Back on the Map: Japanese Reclaims its Place at Cate

By: Ethan Rehnborg '25

After years of dwindling enrollment in its Japanese program, Cate’s Language Department is experiencing a renewed interest in the language, marked by an uptick in underclassmen enrollment.

Cate offers an unusually broad range of modern language options for a school of its size, according to faculty in the Language Department. With classes of around 70 students split into Spanish, French, Japanese, and Chinese, the result is not only small class sizes but also limited flexibility when a language becomes over- or under-enrolled. 

Back in the early 1990s, Cate’s Japanese program grew rapidly, reaching 60 students across 7 sections. The program's growth was supported by Dr. Charlie Bergman, then Director of Asian Studies who helped establish a partnership with Yakumo Academy and secured funding through Japanese corporate connections. David Wood, who taught Japanese at Cate for 30 years, oversaw this period of growth. 

However, after a period of sustained interest, enrollment declined in the 2010s. One contributing factor was the growing emphasis on college admissions metrics. “The increasing pressure surrounding college admission encouraged students to take as many APs (and later, Advanced Courses) as possible,” Monica Garcia-Gamero, Chair of the Modern Language Department explained. “For many years, Japanese and Chinese did not offer the GPA bump that honors and AP or Advanced courses in other languages provided.” Co-enrolled Honors sections in Japanese and Chinese 3 and 4 were only added recently. 

By 2020, two students remained in Japanese 4. But in 2021, interest began to rebound when eight freshmen voluntarily enrolled in Japanese 1. Today, the program has regained momentum, with fifteen students in Japanese 1 and six enrolled in Japanese 4.

Garcia-Gamero attributes student decision-making in language selection to a range of factors. “There are all sorts of factors that influence a student’s decision when choosing a language. Whether it’s continuing with one previously studied, GPA considerations, future career opportunities, personal interests, peer influence, or even broader geopolitical trends,” she said. 

Will Murray, a current 9th grader at Cate School, was placed in Japanese 1 due to limited space in Spanish. Upon hearing this news, he admitted that he was “very upset… my parents even sent an email to try and help me switch.” Over time, however, he described the class as “enjoyable,” citing the teaching approach of Ichiko Kido as a key influence. Kido Sensei joined the Cate faculty in 2021 and has since reinstated cultural programs, including the Cate-in-Japan trip, which returned in 2023 after a seven-year hiatus. Kido Sensei comments on the depth of the program, stating, “Our program goes far beyond classroom learning, offering students real-world opportunities to use Japanese.”

“Japanese offers our students a unique opportunity to engage with a language and culture that is intellectually rigorous, globally relevant, and deeply enriching,” Garcia-Gamero said. “With Kido Sensei’s leadership and the legacy of Wood Sensei, the program continues to grow as a part of Cate’s language offerings.”