A Research on the Process of Establishing Akita International University

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to clarify the process of establishing Akita International University (AIU) by considering why a public university with global and distinctive education was established in Akita. To this end, I analyzed the discussions of the Review Committee and the Preparatory Committee for the Establishment in which AIU was conceptualized. I also obtained information from the minutes of the prefectural assembly, commemorative magazines of AIU and the Minnesota State University-Akita campus (MSU-A), and books written by Mineo Nakajima, the first president of AIU.

As a result, it became clear that although initial discussions were held with MSU-A in mind, the policy shifted to a more global-minded one. President Nakajima and other members of the committee believed that liberal arts education was important, and to elicit its unique and global characteristics, AIU was established as a new public university corporation with the support of the Ministry of Education.