(From left) Chairman of the Board of Trustees YANAGIYA Takashi and President UENO Masao
Let’s make 2025 a year of further growth
Chairman of the Board of Trustees YANAGIYA Takashi (hereinafter “YANAGIYA”): Happy New Year. Looking at the world situation since last year, the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East have further accelerated division in the world and have had a significant impact on the world economy such as commodity prices and foreign exchange markets, increasing uncertainty and tension in the global community.Generative AI, such as ChatGPT, is being called the new industrial revolution and is expected to be used innovatively in various fields. Meanwhile, the Global Risks Report released by the World Economic Forum prior to the Davos Conference last year identified “misinformation and disinformation” as the biggest risk in the future, pointing out the danger that AI could be misused in everything from election interference to cybercrime and military purposes.
In these uncertain times, we must look for a future that will serve as a compass. To this end, Meiji University will continue to work together with education and learning, and our corporation to provide a wide range of useful human resources who can contribute to the creation of a harmonious future for humanity and the global environment.
This year’s zodiac sign is Kinotomi, the 42nd zodiac sign in the 60 year cycle . Kinoto (tree, yin) means to move forward with twists and turns despite difficulties, and Mi (snake) symbolizes change, growth, and rebirth owing to repeated molting. Because of this combination, Kinotomi is said to be a year of continuous growth and development, overcoming difficulties while changing. In addition, Mi is considered a symbol of luck with money and is considered a very lucky animal.
We also want to make 2025 a year in which we will further grow toward becoming a top university in Asia.
This year’s zodiac sign is Kinotomi, the 42nd zodiac sign in the 60 year cycle . Kinoto (tree, yin) means to move forward with twists and turns despite difficulties, and Mi (snake) symbolizes change, growth, and rebirth owing to repeated molting. Because of this combination, Kinotomi is said to be a year of continuous growth and development, overcoming difficulties while changing. In addition, Mi is considered a symbol of luck with money and is considered a very lucky animal.
We also want to make 2025 a year in which we will further grow toward becoming a top university in Asia.
President UENO Masao (hereinafter “UENO”): Happy New Year. I look forward to working with you again this year. Now, I hear demons laugh when you mention next year, but if it’s this year, I don’t think they’ll laugh so hard. Well, there’s something so obvious that I don’t even need to preface it. This is so-called the Year 2025 Problem.This year, all eight million members of the baby boomer generation will become the elderly aged 75 or over, so the rapid aging of the population has been a problem, but from this year, the high aging rate will become a problem. It is said that Japanese society will face further difficulties in many aspects, such as qualitative changes in the labor force shortage and the burden of social security.
It’s a depressing story early in the new year. But I don’t think Meiji University needs to be depressed, too. If there is a shortage in the labor force, we can improve the skills of each individual. There is a great avenue in this for universities as educational institutions.
In the past, Japanese companies, for example, seem to have not emphasized academic achievement when hiring students, but from now on that will not be the case. Therefore, for universities that are able to clarify the issues facing humanity, advance research that shows solutions, and nurture human resources, problems such as the labor force shortage will be an opportunity to make great strides. And Meiji University, which deploys 10 schools and 16 graduate schools with 1,000 full-time researchers and 600 administrative staff, is a university which can accomplish that. The theme of today’s discussion is “discussing the future of Meiji University.” To conclude, the future of Meiji University is bright.
Launching large-scale projects with a view to the future
——Can you review Meiji University in 2024?
YANAGIYA: As you all know, the NHK morning drama Tora ni Tsubasa (Making the strong even stronger) received high ratings and was very well received. Thanks to this, Meiji University received a great deal of attention and recognition. In fact, the Recruit Research Institute for Education announced in 2024 that Meiji University was the university that high school students in the Kanto Koshinetsu area most wanted to enter.
For the current Board of Trustees, which started at the same time as the era of Tora ni Tsubasa, 2024 was a year in which large-scale projects that were to solve major issues facing Meiji University and lay the groundwork for the future began to move steadily.
The first major project is the introduction of a new university pension system in April 2025. The university pension for faculty and staff has long been a management issue because of concerns about maintaining a stable system in the future owing to the large amount of insufficient liability reserves. At the same time, there was a need to deal with the issue of faculty and staff who had been at Meiji University for less than 17 years before retirement and were not eligible for the university pension.
