2010 Goodwill Ambassadors
The National Cherry Blossom Festival has chosen five Goodwill Ambassadors (GWAs) to serve as cultural liaisons and interact with visitors and residents during the 2010 Festival. The impressive, driven young adults are official representatives of the Festival and will be making appearances and engaging with Festival attendees throughout the two weeks of events.
The 2010 Goodwill Ambassador program is supported by Comcast.
This year’s Ambassadors are:
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Katy Newhouse
Katy Newhouse is from Portland, OR. After graduating from
St. Mary’s Academy in Portland, OR, she attended
Whitman College in Walla Walla, WA; graduating in 2005
with a degree in Environmental Economics. From August
2006 to August 2008, she was employed by the Japanese
Exchange and Teaching (JET) Programme. She lived in
Sapporo, Japan, the sister city of her hometown, and
taught at various elementary, junior high, and high
schools as an Assistant Language Teacher. In Sapporo,
Katy took every opportunity to learn about Japanese
cooking and took a weekly Japanese calligraphy course.
Currently, Katy works at ICF International as a Research
Assistant in the field of energy efficiency, where she
has worked on projects at both the Environmental
Protection Agency and the Department of Energy. |
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Kenisha Priester
Kenisha Priester was born in Guam, and as a military
child she has lived in many different places throughout
her childhood including Korea, Hawaii and Mississippi.
She is now a senior at the University of Maryland College
Park with a major in Japanese. After graduation she would
like to pursue a career in either International Marketing
or International Public Relations. Kenisha was a
volunteer in the 2008 National Cherry Blossom Street
Festival and is a member of the Japanese American Student
Association at her university. She also spent the
2008-2009 school year on study abroad in Tokyo, Japan.
Outside of Japanese language and culture, her interests
include cooking, dancing, fashion, reading and listening
to music. |
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Jose Pulido
Jose Pulido is a currently a student a George Washington
University studying International Affairs and Economics.
He was born in Colombia, Bogota and later moved to
Flushing, New York for schooling. He has received
numerous opportunities for studying Japanese Culture and
Language, including a scholarship from Youth for
Understanding, and admittance in to the Japan-America
Student Conference. In Washington DC, he has interned for
the Japan-America Society and is currently interning for
International Student Conferences. |
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Heather Rogers
Heather Rogers is currently a sophomore at American
University, pursuing a degree in International Relations
with a concentration on International Communication and
Japanese language. Next year she plans to study abroad at
Ritsumeikan University for her junior year. After
graduating, she wants to teach English in Japan as a
volunteer for the JET program before pursuing a
Master’s degree in classical Japanese literature. As
a GWA, she hopes to broaden her understanding of
American-Japanese relations and is excited for the
opportunity to take part in a festival focused on
cultural appreciation and community outreach |
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Emi Suzuki
Emi Suzuki is a senior at Georgetown University, majoring
in Political Economy with a minor in Japanese. A native
of New York City, Emi spent a lot of her childhood
summers in Japan. Emi’s dual heritage persuaded her
to try the waters of Washington diplomacy as a 2010
National Cherry Blossom Goodwill Ambassador promoting
cultural ties between the USA and Japan. She aspires to
become an international lawyer and has studied abroad at
the London School of Economics in England and at
Georgetown’s Villa Le Balze in Italy to gain a
perspective on world affairs. Recreationally, Emi has
competed for the Georgetown Ballroom Dance Team, served
as Co-Vice President for the Asian-American Students
Association, follows stock markets with the Georgetown
University Student Investment Fund, and plays the violin. |
Photos by Trent Roche ©2010
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