“Ohayogozaimas!” “Sayonara”. We would like to have everybody including students and parents to be able to Greet People when we meet at SFVJLI. I look forward to seeing you learn a little Japanese from your kids.  Or you can enroll in the adult conversation class.  


Our school is going into the 97th year since the beginning.  I am proud and welcome all of us to be involved and try to improve for the future students and parents to come.  I would love to hear from everybody.  So, I hope to see a lot more parents get involved with the PTA and their children’s SFVJLI School learning experiences. 
I look forward to meeting all of the parent and students, and welcome all to the SFVJLI Japanese School family! 


Kiyo Watanabe, PTA President