March 12th, 2024

The 2023 'Chancellor's Award' presentation ceremony was held.

On the morning of March 12th, the award ceremony for the Chancellor Ogawara Award, which recognizes students who have achieved outstanding results in national and world-class competitions in extracurricular sports and cultural activities, was held in the Global Studio of the Central Library on the Main Campus, where the recipients were presented with certificates and prizes by Chancellor Ryo Ogawara.

Following the ceremony, a sit-down discussion was held between the chancellor and the 17 participants, who shared their expereiences of the competition that led to the award, their aspirations for the future, and how their practices on daily probed to achieve excellent results. After listening to the students' comments, Chancellr Ogawara commented: 'Listening to you all, I understand how hard you work on your studies and extra-curricular activities on a regular basis, and I am impressed by your attitude. I hope that you will continue to have confidence in your self-improvement in the future".

On behalf of the award winners, Yuko Niwa (1st year master's student, Graduate School of Health and Sport Sciences) from the Taekwondo Club said: 'I am honored to receive the award in this way and feel as if my efforts up to now have been acknowledged. I believe that not only I, but also all the award winners have made a lot of effort. I will never forget to thank you and will continue to work hard in the future".

This was followed by a Celebration Dance performance by the Baton Cheerleading Club, who congratulated those present.

March 11th, 2024

A product by the School of Business Administration's industry-academia collaboration with Berne Corporation, 'A Bite of Strawberry Cheesecake', goes on sale.

In a class in the Department of Business Administration, Marketing Research (Prof Chieko Takahashi), students planned a series of sweets targeting Generation Z with the cooperation of Patisserie Berne (Berne Co., Ltd.) in Nishinomiya City. The students' ideas were arranged by Berne and commercialized. The product, a 'Bite of Strawberry Cheesecake' (250 yen), will be sold exclusively at Bern directly-operated shops from 10th of March.

 Students taking a marketing research course were given a product theme by Berne - "sweets and birthday cakes targeted at Generation Z girls that can be eaten easily at university" - and worked in groups to come up with a product plan. The students conducted online questionnaires and group interviews with their classmates and friends to formulate a proposal for a product that would be a hit for Generation Z girls, which they presented to Bern's president Yoichi Kuramoto at two presentation meetings.

 The 'Bite of Strawberry Cheesecake' was based on the 'Stick-shaped White Gateau Chocolat with Strawberry Jam' proposed by a group of five students, and was made into a prototype at Nishinomiya Bern, which was then adapted into a cheesecake.

March 7th, 2024

Four members of the University's dance club participated in a dance camp at the National University of the Arts, Taiwan (TNUA) from 25th of February to the 2nd of March.

The four were invited to this dance camp after being selected through a video screening and performance screening for the 'Za Koenji Dance Award II' (to be held on 7th of April), where dancers from Taiwan and Japan gather to submit their works.

The camp was held for the purpose of joint rehearsals with TNUA students who will also perform in the 'Za Koenji Dance Award', as well as for the purpose of exchanges between Taiwan and Japan. The students polished their performances and inspired each other to improve their skills in preparation for the presentation of results on the final day of the camp. During their stay, the four students of MWU also attended various classes with TNUA students in ballet, tai chi, modern dance and Taiwanese folk dance in order to improve their understanding and skills in dance.

March 6th, 2024

Hina Fujiki (4th year, Health and Sports Science) won the 95th Miyasama Ski Tournament International Competition (organized by the Sapporo Ski Federation and Hokkaido Ski Federation) held on 3rd of March at Bankei Ski Resort in Sapporo. She was named the overall winner of the Asia Cup and earned the right to compete in the World Cup next season.

The Asia Cup is an international competition recognized by the International Ski and Snowboard Federation and is held between the continents of Japan, Korea and China. The overall winner is awarded the right to compete in the World Cup the following season.

Ms. Fujiki says: "I am happy to have earned the right to compete in the World Cup, which was my goal. I will continue to train hard and practice so that I can ski on a world-class level."

This spring, Ms. Fujiki will continue her studies at the University's Graduate School of Health and Sport Sciences in the Master's Course.

March 5th, 2024

The Music Therapy Lecture (organized by the School of Music and co-organized by the Institute of Esthetics in Everyday-Life) was held on 3rd of February at the Academic Research Exchange Hall, Main Campus.

The theme of the Music Therapy Lecture, the 13th of its kind this year, was 'Clinical Decision Making in Music Therapy - Perspectives from the big picture & small picture'. Calling on the general public, about 50 participants learned about various music therapy practice perspectives and skills.

The lecturer, Yayoi Hosoe (Certified Music Therapist and co-founder of Music Fits Japan), gave a lecture based on her extensive practice and case studies in Japan and abroad. She taught essential skills and perspectives in clinical practice, particularly clinical decision-making, and engaged in lively discussions with the participants.

March 4th, 2024

The Athlete Seminar 2023, organized by the Mukogawa Women's University Sports Center, was held on 19th of February in the main lecture room of the Koe Memorial Hall and attended by approximately 180 student athletes, coaches and faculty members.

The seminar is held annually for members of the athletic teams, and aims to provide a variety of topics from different perspectives, giving teams and individuals’ tips and opportunities to achieve their goals before the new season, and to unite as an all-Mukogawa team.

The program consists of three subjects: educational lectures, reports on international convention activities and commemorative lectures. The educational lecture was given by Hidekazu Teshima, former trainer for the Hanshin Tigers, trainer for the 2023 WBC ('World Baseball Classic') and still involved with many athletes including professional baseball players. He gave a lecture on the theme of 'Performance Improvement and Sports Injury Prevention'. Mr. Teshima responded to an interview by Associate Professor Chikako Nakahori, a member of the university's Health and Sports Science Department and an athletic trainer. She introduced the importance of preparation and awareness towards practice in an easy-to-understand manner based on examples of situations where injuries occur and how to deal with them, as well as prevention methods practiced by top athletes.

In the second presentation, Mizuho Fujimoto, a first-year student at the Department of Education, who represented Japan in the Sitting Volleyball Women's National Team and won a bronze medal at the Hangzhou Asian Para Games, expressed her gratitude for the environment in which she can devote herself to the sport with dedication, talked about the excitement of being able to utilize the sport for learning and expressed her determination to win a ticket to the Paris Paralympics as the Japanese representative.
 
The final speaker was Professor Masaya Mitsui of the University's Department of Health and Sports Sciences, who will retire in March, gave a commemorative lecture. Looking back on his 43-year journey as a professor and gymnastics coach who has produced many world-class athletes, he spoke with his characteristic humor about how we can realize and learn how to take action to face difficulties when we encounter them.

Participants commented that they could really feel the speakers' passion for the sport and thought that they, too, would first of all have to love their own sport, and that they felt very eager to support Ms. Fujimoto after learning about her activities and hearing her positive attitude and desire to work hard, and that they wanted to do their best for each other.