Katharine L. Davis is currently working at Washtenaw Community College. She minored in Japanese at Western Michigan University, where she earned her BA in education, then studied at Michigan State University under Dr. Mutsuko Endo to earn her Japanese education endorsement, and in 2022, as part of the first cohort of a new program established by Dr. Motoko Tabuse at Middlebury College, she received her MA in Japanese Language and Culture.
Her 15 years of K-12 teaching includes experiences at private, public, and charter schools in Michigan and Oregon. She has helped establish sister school programs, chaperoned numerous trips to Japan, and participated in the J-LEAP Program. Most recently she was hired at Renaissance High School in Detroit, Michigan to start a new Japanese program, which grew to over 120 students in four years. At Renaissance, she established a chapter of the Japanese National Honor Society, and in February of 2023, her school was selected by the Kakehashi Program to take eight students on a ten-day trip around Japan.
Outside the classroom, Kate has been involved with the Japanese Teachers Association of Michigan (JTAM) since 2008, serving in all of the officer roles, currently acting as president. She has served as speech contest co-chair and works on the annual Michigan Japanese Quiz Bowl and nengajo contest. While in Oregon, Kate joined the Association of Teachers of Japanese in Oregon (ATJO) and served as a communication chair. With AATJ, she has been working on the National Japanese Exam team since 2013, and assists as an English editor.
Kate’s goals in her leadership roles are to increase membership and engagement, and to continue to support programs that excite Japanese language students. She wants to improve the value members get from joining so that Japanese teachers can continue to support each other. “It is no secret that education in America is in a difficult place, and world language education is even more precarious. But we know what we do has a 100% positive impact on our students. As the AATJ VP, I would strive to support all our teachers and build a strong network, so that the benefits of membership are unquestionable.”
