Cultivating Community at the 2025 Othmer Research Fellowship Spring Workshop
MITAKA, JAPAN – On Saturday, June 7, 2025, JICUF brought together its inaugural cohort of Othmer Research Fellows for an intensive Spring Workshop on the ICU campus. The Othmer Research Fellowship provides ICU students financial support to conduct independent research projects over the summer. (Learn more about the Othmer Fellowship HERE.) The workshop underscored JICUF’s commitment to not only funding student research but also fostering a supportive network of emerging scholars.
The event began with welcome remarks from JICUF Program Manager, Fernando Rojas, who celebrated the long-standing partnership between JICUF and ICU. He noted, “while this is a JICUF program, it is a program that can only happen here, in the unique, interdisciplinary environment of ICU.” Dr. Natsumi Ikoma, Dean of the College of Liberal Arts, thanking JICUF for their support for student research. Ikoma-sensei also congratulated the first cohort of Othmer Fellows, emphasizing their unique opportunity to inspire and guide future cohorts through their example.
Prof. Natsumi Ikoma, Dean of the ICU College of Liberal Arts, addresses the Othmer Fellows in attendance.
While the Othmer Fellowship provides generous financial support, the day’s program focused on connection and peer-to-peer engagement. Following the welcome remarks, recent ICU graduates and former JICUF grant recipients—Janice Tan, Ben Orth, Emi Way, and Marija Zjalic— shared their personal research journeys in a panel discussion followed by a question-and-answer session. The panelists emphasized the importance of not only being flexible when things do not go as planned but also open to getting new perspectives once they start their research projects.
The workshop panelists. From left to right: Marija Zjalic (ID 2022), Ben Orth (ID 2025), Siaw Eng Janice Tan – Moderator (GS 2022), Emi Way (ID 2019, GS 2020)
The core of the workshop was the peer feedback sessions. Fellows were divided into small, interdisciplinary groups to present and discuss each other’s research proposals. This format is intentionally designed to provide students with fresh perspectives from students outside their own fields, helping them refine their ideas and make their work more accessible. One of the participants noted that the workshop was a wonderful experience and that “it gave me the opportunity to connect with students I would usually just pass by on campus.” Another participant highlighted that the questions posed by their fellow group members “helped me to think about my [research] in simpler terms and avoid jargon.”
Fellows were divided into small discussion groups of 4-5 students. A couple of Othmer Research Fellows currently studying abroad participated via teleconference.
The day concluded with an evening reception at the Alumni House, allowing fellows, faculty, and staff to connect in a more informal setting. The reception featured a keynote address from Dr. Machi Dilworth, Chair of the JICUF Grants Committee, in which she shared insights from her own research journey after ICU. Dr. Dilworth noted that ICU has already provided the fellows with a solid foundation in life but offered two additional pieces of advice. First, fellows should seek multiple mentors when they are in new environments or for whatever reasons. They should proactively seek them, not wait for them to arrive. Secondly, a life in research requires a certain amount of luck but that they should always be ready and prepared to capitalize on opportunities when they arise.
Othmer Research Fellows and a group of ICU faculty listen attentively to Dr. Machi Dilworth’s talk about her research journey.
As the workshop concluded, the 2025 Othmer Research Fellows left as a more cohesive and supportive community. One participant noted, “I doubted if this workshop would have any value for me but actually, I met like-minded people…it was a great networking opportunity.” We look forward to seeing the results of their dedicated research this summer in a follow up gathering in the fall!
