Announcing the Betty and Hiro Ogawa Award

FIUTS is excited to announce the establishment of the Betty and Hiro Ogawa Award, which will grant two $5,000 scholarships each year to University of Washington students who are promoting cross-cultural understanding between Japan and the United States through their involvement in FIUTS programs.

This gift was made in memory of Betty Ogawa's legacy and lifelong commitment to promoting Japan/US relations and building understanding and harmony between our two countries.

Betty Jean Crouch came to the University of Washington in the mid 1960’s to study sociology. While a student and volunteer for the Foundation for International Understanding Through Students (FIUTS), she met Hiro Ogawa, a Japanese student studying business, who would later become her husband of more than 46 years.

Together, Betty and Hiro Ogawa spent 20 years living in Japan, where they raised their two sons. Betty became a cross-cultural consultant specializing in Japan/US relations and studying Japanese language, culture, and art. Hiro established a Container Leasing Corporation named CAI International in 1989 and was able to take it public in 2007 as the first Japanese founder to start his business in the US to IPO on the NYSE.

Applications for the award are due on April 15th of each year. For more information and to apply, please visit the application page.