Jason Yumen, a May 2003 Travel Industry Management graduate, has been selected to be a Japan Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program assistant language teacher in Okinawa, beginning in July.

Yumen will assist local Japanese English teachers as a native English speaker resource by participating in classes, preparing teaching materials, and promoting English language education in the local school districts.

“ Being a JET participant,” Yumen said, “will enable me to learn a different culture and see the world.” In addition to his TIM classes, Yumen studied Japanese at HPU and spent a month in Japan in 2002 as a participant in an international student program at Hokuriku University in Kanazawa.

The JET program was started by the Japanese government in 1987 to enhance foreign language education in Japan and to promote international exchange at the local level through fostering ties between Japanese and foreign youth. Participants receive round-trip air fare, health insurance, a $33,000 salary, and other benefits.

For more information about the JET Program, call Dr. William Zanella at 544-1171, or e-mail zanella@hpul.edu.