Against this background, we held collective negotiations with the union for faculty and staff for about three years and concluded an agreement in July 2024 on the introduction of the defined contribution pension system (DC system), a new system that does not create future liabilities, for new employees and current non-members of the Meiji University Pension. Even after the introduction of the DC system, the current university pension system will continue to be applied to those who are enrolled in the current system, and the financial situation of the pension will be improved, thereby maintaining the stability of the system.
On the other hand, for those who are covered by the DC system, various advantages are expected, such as the fact that faculty and staff who were previously unable to join the pension system are now able to join, and that it has portability that enables flexible response to various working styles. Meiji University has high expectations for the DC system as a system that will enable faculty and staff to concentrate on and support their education and research with peace of mind, while at the same time improving their future financial situation.
Secondly, in November 2024, Meiji University acquired the land and historical buildings on which Hilltop Hotel, which is known to have been used by many famous writers, is built. After carrying out the necessary renovation work while maintaining the present appearance of Hilltop Hotel, we are considering to continue the hotel business in cooperation with a company from the hotel industry, and also to use it as a function for student support, as well as a function for cooperation with the community and society.
The main building of Hilltop Hotel was constructed in 1937 with a donation from SATO Keitaro, who was a graduate of Meiji University and supported the construction of the school building for the Women’s Division of the Specialty Department. Meiji University will inherit this building of historical and cultural value as a new symbol of Meiji University. Meiji University has positioned this project as one of its 150 year anniversary events and plans to use it for various PR activities in the future. We appreciate your understanding that this acquisition is a long term measure that takes into account the effective use of the next generation.
The third major project is the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan. This project is positioned as a key objective of the facility development plan of MEIJI VISION 150 - Go Forward -, which defines the ideal image of Meiji University in preparation for its 150 year anniversary in 2031, and is a comprehensive facility development project over 14 years that involves the reconstruction and renovation of the entire campus, centering on the aging school buildings in the Sarugaku-cho area of the Surugadai Campus.
This plan is based on the assumption that all institutions currently located at Nakano Campus will be integrated into Surugadai Campus in about 10 years. This is a major turning point in our campus organization. Through the synergy effect of this fusion of education and research between Nakano Campus and Surugadai Campus, the campus environment will be reorganized so that higher-level and more advanced education and research can be developed at Surugadai Campus. The Board of Trustees will consider the use of the Nakano Campus after the integration, based on what is required of the university in the future.
At the new campus, large-scale construction and relocation is planned, including the construction of new education and research facilities including a new education building and a new faculty office building, the construction of the Student Center, which will be a place for students’ extracurricular activities, and the rearrangement of various institutes and facilities after the renovation of other school buildings. A major reform project for the Surugadai Campus will begin in earnest in anticipation of the next generation’s development.
I have mentioned the above three major projects. Last year was not only the 150 year anniversary of our founding, but also a year in which we were able to put together projects that were extremely important for us to continue to shine for the future.
UENO: First, I would like to review the President’s Office. In April, the President’s staff members, consisting of Vice Presidents and the President’s Staff, began working, but the number of staff was halved. This is because I want all of the President’s staff members to understand the state of education and learning as a whole by making the discussions in the President’s Office practical, and then to perform their duties. The burden on the staff members has increased, but as various opinions are actively exchanged, they understand the positioning of each project regardless of the person in charge, and it is working well.
In addition, the President’s Policy (basic policy and priority strategy), which had been considered by the President’s staff members since April, was completed as an Annual Plan through training sessions at the President’s Office, and was submitted to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the end of September. Since this is the first President’s Policy since I became President, it is not only a policy for fiscal 2025 but also basically a policy for my term as President. In order to get more people to read it, we made it as simple as possible by reducing it by almost 30% from the previous year’s policy.
