Help Us Identify Eligible Students

In 1955, Denver’s Japanese American community established a scholarship to honor the late Harry Sakata. Mr. Sakata’s involvement with the Japanese American community spanned both the local and national levels. Harry Sakata believed in the youth as the future of the Japanese American community.

From that humble beginning, the Japanese American Community Graduation Program has evolved into a program that recognizes all eligible high school seniors of Denver’s Japanese American community. This program is dedicated to all graduating high school seniors who exemplify Mr. Sakata’s  qualities of leadership and community service.

Annually, a community-wide sponsored recognition and awards dinner is held to honor these students upon their graduation from high school. Also, the Japanese American Community Graduation Program administers a scholarship program that provides an opportunity for these students to apply for awards and scholarships totaling approximately $35,000.

We are asking for assistance in identifying these eligible students.

To be eligible to attend the dinner, a student must meet one of the following requirements:

  1. A graduating high school senior residing in the Denver Metropolitan area who is either an American citizen of Japanese ancestry or an American citizen who’s legal parent(s) is/are of Japanese ancestry, or
  2. A graduating high school senior of Japanese ancestry residing in the Denver Metropolitan area who has permanent residence status (INS documentation) in the United States, or
  3. A graduating high school senior who has a parent who is an active member of: Mile-Hi Chapter Japanese American Citizens League, Simpson United Methodist Church, Tri-State/Denver Buddhist Temples, Denver Nisei Bowling Association, Brighton Japanese American Association, Japanese Association of Colorado, Nisei Veterans’ Heritage Foundation, Japanese Firms Association of Colorado, Longmont Buddhist Temple, or Fort Lupton Japanese American Citizens League.

Please send a list of all eligible students by March 2, 2012 to:

Japanese American Community Graduation ProgramAttn: David Tashiro
P. O. Box 13665

Denver, CO. 80201-3665

The banquet will be held on June 9, 2012 at the Arvada Center for the Arts and Humanities.

Announcement of Available Scholarships

  1. There are scholarships available for graduating high school seniors of Denver, Colorado’s Japanese American Community. Please refer to the applications on this website for eligibility requirements. Both academic and non academic scholarships are available.
  2. Applications forms are on this website. If more are needed, any photocopy or a reasonable facsimile will be accepted. Each individual scholarship has its own eligibility requirements and applications. Please refer to each scholarship application. All Japanese American Community Graduation Program’s applications, essays and transcripts MUST BE POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE APRIL 6, 2012. There will be NO EXCEPTIONS to this deadline.
  3. Also, any high school senior interested in art or photography is encouraged to submit an entry in the design contest for the cover of the program booklet for the recognition. Rules and regulations are enclosed. Students may submit a design whether or not they apply for a scholarship.

Thank you for your cooperation and prompt attention to the above matters. If there are any questions, please feel free to call.

Sincerely,

Lorraine Hisamoto

Application Committee

Telephone: (303)288-6083