Miiko Kodama, SA1972 and a strong supporter of CWAJ, passed away last July at the age of 83.
Many members may remember that she was one of the first recipients of CWAJ Scholarship for Japanese Women to Study Abroad. With our scholarship, she studied at San Francisco State University and earned Master’s Degree in Communication Studies. After returning to Japan, she taught courses in media and mass communication and media sociology at universities, drawing on her experience of being forced to leave Fuji Television due to the “early retirement system for female announcers”. She served as Dean of the Faculty of Sociology at Musashi University and was Professor Emeritus.
She always showed gratitude to CWAJ for the support given not only to her but to many young women who followed her footsteps. Kodama-san often attended Scholarship Reunions and events, and at the CWAJ 70th Anniversary Dinner in 2019, she performed the sake barrel-breaking ceremony as the representative of the scholarship program.
Though belated, we offer our condolences to Miiko Kodama, a pioneer in the advancement of women in Japanese society.