The basic content of the basic policy is to further expand the diversity of Meiji University. In education, we want to lower the barriers between schools and graduate schools, and provide students with the broad and deep learning that is possible only at a large comprehensive university so that they can gain diverse perspectives. In research, we would like to provide an environment that enables convergence-type research by linking various academic fields. By supporting students’ learning, career development, study abroad, and extracurricular activities, and by improving the well-being of faculty in the educational and research environment, we want to ensure that the diversity of students and faculty is more respected. These are examples of the President’s Policy.
Other initiatives at the President’s Office in 2024 included changing the format of the Message from President’s Office to data, disclosing some articles outside Meiji University, and implementing the President’s Forum at each campus where full-time faculty members can freely exchange opinions. In addition, in 2024, after a certain amount of deliberations led by the President’s Office, we will soon be able to propose a specific system, such as the establishment of a minor program, the restructuring of a subsidy system for students studying abroad at overseas university for medium to long term, and the establishment of a support system for start-ups.
Next, I would like to review the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan and Hilltop Hotel from the standpoint of education and learning. Nakano Campus was established as an extremely cutting-edge campus with the School of Global Japanese Studies and the School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences, two of the unparalleled schools of humanities and sciences, and the collaboration and internationalization across schools of humanities and sciences have progressed very well.
Twenty years later, however, both the collaboration and internationalization across schools of humanities and sciences are no longer cutting-edge, but should be applied universally throughout Meiji University. It means that it becomes useful and necessary for the six schools of humanities in Surugadai Campus and the two schools in Nakano Campus to extend the impact of these achievements to the Surugadai Campus.
With this in mind, I believe that Meiji University, as an educational and research institution, should strive to further enhance education and research by integrating the functions of the Nakano Campus with those of the Surugadai Campus as a plan for 100 years.
I believe that the acquisition of Hilltop Hotel should be regarded as a plan for 100 years. A symbol is indispensable for supporting Meiji University with a sense of unity among 35,000 students, 600,000 alumni, and many current and retired faculty and staff with various kinds of ideas. The symbol of Meiji University is the founding spirit of Rights and Liberty, Independence and Self-Government in terms of philosophy, and was formerly a memorial hall in terms of materials. In some cases, college sports can be the symbol. And the building of Hilltop Hotel will be an alternative to the memorial hall because of its historical story.
As a side note, even when the development of digital transformation (DX) makes the large campus unnecessary, there is no doubt that the area of Hilltop Hotel will be the last place to be left in Surugadai. For Meiji University, the area was an expense for the current year, but it is a future base.
Finally, I would like to talk about the fact that Meiji University has been selected for two subsidy projects by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in connection with university-wide educational research. The first project is the Program for Developing Artificial Intelligence Experts in Mathematical Data Science, which was applied to the Program for Supporting the Strengthening Functions of Universities and Technical Colleges to train advanced information specialists who will lead the growth fields such as digital technology. The capacity of the School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences and Graduate School of Advanced Mathematical Sciences will be increased, and two courses will be established at the graduate school.
The other project is the Open Access Acceleration Project, which aims to contribute to the development of academic research by making research papers widely available both at home and abroad. In the future, Meiji University will further promote the disclosure of its academic achievements to the world. All of these are the result of what the government expected from Meiji University’s education and research evaluation.
YANAGIYA: As you all know, the NHK morning drama Tora ni Tsubasa (Making the strong even stronger) received high ratings and was very well received. Thanks to this, Meiji University received a great deal of attention and recognition. In fact, the Recruit Research Institute for Education announced in 2024 that Meiji University was the university that high school students in the Kanto Koshinetsu area most wanted to enter.
For the current Board of Trustees, which started at the same time as the era of Tora ni Tsubasa, 2024 was a year in which large-scale projects that were to solve major issues facing Meiji University and lay the groundwork for the future began to move steadily.
The first major project is the introduction of a new university pension system in April 2025. The university pension for faculty and staff has long been a management issue because of concerns about maintaining a stable system in the future owing to the large amount of insufficient liability reserves. At the same time, there was a need to deal with the issue of faculty and staff who had been at Meiji University for less than 17 years before retirement and were not eligible for the university pension.
Against this background, we held collective negotiations with the union for faculty and staff for about three years and concluded an agreement in July 2024 on the introduction of the defined contribution pension system (DC system), a new system that does not create future liabilities, for new employees and current non-members of the Meiji University Pension. Even after the introduction of the DC system, the current university pension system will continue to be applied to those who are enrolled in the current system, and the financial situation of the pension will be improved, thereby maintaining the stability of the system.
