On September 16, 2013, Chancellor Noriko Mizuta was awarded an honorary professorship from Shenyang Normal University and delivered a special lecture to commemorate the occasion.

Josai and Shenyang Normal University first formed an agreement of academic exchange in October 2011 and have since been extremely active in a variety of collaborative programs, including student and faculty exchange. This month’s visit also saw the formation of the 2+2 Japan-China Joint Education Program, with which one can expect even more opportunities for exchange.
　 In addition, Shenyang’s Museum of Natural History provided vital assistance in constructing a full-scale, eight meter-long model of a carnivorous dinosaur for display in Josai’s fossil gallery which recently opened in the new building of the Tokyo Kioicho Campus. Museum of Natural History director Sun Ge also serves as an advisor to the Mizuta Memorial Museum.

The honorary professorship was given to Chancellor Mizuta in recognition of her outstanding contributions and achievements in working to build academic exchange between the two universities. Representatives from both universities attended the ceremony that was held at the Museum of Natural History lecture hall in which Chancellor Mizuta was presented with a certificate and badge in honor of her award from university president Lin Qun.
　 Chancellor Mizuta gave some brief words of acceptance by saying, “It is a great honor to be awarded the title of honorary professor from this university. I pledge to continue to contribute to the development of our two universities and the fostering of global human resources.”

Following the ceremony, Chancellor Mizuta delivered a lecture to commemorate the event titled, “Character Building and Multicultural Education and Research.” In this lecture, Chancellor Mizuta touched on her personal experience as an exchange student abroad and faculty member to illustrate both the necessity and difficulty of understanding foreign cultures. She also discussed the shape of university education in the 21st century and the importance of continuing to promote multicultural education and research, while about 120 faculty members and graduate students in attendance listened in rapt attention.

This award marks the 7th honorary title that Chancellor Mizuta has received from another university. These universities include South China Normal University (honorary professorship), Korea’s Dongseo University (honorary doctoral degree), Hungary’s Szent István University (honorary doctoral degree), China’s Northeastern University (honorary professorship), Hungary’s Budapest Business School (honorary professorship), and China’s Dalian University of Technology (honorary professorship).