AJET Connect MAY 2014

FROM THE AJET CHAIR,KAY MAKISHI...SEE YOU INAUGUST!Dear fellow JETs,This may be the last issue ofand back issues of Connectonline. Just click the linksbelow!“A community is a group of people who have come together,and they work and they live to try and improve the standardof living and quality of life—and I don’t mean money.” Thisquote by William Baldwin pretty much sums up how I feelabout National AJET, our national JET community.At the start of the AJET year last June 1 st , I had five maingoals for our council:1) To help JETs by increasing personal and professionaldevelopment opportunities2) Foster grassroots exchange opportunities betweenJapanese and JETs through AJET events3) Raise awareness about AJET4) Improve JET participant involvement with AJET5) Increase AJET’s social media presenceconsistently using Facebook and Twitter to inform JETs ofrelevant news.Of course, there’s always room for improvement. I’m excitedto see future JETs step up and become the next generationConnect before the summer,JET community leaders. Maybe it’ll be you! This coming2 This is my last letter to you as Chair; I can’t believe it! June 1 st , you elected Sandy Cheng, a Kobe ALT to serve as 3My vision for National AJET was to make it all about the your next Chair. I have all the confidence in her that she willbut you can find more storiescommunity, you. I only hope by being part of the JET be able to build and make our community even greater.community (AJET), you have felt included, welcomed, and apart of something positive in Japan.The thing is, if you want to make something better, you can.If you want to change something, you can. If you want tochallenge yourself more, you can. You just have to DO IT.Thank you for allowing me to serve as your Chair this year.This has been my last and best year on JET hands down. Ionly wish all of you the best in your future endeavors andhope our paths will cross again someday.Until then, keep laughing, learning and exploring.All my best,CONNECTajet.netCONNECTissuu.comOur council has been able to follow through by spearheadingfour AJET Professional Development Conference calls andnumerous discounts such as TEFL certification, holdingAJET block events in all 47 prefectures, having the highestAJET survey response rate for the Opinion Exchange withthe Japanese ministries and CLAIR, bringing in projectvolunteers via an open sign-up, tripling the number ofpeople reading AJET eConnect News and Connect, andKay MakishiChair, AJET National Council3rd-year Fukuoka CIRCONNECTCONNECTMay Issue 2014 May Issue 2014