On the other hand, for those who are covered by the DC system, various advantages are expected, such as the fact that faculty and staff who were previously unable to join the pension system are now able to join, and that it has portability that enables flexible response to various working styles. Meiji University has high expectations for the DC system as a system that will enable faculty and staff to concentrate on and support their education and research with peace of mind, while at the same time improving their future financial situation.
Secondly, in November 2024, Meiji University acquired the land and historical buildings on which Hilltop Hotel, which is known to have been used by many famous writers, is built. After carrying out the necessary renovation work while maintaining the present appearance of Hilltop Hotel, we are considering to continue the hotel business in cooperation with a company from the hotel industry, and also to use it as a function for student support, as well as a function for cooperation with the community and society.
The main building of Hilltop Hotel was constructed in 1937 with a donation from SATO Keitaro, who was a graduate of Meiji University and supported the construction of the school building for the Women’s Division of the Specialty Department. Meiji University will inherit this building of historical and cultural value as a new symbol of Meiji University. Meiji University has positioned this project as one of its 150 year anniversary events and plans to use it for various PR activities in the future. We appreciate your understanding that this acquisition is a long term measure that takes into account the effective use of the next generation.
The third major project is the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan. This project is positioned as a key objective of the facility development plan of MEIJI VISION 150 - Go Forward -, which defines the ideal image of Meiji University in preparation for its 150 year anniversary in 2031, and is a comprehensive facility development project over 14 years that involves the reconstruction and renovation of the entire campus, centering on the aging school buildings in the Sarugaku-cho area of the Surugadai Campus.
This plan is based on the assumption that all institutions currently located at Nakano Campus will be integrated into Surugadai Campus in about 10 years. This is a major turning point in our campus organization. Through the synergy effect of this fusion of education and research between Nakano Campus and Surugadai Campus, the campus environment will be reorganized so that higher-level and more advanced education and research can be developed at Surugadai Campus. The Board of Trustees will consider the use of the Nakano Campus after the integration, based on what is required of the university in the future.
At the new campus, large-scale construction and relocation is planned, including the construction of new education and research facilities including a new education building and a new faculty office building, the construction of the Student Center, which will be a place for students’ extracurricular activities, and the rearrangement of various institutes and facilities after the renovation of other school buildings. A major reform project for the Surugadai Campus will begin in earnest in anticipation of the next generation’s development.
I have mentioned the above three major projects. Last year was not only the 150 year anniversary of our founding, but also a year in which we were able to put together projects that were extremely important for us to continue to shine for the future.
UENO: First, I would like to review the President’s Office. In April, the President’s staff members, consisting of Vice Presidents and the President’s Staff, began working, but the number of staff was halved. This is because I want all of the President’s staff members to understand the state of education and learning as a whole by making the discussions in the President’s Office practical, and then to perform their duties. The burden on the staff members has increased, but as various opinions are actively exchanged, they understand the positioning of each project regardless of the person in charge, and it is working well.
In addition, the President’s Policy (basic policy and priority strategy), which had been considered by the President’s staff members since April, was completed as an Annual Plan through training sessions at the President’s Office, and was submitted to the Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the end of September. Since this is the first President’s Policy since I became President, it is not only a policy for fiscal 2025 but also basically a policy for my term as President. In order to get more people to read it, we made it as simple as possible by reducing it by almost 30% from the previous year’s policy.
The basic content of the basic policy is to further expand the diversity of Meiji University. In education, we want to lower the barriers between schools and graduate schools, and provide students with the broad and deep learning that is possible only at a large comprehensive university so that they can gain diverse perspectives. In research, we would like to provide an environment that enables convergence-type research by linking various academic fields. By supporting students’ learning, career development, study abroad, and extracurricular activities, and by improving the well-being of faculty in the educational and research environment, we want to ensure that the diversity of students and faculty is more respected. These are examples of the President’s Policy.
