Yoshi Kasuya (1894–1994) was a Japanese educator who spent the majority of her career at

Tsuda College is a private women's university based at Kodaira, Tokyo. It is one of the oldest and most prestigious higher educational institutions for women in Japan, contributing to the advancement of women in society for more than a century. History The u ...

Kodaira, Tokyo is a city located in the western portion of Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 195,207 in 93,654 households, and a population density of 9500 persons per km². The total area of the city was . Geography Kodaira i ...

, initially as a teacher and later as president. She studied extensively in the United States, receiving a B.A. from

Wellesley College Wellesley College is a private women's liberal arts college in Wellesley, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1870 by Henry and Pauline Durant as a female seminary, it is a member of the original Seven Sisters Colleges, an unofficial g ...

in 1923 and an M.A. and PhD from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

in 1930 and 1933 respectively. She received the

Blue Ribbon Medal Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obse ...

and was made a member of the Third Class of the

Order of the Precious Crown The is a Japanese order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. Since the Order of the Rising Sun at that time was an Order for men, it was established as an Order for women. Originally the order had five classes, but on Ap ...

for her contributions to women's education.

Biography

Kasuya attended Miwada Girls' High School, a

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

private school founded in 1902. She became a teacher at

, a private university for women founded by

Tsuda Umeko was a Japanese educator and a pioneer in education for women in Meiji period Japan.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Tsuda Umeko" in . Originally named Tsuda Ume, with ''ume'' referring to the Japanese plum, she went by the name Ume Tsuda ...

, in 1915. She would spend most of her career at Tsuda College with intermittent periods of overseas study. Kasuya traveled to the United States in 1919 to attend

, a private women's university in

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. She returned to Japan a week after the

1923 Great Kantō earthquake The struck the Kantō Plain on the main Japanese island of Honshū at 11:58:44 JST (02:58:44 UTC) on Saturday, September 1, 1923. Varied accounts indicate the duration of the earthquake was between four and ten minutes. Extensive firestorms an ...

and resumed teaching at Tsuda College. Kasuya went back to the United States in 1929, this time to complete a master's degree at

Columbia University Teachers College Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...

, which she received in 1930. Supervised by

Isaac Leon Kandel Isaac Leon Kandel, M.A., Ph.D. (1881-1965) was an American educator born in Botoșani, Romania. He studied at Manchester, England, Teachers College, Columbia University, and the University of Jena, (Germany). For several years, he taught at schoo ...

and

Willystine Goodsell Willystine Goodsell (January 8, 1870 May 31, 1962) was a historian and feminist writer who was a professor of history and philosophy at Teachers College, Columbia University. The AERA Women in Education SIG Award, founded in 1981, is also named ...

, she then began a PhD at Columbia, completing her doctorate in 1933. As part of her doctoral studies, she spent two months in Germany, enrolling at the

University of Berlin Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin (german: Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a German public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin. It was established by Frederick William III on the initiative o ...

and visiting 40 educational institutions in 20 German cities. Her thesis, ''A Comparative Study of the Secondary Education of Girls in England, Germany, and the United States with a Consideration of the Secondary Education of Girls in Japan'' (1933) explored the transnational and gendered aspects of education and was based on her interviews with and observations of educators in England, Germany and the United States. Back in Japan, she taught for eight years at

Utsunomiya Junior College is a private junior college in Utsunomiya, Tochigi is the prefectural capital city of Tochigi Prefecture in the northern Kantō region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 519,223, and a population density of . The total area ...

. Kasuya returned to Wellesley College in 1950 to study university education and language teaching in girls' high schools; this would be her last trip to the United States. She later became president of Tsuda College and retired in 1962. She was awarded a

by the Japanese government in 1960 and received the Third Class of the

in 1968 for her contributions to women's education.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kasuya, Yoshi 1894 births 1994 deaths 20th-century Japanese educators Order of the Precious Crown members Wellesley College alumni Teachers College, Columbia University alumni Tsuda University faculty Japanese women educators 20th-century women educators