On August 8, Okayama University held the closing ceremony for the U.S. Department of State’s Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program. The program, which focused on intensive study of Japanese language and culture, ran from June 14 to August 8 and included 25 selected undergraduate and graduate students from across the United States.

During the ceremony, Executive Director for Academic Affairs SUGA Seiji gave the opening remarks. President NASU Yasutomo then delivered a speech, saying, "Please make the most of your experience in Okayama in the future. Also, please remember Okayama University and the people you met here. I hope you will stay connected with each other even after the program ends, and that Okayama University will continue to be connected with all of you."

Following this, the CLS graduates were introduced, and students from each class gave their greetings. They spoke about how much they enjoyed the daily classes, how their Japanese language skills had improved compared to before their arrival, and the many valuable lessons and special memories they had gained through various experiences. They also expressed their gratitude to the Japanese language instructors and program staff.

Next, after congratulatory messages from the Japanese language instructors and program staff, the group watched a surprise video documenting the activities of the past eight weeks, reminiscing about their enjoyable experiences.

The ceremony concluded with a speech by Prof. YOKOI Atsufumi, Vice President for Global Engagement and Executive Director of the CLS program. When asked for their impressions of the program, the CLS students responded by discussing the significance of the program related to the SDGs and the joy of conducting interviews in Japanese and communicating with local people. The program ended with a commemorative photo taken with Okayama University student roommates and language partners who lived together at the Okayama University International Student Shared House.