Tokyo Christian University
Tokyo Christian University (東京基督教大学, Tōkyō kirisutokyō daigaku) is a private university in Inzai, Chiba, Japan, offering an undergraduate liberal arts degree in both Japanese and English. TCU is the only evangelical university fully accredited by Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT).
東京基督教大学; Tōkyō kirisutokyō daigaku | |
 | |
| Type | Private |
|---|---|
| Established | 1966 |
| Location | , , |
| Website | Official website |
History
Tokyo
TCU's history spans 125 years of Japan's 140-year Protestant history. The university emerged from a merger of three Christian schools. The oldest, founded in 1881 in Yokohama, focused on women's education at a time when Japan offered women few opportunities for higher education. In 1949 Tokyo Christian Theological Seminary came into existence, and 1950 saw the establishment of the Japan Domei Institute. The Domei Institute later offered both a three- and a four-year course, achieving accreditation as a junior college. These three schools merged in 1979, with the goal of upgrading the junior college into a university while maintaining the seminary as a distinct graduate program with its own identity.
Chiba
In 1989, the merged school moved to its present location in Chiba New Town, a part of the greater Tokyo metropolitan area. Having achieved the approval of the Japanese Ministry of Education, the transition from the junior college to the university took place between 1990 and 1993. The university admitted its first group of students in 1990, when the junior college graduated its final class. In 1993, the university gained full recognition from the Japanese Ministry of Education, and it continues in this status until today.
English-degree Program
In the twenty-first century, the university admitted its first group of international students under the "Asian Christian Theological Studies Program for English Speakers" (ACTS-ES), a 4-year international program offering a Bachelor of Arts in Theology. This English-degree program integrates the liberal arts with Bible studies and theology, academic preparation with practical experience, the English language with Japanese studies, and the world's cultures with Japan and Asia.
ACTS-ES came to existence during the leadership of Stephen T. Franklin, a Christian theologian and philosopher, who was elected as President of Tokyo Christian University in 1998 and re-elected for a second term in 2002. He stepped down from this post in March 2006. Since stepping down as president, Franklin has been contributing to the advancement of higher education in Japan and the United States as Professor of Theology and Philosophy at Tokyo Christian University and Olivet Nazarene University. The course has been very successful, and has attracted students from North America, Europe, and Africa, though it was originally designed for students from Asia.
Student Life
Campus Life
Tokyo Christian University rests in a park-like setting and green-zone city near Narita International Airport and downtown Tokyo. TCU's campus is located in Inzai-shi, a city located in Chiba Prefecture, Japan. Inzai is located in the important area of northern Chiba Prefecture connecting Tokyo and Narita. The campus is situated at a neighborhood with broad streets, safe sidewalks, green parks, and close to private houses and apartments. It has convenient train access to the rest of the Tokyo area, including Narita International Airport and Tokyo’s central business sectors, such as Asakusa and Ginza.
Besides Tone River that flows in the north, Teganuma Lake that lies in the north-west, Imba Lake that lies in the south-east of the city, the city is also surrounded by natural environment such as natural forest. The development of the Chiba New Town project and the Hokusō Line considerably boosted the development of Inzai from the mid-1980s. Inzai was elevated to city status on April 1, 1996. On March 23, 2010, Inzai absorbed the villages of Inba and Motono (both from Inba District) to create the new and expanded city of Inzai. The main shopping centers in Inzai are: Jusco Chiba New Town, AEON Chiba New Town Shopping Center, Joyful Honda Chiba New Town, Costco.
Spiritual Life
International students and Japanese students are not segregated, but live together in on-campus dorms. On campus, students are required to attend chapel four days a week for half an hour Tuesday through Friday. There are also early morning prayer meetings, Wednesday evening prayer groups, a summer evangelism trip, international missions lectures, and many other practical spiritual opportunities. In order to graduate, ACTS-ES students must intern at one or multiple churches for the duration of their degree.
In Japan, most schools require the students to help clean and maintain the campus facilities. TCU has incorporated that Japanese tradition into its educational practice. All students, in the spirit of Christian concern for each other, share in maintaining the dorms and take turns washing dishes in the cafeteria.
Students also take a central role in school events by participating in committees. Each student is required to join one committee. The current committees for ACTS Students include Student Council, Zion Festival, Spring Retreat, Prayer Meeting, and Summer Missions. There are many on-campus opportunities to participate in music groups, choir, clubs (called “circles”), concerts, intramural athletic events, exercise, or prayer groups.
Dormitory Life
In principle, all TCU students must live in the school’s dormitories. With less than 200 students, TCU’s dorms are close-knit families with internal responsibilities and events. The dormitories are managed by the Student Affairs Department and by the students themselves on the basis of the “Tokyo Christian University Dormitory Bylaws.” TCU runs four dormitories: The Men’s Dorm, the Women’s Dorm, the Zion Dorm, and the Family Dorm.
The Men’s and Woman’s Dorms are three story buildings with a capacity of approximately 100 students each. Each dorm room accommodates two students and is equipped with individual study desks and chairs, bunk-beds, individual chest-of-drawers, and book shelves. All rooms are air-conditioned. Each dorm has a lounge and bathing facilities (both shower and Japanese style “ofuro”), and each of the three floors in both dormitories has prayer rooms, bathrooms, and a laundry room equipped with washing machines and dryers.
Zion Dorm is a suite-style dormitory and has space for 32 students. Each suite has facilities for four persons. Each person has a private bedroom/study room. TCU also runs a Family Dorm. The apartments in the family dorm come in three sizes, each with a different rental fee. The tuition is the same for all TCU students, whether living in one of the single’s dorms or in the family dorm. However the fees for room and board and certain utilities are quite different for family dorm.
