International High School Arts Festival (5)

 IFAC Chairman Dr.Haruhsa Handa told the audience of the ceremony that the arts festival focuses on its openness to any high school students and the criteria of the awards are the 'untested potential' of youth.
 He hopes that Japanese high school students will have exchanges with high school students from around the world. In fact, every year IFAC organizes exchange entertainment programs. For example, the award-winner students both within and without Japan enjoyed a trip to Hakone, a lake resort near Tokyo.
  Also, as a founder of Misuzu Gakuen, a chain of cram school for high school students who intend to enter the university, Dr.Handa gave the students a significant advice, saying, "Listen to yourself instead of your parents or school counselors. They guide you to a safe path, which may not necessarily be the path you want to take. A goal is something you should set assuming you will change it sometimes. How can high school students know what they want for the future?.."

Award winners and judges pose at the awards ceremony

IFAC

(source: THE JAPAN TIMES, July 12, 2016)

http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/07/12/national/students-around-world-showcase-art/