Other initiatives at the President’s Office in 2024 included changing the format of the Message from President’s Office to data, disclosing some articles outside Meiji University, and implementing the President’s Forum at each campus where full-time faculty members can freely exchange opinions. In addition, in 2024, after a certain amount of deliberations led by the President’s Office, we will soon be able to propose a specific system, such as the establishment of a minor program, the restructuring of a subsidy system for students studying abroad at overseas university for medium to long term, and the establishment of a support system for start-ups.
Next, I would like to review the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan and Hilltop Hotel from the standpoint of education and learning. Nakano Campus was established as an extremely cutting-edge campus with the School of Global Japanese Studies and the School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences, two of the unparalleled schools of humanities and sciences, and the collaboration and internationalization across schools of humanities and sciences have progressed very well.
Twenty years later, however, both the collaboration and internationalization across schools of humanities and sciences are no longer cutting-edge, but should be applied universally throughout Meiji University. It means that it becomes useful and necessary for the six schools of humanities in Surugadai Campus and the two schools in Nakano Campus to extend the impact of these achievements to the Surugadai Campus.
With this in mind, I believe that Meiji University, as an educational and research institution, should strive to further enhance education and research by integrating the functions of the Nakano Campus with those of the Surugadai Campus as a plan for 100 years.
I believe that the acquisition of Hilltop Hotel should be regarded as a plan for 100 years. A symbol is indispensable for supporting Meiji University with a sense of unity among 35,000 students, 600,000 alumni, and many current and retired faculty and staff with various kinds of ideas. The symbol of Meiji University is the founding spirit of Rights and Liberty, Independence and Self-Government in terms of philosophy, and was formerly a memorial hall in terms of materials. In some cases, college sports can be the symbol. And the building of Hilltop Hotel will be an alternative to the memorial hall because of its historical story.
As a side note, even when the development of digital transformation (DX) makes the large campus unnecessary, there is no doubt that the area of Hilltop Hotel will be the last place to be left in Surugadai. For Meiji University, the area was an expense for the current year, but it is a future base.
Finally, I would like to talk about the fact that Meiji University has been selected for two subsidy projects by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology in connection with university-wide educational research. The first project is the Program for Developing Artificial Intelligence Experts in Mathematical Data Science, which was applied to the Program for Supporting the Strengthening Functions of Universities and Technical Colleges to train advanced information specialists who will lead the growth fields such as digital technology. The capacity of the School of Interdisciplinary Mathematical Sciences and Graduate School of Advanced Mathematical Sciences will be increased, and two courses will be established at the graduate school.
The other project is the Open Access Acceleration Project, which aims to contribute to the development of academic research by making research papers widely available both at home and abroad. In the future, Meiji University will further promote the disclosure of its academic achievements to the world. All of these are the result of what the government expected from Meiji University’s education and research evaluation.
At KISHIMOTO Tatsuo Hall on the 23rd floor of Liberty Tower. On the left is the interviewer, Vice President KUROSAWA Mutsumi (in charge of Community Contribution and Public Relations, and Chief of President’s Staff).
Go forward a university open to the world
——What is your long term vision or grand design for Meiji University on its 150th anniversary in 2031 and beyond?
YANAGIYA: A special subcommittee of the Central Council for Education, an advisory body to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, held in November 2024, estimated that the number of students going on to university will decrease from the current 620,000 to 420,000 by 2050. That’s a drastic decrease. The report states, “If we do not respond appropriately to the crisis, more universities will face bankruptcy. We need to support restructuring, consolidation, downsizing, and withdrawal.”
Meanwhile, according to the latest population estimates by the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research (IPSS), the total foreign population in Japan is expected to increase from 2.75 million in 2020 to 9.39 million by 2070, exceeding 10% of the total population. Because the total population of Japan will be less than 100 million in 2056. In particular, in the younger age group of 18 to 34, the foreign population is expected to exceed 10% by 2035. Ten years from now, Japan will have a more diverse environment, with one in 10 young people being a foreigner.
In this changing environment, looking ahead to the 150 year anniversary of our founding and the future beyond, we need to build a grand design for further development while sharing a strong sense of crisis. At the same time, we need to incorporate concrete measures to achieve this design in our medium term plan, etc., and reflect and implement them in each fiscal year’s budget and business plan while periodically checking the progress. We have already announced MEIJI VISION 150 - Go Forward - at the 140 year anniversary ceremony in 2021, and the mid-term plan has already started. Still, however, this kind of strategy-oriented development will be required from here on in.
