JAPANESE AMERICAN VETERANS ASSOCIATION

                     1749 Old Meadow Road, Suite 500, McLean, VA 22102 (Bob Nakamoto, President)

CONTACT:  Terry Shima 301-987-6746; ttshima@worldnet.att.net

                               Calvin Ninomiya, Esq 301-652-8135; calvinnino@aol.com

PHOTO:   None

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JAVA ANNOUNCES SCHOLARSHIP GUIDELINES FOR 2009

By Calvin Ninomiya, Esq

Japanese American Veterans Association

The second annual JAVA Memorial Scholarship competition is now open, updated with  revised eligibility rules and changes in application requirements. 

The program, which honors the memory of Maj. Orville Shirey (442^nd RCT), Jack Tashiro (MIS member and past JAVA treasurer) and Douglas Ishio (son of JAVA founder Phil Ishio), provided  three $l,000 scholarship awards last year. An additional $l,000 scholarship in the memory of Gene Takahashi, a Korean war veteran, was specially awarded in 2008.

The names of the 2009 scholarships will be announced on May 16, 2009.  Entering college students who qualify for one of three $1,000 awards will have until April 22, 2009, to submit their entries.  In announcing the start of the 2009 program, scholorship program chair Calvin Ninomiya, Esq discussed the changes that JAVA’s Executive Council has made, all based on the experience learned in administering the inaugural program.  These principal changes were identified:

l.  Eligibility requirements: High school graduates who will be newly entering an accredited college or university in the fall of 2009 will be eligible.  The contest continues to remain open to other high school graduates who plan to attend a more specialized school, or a junior college. 

2.  The JAVA scholarship program is open to any applicant who is a lineal descendent of  -- (a) a person who served in the 442^nd Regimental Combat Team, including the l00th Battalion, and all other units that were associated with them, e.g., the 552^nd Field Artillery Battalion; or (b) a person who served in the U.S. Military Intelligence Service (MIS) during and after World War II; or (c) a person of Japanese ancestry who presently serves in the Armed Forces of the United States, or  who has so served and was honorably discharged; or (d) a person who has been a member of JAVA for a period of no less than one year prior to the date of submission of the scholarship application.

3.  Essay requirement: To provide a better measure and a fairer comparison of the applicants, it was decided that entrants should submit an essay of not more than 500 words on a common topic.  For 2009, each contestant will be asked to provide his or her thoughts on: “What the winning of a 2009 JAVA memorial scholarship will mean to me.”

4. Admission: As virtually all colleges and universities send applicants admission information to be received no later than on or about April l5, in order to meet the requirement that the applicant must provide evidence of having been admitted to an accredited institution providing post-high school studies or training, submission of applications may be deferred by those awaiting admission advice until after the customary final date for such notification.  However, the completed application  must be received no later than April 22, 2009.  Applications received after that deadline will not be considered.

5. Commencement: Information will be requested of every applicant about the projected date of his or her high school commencement exercise.  JAVA will try to notify, where possible, the schools where the awardees attend so that appropriate announcements could be included in their commencement programs.

6. Timing for decisions: Given the short time that exists from the closing date for applications to the awards luncheon and/or the likely dates for the graduation services, a special effort will be made to judge the entries as expeditiously as possible. 

Complete contest rules and the application form can be found on the JAVA website (www.javadc.org) , and prospective contestants are encouraged to download the materials, and to begin preparing their entries at an early date.

JAVA has already received several inquiries about the 2009 program, indicating early interest in applying.  It is JAVA’s hope that, however modest, its scholarship awards, particularly given the current state of the economy, would provide a welcome boost to at least three 2009 high school graduates to whom the awards would be granted.

Further information about the program may be requested from Calvin Ninomiya at calvinnino@aol.com. 30