Early last year, Masayasu Kano, a seasoned schoolteacher, quit his local private high school to take on a new challenge. He had only a couple years left until retirement.
The challenge was to create a world-class international school for the children of foreign nationals residing in the science city of Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture, some 50 km northeast of Tokyo.
Late last month, the Ibaraki prefectural government gave final authorization for Kano's international school — a specialized school institution, with Kano serving as its operator and principal. With that authorization, Kano moved a huge step closer toward meeting the challenge and realizing his dream.