Looking back over the past 30 years, the number of students at our university has remained almost unchanged, but the campus area has increased 1.9 times. With the advent of an age in which the number of students going to university is declining at speed, campus development needs to be based on scrap and build, combining real and virtual spaces, and realizing the globalization of campuses where diverse students gather. Based on these ideas, the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan was announced in December 2024. This year, we will begin concrete developments based on the rolling plan, including Izumi Campus, Ikuta Campus, and athletic facilities.
In order for Meiji University to continue to shine in the future as a university open to the world and a university that sends messages to the world, I, together with the President of Meiji University, will take the lead and push forward.
UENO: Chairman, thank you for your encouraging words. As Meiji University has done in the past, I believe that we should stick to Rights and Liberty, Independence and Self-Government not only for the 150 year anniversary of its foundation in six years, but also for the future beyond. That’s because the raison d’etre of Meiji University as a private school is there.
Since its foundation, Meiji University has continued to hold up the banner of Rights and Liberty, Independence and Self-Government in spite of various difficulties. The society that Meiji University aspires to, that is, a society in which each individual is respected, has yet to be realized, both in Japan and abroad.
Meiji University, therefore, must continue to lead society in the fields of education and research to realize this society. To that end, we want to nurture strong individuals and foster strong, resilient people who respect each other. We want to build an environment in which each individual is respected by gathering the knowledge of researchers.
Specifically, we want to achieve this by greatly expanding diversity throughout our university. In MEIJI VISION 150 - Go Forward -, the vision for Meiji University’s 150 year anniversary, diversity and related issues are repeatedly mentioned. If evolution and innovation are born out of diversity, this will be an extremely important element of the grand design for the 150 year anniversary and beyond.
We will accept students from Japan and abroad who are diverse in terms of nationality, race, culture, gender, age, etc., and provide them with opportunities to study in multiple fields. At the same time, we will make the campuses more diversity-friendly and provide more support for career development, extracurricular activities, and job searching. The sources of funding for faculty and researchers will be diversified, and interdisciplinary research will be promoted beyond the boundaries of schools and graduate schools, and beyond the boundaries of universities and the nations. By deepening regional cooperation, Meiji University will be internationalized and regionalized at the same time.
As the future of Meiji University on its 150th anniversary in 2031 and beyond, I have this image full of diversity. I hope that initiatives from this perspective will be made in the process of realizing the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan over 10 years. In this sense, I believe that the Surugadai Campus Comprehensive Facilities Development Plan can be regarded as a pilot project to clarify the future vision of the Izumi and Ikuta campuses.
And, as I mentioned at the beginning, Meiji University is a university that can realize such a diverse and bright future.
Restructuring a subsidy system to make it easier to study abroad
——Please tell us what you will be doing in 2025 to achieve the bright future of Meiji University and your enthusiasm for it.
YANAGIYA: First of all, as you all know, in the fiscal 2023 financial results, the balance of income and expenditure before incorporation into the basic fund, which is equivalent to corporate net income, was positive by 6.69 billion yen, which was the best result in recent years. Although we were able to achieve the priority target of 5 billion yen by fiscal 2031, which was set in MEIJI VISION 150 - Go Forward -, eight years ahead of schedule, we will not be content with this, and from this year on, we will work to build a financial base that will enable us to stably achieve 5 billion yen as the balance of income and expenditure before incorporation into the basic fund.
Next, I would like to talk about our informatization strategy. Under MUX (Meiji University digital transformation), we are promoting the integrated management of the enormous amount of information held by our university. Currently, the Integrated Management Plan is in progress with six programs and 17 projects. By using this information for education and learning management, quality assurance of education, support for student learning, and corporate management strategy planning by developing and strengthening corporate IR, we will support the improvement of creativity and productivity of students and faculty and staff.
