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Contact: Diane Tanaka
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GO FOR BROKE EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION RECEIVES $99,000 FEDERAL GRANT TO CONTINUE ITS TEACHER TRAINING PROGRAM
(TORRANCE, CALIF., April 4, 2006) – With the assistance of Congresswoman Lucille Roybal-Allard (D-CA 34th), the Go For Broke Educational Foundation is excited to announce it was awarded a $99,000 grant by the U.S. Department of Education, the Fund for the Improvement of Education (FIE), to help California teachers meet state requirements. In particular, 11th grade high school students in California are required by state curriculum standards to study about segregated military units of World War II, which includes the Japanese American units of the 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team and Military Intelligence Service.
"The goal of the Go For Broke Educational Foundation's teacher training program is to draw inspiration from the Japanese American WWII veteran experiences to enable teachers to teach the story of these soldiers who served during World War II," said Christine Sato-Yamazaki, executive director, Go For Broke Educational Foundation. "And we are very grateful to Congresswoman Roybal-Allard for giving us this opportunity to train more teachers in the greater Los Angeles area."
Seven workshops will be conducted in the Los Angeles area in 2006 with the goal of reaching at least 175 teachers by year's end. Through the workshops, teachers learn the history of the 100th/442nd/MIS, then explore lessons from the Educational Foundation's "A Tradition of Honor" teacher's guide and documentary film. They also use computers to view online educational resources on www.GoForBroke.org, and hear first-hand from a veteran speaker. Two-day workshops include a tour of Little Tokyo and the Go For Broke Monument.
Two Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) focused workshops have already been held. The first was on February 11-12 at James Monroe High School in the San Fernando Valley, which was attended by 21 teachers. The second workshop on March 18-19, was held at Bravo Medical Magnet in Los Angeles and attended by more than 30 teachers. Other workshops are slated throughout the year. For dates and information, please contact Teacher Training Coordinator Wayne Osako at 310-222-5702 or teachertraining@goforbroke.org.
FIE supports grants to state and local education agencies, nonprofit organizations, and other entities that have been identified by the Congress in appropriations legislation. In addition it supports programs to help all students meet the challenging state academic content standards and student achievement standards.
The Go For Broke Educational Foundation institutes educational programs focused on the heroism and history of the Japanese American soldiers of World War II, as well as the forced evacuation and incarceration of Japanese Americans and civil liberties issues raised by those events. Currently the Educational Foundation's programs include An American Story Teacher Training Program, Hanashi Oral History Program, www.GoForBroke.org educational website, Resource Center (Torrance), and Go For Broke Monument Visitor's Center (Little Tokyo).
In 1989 Japanese American World War II veterans established the 100th/442nd/MIS WWII Memorial Foundation to build the Go For Broke Monument, which today is an eternal tribute to the heroics of the segregated Japanese American units: 100th Infantry Battalion, 442nd Regimental Combat Team, MIS (Military Intelligence Service) and the many other men and women who served overseas during World War II. The Monument is located in the Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles at Temple and Alameda Streets.
