Senshu University was established in 1880. In 2009, the University celebrated its 130th anniversary. Early in the Meiji era, four pioneers (Messrs. Soma, Tajiri, Megata and Komai) returned from the United States after graduating from the law and economic programs of Columbia, Yale, Harvard and Rutgers universities and in 1880 established Senshu College, the predecessor academic institution of the University. With a lofty ideal of rooting modern law in Japan, the University assumed a key role as one of the nation’s five major legal institutions. At that time, with Japan still in its infancy as a modern state, talented human resources were needed to spread knowledge in every field. The founders were eager to contribute to the development of their motherland by sharing the state-of-the-art juristic and economic expertise they learned while studying abroad. They shared a strong “passion” for cultivating and fostering young human resources who would be committed to building a new civil society through professional education. As Japan’s subsequent modern history was characterized by bright and dark milestones, Senshu University’s history also has been interwoven with many pleasant events and hardships. With a “dedication to mastering (Senshu) law and economics” as its ideal to be realized, the University has had an illustrious presence in Japanese higher education even through many difficult situations.
The University has maintained its outstanding tradition as an institute of higher education despite such challenges as the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923 and the ravages of war. At the onset of the 21st century, we must pursue further development by overcoming the ordeals that befall private universities today, such as a considerable reduction of subsidy by the government and the rising selectivity of universities against the backdrop of the future decline in the number of students. I believe we can achieve any challenge by returning to our roots and seriously contemplating the direction of the University. As a basic guideline for our future direction, we formulated a 21st century vision for “Development of Socio-Intelligence.” Socio-Intelligence refers to the “individual capability of subjectively committing himself/herself to the resolution of various social problems based on original ideas created through an in-depth understanding of human mentality, under high ethical standards and from a global viewpoint, around a nucleus of expertise, technology and scientific thought.” In contemporary society, with the collapse of a sound value system, respect for social norms weak and a sense of ethics astray, the development of Socio-Intelligence will not only enable the University to nurture students to acquire the capacity to seek and solve problems but also to foster ethics-based, talented specialists with ample humanity as the core mission of university education. I am confident our new vision interprets and embodies the founders’ spirit into our contemporary society.
To realize Socio-Intelligence, the methodology and focus naturally differs depending on the respective faculties or undergraduate research courses, and each internal organization actively and seriously addresses these issues. In 2001, the University newly established the School of Network and Information at the Ikuta Campus to cope with changes in the advanced contemporary information era due to the rapid progress of IT (Information Technology), in addition to the Schools of Economics, Law, Business Administration, Commerce and Literature. In April 2004, the University established its own Law School at the Kanda Campus for professional education with a focus on fostering specialists in legal affairs. In April 2006, the Department of Politics was newly added in the School of Law, aiming to nurture human resources who can take active and leading roles in political and administrative fields, and the name of the Depart,ent of Commerce was changed to the Department of Marketing in the School of Commerce. All these measures have been conceived from the viewpoint of developing Socio-Intelligence. Accordingly, we intend to formulate a grand design in response to the requirements of the times based on the founding sprit of the University to reinforce education and research programs. In addition, Senshu University is determined to reinforce its education and research staff and facilities with a focus on the integrated power of Senshu. We intend for our students to have self-confidence and pride in the University through our motto of “creating a students-focused university.”
Yoshihiro Hidaka (Dr. jur.)
President
e-mail: president@isc.senshu-u.ac.jp