With regard to the affiliated school policy, we concluded an agreement with Nihon Gakuen to make it an affiliated school based on the belief that it is necessary to secure excellent students in advance in anticipation of the decline in the number of students going on to university. Since May 2024, five of the nine members of the board of directors have been dispatched from Meiji University, establishing a close cooperation system with Nihon Gakuen. We will continue to steadily promote the plan this year with the aim of establishing Meiji University Setagaya Junior High School and Senior High School as co-ed schools on April 1, 2026.
Finally, the Alumni Association is an important partner supporting Meiji University. By effectively utilizing Meiji University’s general news site Meiji NOW, an e-mail magazine dedicated to alumni, and social media, we will distribute the latest information about Meiji University, thereby building a relationship between the university and alumni that supports each other and aims for lasting development. Specifically, this year, the school corporation will work together with the Alumni Association to solve issues, such as the participation of young people and women in the Alumni Association, the vitalization of regional branches, and the strengthening of cooperation with each of the Shikon-kai, including the overseas Shikon-kai.
The Association of Former Parents’ Association Members was launched in 2024 on the occasion of the 50 year anniversary of the founding of the Parents’ Association, and its membership has been steadily increasing. As an honorary chairman, I will continue to support its development.
Alumni Association, parents, faculty and staff, let’s work together to “Go forward” this year.
UENO: As I mentioned earlier, we are aiming to make the establishment of a minor program, the restructuring of a subsidy system for students studying abroad at overseas university for medium to long term, and the establishment of a support system for start-ups, concrete ahead of others.
The minor program is a program based on the intention that we want students to have diverse viewpoints and be able to see things from various angles. Of course, it is important for students to study a major program thoroughly, but in addition to that, studying another field outside of their specialty will greatly expand their horizons.
Specifically, we plan to systematically select a certain number of basic specialized subjects from among the subjects already established by each school and provide them to students in other schools, and to issue certificates of completion to students who have mastered those subjects. In the future, all students at Meiji University will be required to take a minor program, which we hope will become one of the highlights of Meiji University’s education. For the time being, we plan to implement this program for students who wish to do so.
In the past, Meiji University has provided generous support to students who want to study at overseas universities for the medium to long term through two grant systems: the Overseas Study Grant Program and the Overseas Top University Grant Program. However, these days, the situation for students who want to study abroad has been severe owing to the recent high prices overseas and the depreciation of the yen. Therefore, after further expanding the total amount of these grants, we would like to rationally review the content of the two grant systems and develop a grant system that makes it easier for students who have studied hard at Meiji University to study abroad.
There is a great need not only for students but also for society to support start-ups, but there has been no university-wide initiative at Meiji University. Now, we have the cooperation of alumni and people who support Meiji University, so we want to build a support system that is unique to Meiji University.
Also, Meiji University Setagaya Junior High School and Senior High School will start next spring. In 2025, we will steadily make preparations for these new schools.
In addition to the four years of university, we aim to create a partnership in which students, junior high and senior high schools, and Meiji University can feel the benefits of being educated as a member of Meiji University over three to six years of junior and senior high school.
In closing, I would like to ask for your cooperation this year so that our alumni, parents, faculty and staff, and students can make the bluish purple sash of Meiji University bigger and more colorful and pass it on to the future.
Chairman, Board of Trustees YANAGIYA Takashi
1975: Graduated from School of Commerce, Meiji University
1975: Joined Nomura Securities Co., Ltd. (Current Nomura Holdings, Inc.)
1997: Director of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd.
2000: Managing Director of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd.
2002: Senior Managing Director of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd.
2006: Executive Vice President of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd.
2008: Executive Vice-Chairman of Nomura Securities Co., Ltd.
2016~: Chairman, Board of Trustees, Meiji University
President UENO Masao
1980: Graduated from School of Law, Meiji University
1992: Legal Apprentice
1994~2003: Served as a court judge
2003: Appointed Associate Professor of the School of Law, Meiji University
2010: Appointed Professor of the School of Law, Meiji University
2022: Served as Dean,School of Law, Meiji University
Served as Vice President (Public Relations), Head of Specialist in the President's Office, Dean of the Faculty of Law, etc.
Areas of special competence: Criminal law (criminology, offender treatment law, and juvenile law)
≪Japanese version≫