Saints Go Global: Japan

In the early 1990s, Steve Bettink from Overland Park, KS started working as an Assistant Language Teacher at Yonago High School in Yonago, Japan. He discovered that the faculty and students were increasingly interested in establishing a student exchange program with an American high school. Soon after he reached out to the principal of Saint Thomas Aquinas, and the first exchange program between Saint Thomas Aquinas High School and Yonago High School occurred in 1993 when three Yonago students came for a three-week visit and stayed with host families of Aquinas students. Over a period of 25 years, Aquinas has sent a total of 49 students to Japan and Yonago has sent 143 students to America.

A Brief History of the Exchange Program with Yonago High School

While the first exchange between the two schools was in 1993, it was in 1995, that Saint Thomas Aquinas Spanish teacher, Mrs. Kaye Thompson, managed the program until she retired in 2018. The program was inactive from 2018 -2023 partly due to Covid-19.  In 2023 a representative from Yonago High School contacted Mrs. Diane Pyle to restart the program and in the spring of 2024, five students from Yonago High School traveled over to Aquinas.

On October 11, 2024, six students from Aquinas traveled overseas to Japan for ten days for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

Breathing New Life into the Program

When Caran McMahon, John Howe, Branigan Frederes, Eden Steinberg, Catherine Cunningham, and Kennidy Birdsong of Saint Thomas Aquinas stepped off their 13-hour flight, they didn’t quite realize how different a world they had just entered. Tired and jetlagged, they exited the airport terminal and through the rabbit hole into a Wonderland they couldn’t even comprehend.

The students were welcomed by their Yonago host families who held a reception party in their honor. The following day, the Aquinas students got their first taste of what Japanese high school is like. They quickly discovered that even though they may be oceans away, high schoolers are still teenagers regardless of their place of residency. 

The Aquinas students participated in various classes such as the cooking class where they prepared their meal of makizushi and miso soup, dyeing class where they designed commemorative t-shirts, and English classes where the Aquinas students and Yonago High School students were able to communicate despite the somewhat difficult language barrier. Aquinas students also got to experience classes that pushed them out of their comfort zones such as foreign language classes including Korean and Chinese and classes where they felt right at home such as the Mathematics class where some of them were able to flex their knowledge of linear graphs and parabolas. The Aquinas students also got to experience some fun events and activities put together by Yonago High School students. The students folded paper Jingasa helmets, played games with Yonago students like Jenga and charades, and got to experience traditional Japanese summer festival games such as Senbonbiki, Super Ball Scooping, and Fishing Yo-yo.

I felt less out of place than I thought I would feel. People didn’t stare. They were very considerate and understanding.

John Howe, '27

At the end of their seven-day stay in Yonago, the Aquinas students were treated to a day that they will never forget. When they had finished their classes for their last day, Yonago High School threw a farewell party where many tears were shed, yet, many smiles and promises of returning to visit were exchanged. The Aquinas students thanked the students and teachers of Yonago High School, yet, more tears would soon be shed when the Yonago High School students surprised the Aquinas students by all collectively singing “Take Me Home, Country Roads.” After the Aquinas students said their tearful goodbyes to the school they had become so connected with in such a short time, they all spent their last night in Yonago experiencing what they can collectively agree was the most memorable night of their trip.

The Aquinas and Yonago students went out to an all-you-can-eat BBQ buffet, eating until their bellies were full and their hearts were happy. Then, they went to karaoke and sang until their voices were raw and their sides hurt from laughing and then crying again. To close out this unforgettable night, they arrived at the beach to run around playing tag together, splashing each other with the fresh seawater.

This wasn’t the end of the trip though, the Aquinas students spent a couple of days touring Japan. Sorrowful to be leaving their hosts and the quiet beauty of Yonago, yet hopeful and restless to discover and enjoy the bustling streets of Kyoto, parting ways was bittersweet with many more tears shed as the Aquinas students’ bus departed. The passing foggy mountain view whizzing by their windows slowly shifted into rural farm towns encased by hills, and then onto larger towns, until finally, they arrived in Kyoto. Stepping down the stairs of the bus, the Aquinas students were encompassed by the sights and sounds of the city. After checking into their hotel, the students explored the city.

After figuring out the subway system is a lot more complicated to understand than in America, one taxi ride later, the students arrived back at their hotel to dive deep into the nightlife of Kyoto.

In Kyoto, their tour guide showed the students both the quiet tree-lined streets and the loud and bustling shopping district halls, where the Aquinas students encountered people from Japan and all over the world. The Aquinas students visited Yasaka Shrine and Chionin Temple where the quiet authority of Japanese architecture awed them all. The students navigated through Kyoto’s winding streets and alleyways surrounded by restaurants and shops.

The next day, Aquinas students took a full-day bus tour around some of the most popular spots in the city. Their first stop was Kiyomizu, a steep road up to the Kiyomizu-Dera Temple, with shops lining the streets up to the temple’s entrance. After that, they visited the Sanjusangen-do Temple, housing over 1000 Buddhist statues and being the longest wooden structure in Japan. Their next stop was the famous Bamboo Forest and the Tenryu-ji Temple. On their way to the bamboo forest, the Aquinas students watched the procession of an annual Japanese shrine celebration which included people wearing traditional Japanese robes, flute players, ceremonial drums, and at the end, a woman being carried in a decorated and lavish litter (portable throne).

The Aquinas students were awed by the towering bamboo and the peaceful beauty of the temple’s gardens. After they ate lunch they headed off to their next destination, the Golden Temple in Kinkakujich. There, they walked around the winding paths of trees until they reached the fated temple framed by mountains. Finally, they arrived at their last destination, the Fushimi Inari Shrine, otherwise known as the shrine of 1000 torii gates. Aquinas students were tired and too sore to walk through all 1000 Torii gates, but they made it through about 100 of them. Finally, to end the night, the Aquinas students showed off their sword skills during the Samurai training experience. Some of the students also stayed behind to walk through the bustling streets to enjoy shopping and eating around Kyoto’s vast shopping district.

On the last day of the 10-day exchange program, the students all went out one more time to enjoy walking through the crowded streets and collect whatever souvenirs and gifts to bring back home with them and then headed to the airport. After a 9-hour flight to San Francisco, a 7-hour layover, and another 3-hour flight, the Saint Thomas Aquinas students were finally back in Kansas, leaving behind friends they hoped to meet again and bringing back memories and tokens from their trip that they would never forget.

American screenwriter Robert Alan once said, “Cultural differences should not separate us from each other, but rather cultural diversity brings a collective strength that can benefit all of humanity.”

What Does The Future Hold?

Students and parents might wonder what this trip means for the future of this exchange program. What is its purpose? Why is it important? From this exchange program, two Aquinas students have gone on to study Japanese at the university level, and one of them even ended up teaching in Japanese schools and marrying a Japanese English teacher.

Yonago High School has had many students attend just because of this exchange program. Both schools can share their cultural differences and students who participate in this exchange program become more open-minded about the different cultures present all around the world, they can celebrate the differences and similarities with the people they meet, and understanding one culture can lead to the inclusion and awareness of other cultures.

This Japan trip has sparked a renewal of future exchange programs for Aquinas students: German and French exchange programs have happened in the past and they are now making their patiently awaited comeback.

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About the Contributor

Guest contributor, Caran McMahon, '26