In true education, each one ought to be dealt
with as a separate individual, for we know
that one's mental and moral characteristics
vary as do the faces of each one of us.
―from Umeko Tsuda's “Opening Address”
In 1871, the Hokkaido Colonization Board selected five young women for their overseas study program. Among them was seven-year-old Umeko Tsuda. During the eleven years that she spent in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., she was exposed to American culture and, consequently, Christianity. She returned to Japan in 1882 at the age of 18. Upon her return, she experienced a severe case of culture shock. She was particularly alarmed at Japanese society's prejudice against women and quickly decided that something must be done to improve women's social status. She accepted the position of lecturer at the Peeresses' School, but the low regard for women in Japan convinced her that she must return to America for further study. Umeko majored in biology at Bryn Mawr College. Bryn Mawr kept the number of students attending each class very low, assuring that each student received a high-quality education. After studying at Bryn Mawr for three years, Umeko paid a visit to Helen Keller and Florence Nightingale. During a stay in England, she also met the Archbishop of York, who inspired her considerably. She became determined to provide Japanese women with the opportunity to obtain a higher education. In 1900 she decided to leave the government-sponsored schools to found Japan's first private women's school of higher education, Joshi Eigaku Juku. Umeko stated her philosophy in her address at the school's opening ceremony. The essence of education, she said, was not to be found in the facilities of the school. Rather, it was in the qualifications and passion of the faculty. It was in the students' desire to learn. Umeko said that classes should be small and that women should study a variety of subjects so as to become all-round individuals. This has been the tradition of our college for the past one hundred years; today, as in Umeko's time, the flower of opportunity is in full bloom.
In 1900 (the 33rd year of the Meiji era), Umeko Tsuda founded one of the first private institutions of higher education for women in Japan, Joshi Eigaku Juku. As we grew, our name changed first to Tsuda Eigaku Juku and then to Tsuda Juku Senmon Gakko. During the Educational Reformation of 1948 (the 23rd year of the Showa era), our name changed again, this time to Tsuda College (Tsuda Juku Daigaku). In the year 2000 (the 12th year of the Heisei era), we will be exactly 100 years old. Guided by our founder's passionate ideal of an‘all-round’education for women (total education), a concept well ahead of its time, Tsuda College has placed great importance on the individuality of each of our students, keeping the number of students attending each class very low and the educational level very high. In this way, we have sent forth more than 22,000 highly capable women to all walks of life. We are very proud of the great variety of our graduates' achievements and social contributions. Umeko Tsuda wished to realize the true co-existence of the two sexes, male and female. This is a goal towards which our institution is striving. Although women's position in society has improved greatly, we feel that there is much more to be done. We intend to make the utmost efforts to realize the true partnership of the sexes in the next century. Furthermore, starting with our own neighborhood, we will go beyond the barriers of sex, generation and national borders in communicating with the world around us, working towards a just society. To realize these principles, we at Tsuda College will develop our campus into an environment without barriers. With this 100th anniversary celebration as our springboard, we will promote cultural exchanges between our institution and our community and maintain understanding across generations and between us and people in other cultures.
Introduction to Tsuda College Message from the President
Umeko Tsuda & Tsuda College's 100th Anniversary Faculty of Liberal Arts
Department of English Department of International and Cultural Studies
Department of Mathematics and Computer Science Foreign Language Education
General Education Computer Literacy Education for Total Well-being
Graduate school & Research Institutes Overseas Exchange Programs Facilities
Campus Life Employment Prospects for Graduating Students Organization History
Route Map for Tsuda College