Cara Lam's journey into the JET Program and Japan was inspired by her multicultural upbringings and her undeniable passion for adventure. She credits the JET Program for transforming her sense of adventure into purpose. Representing the United States at the Dragon Boat World Championships in the summer of 2025 in Germany and reconnecting with her former students in Japan, Cara's adventures are still going strong, even after Japan. 

Celesté Holmes-Tate says she’s always trying to figure out what she wants to do. She’s certainly done a lot. Celesté has, among other things, organized Black History Month events, obtained a Master’s degree in Japan, and served as a college lecturer. And, oh yeah, she was an ALT in the JET Program for six years in Hakui City, Ishikawa Prefecture.

For the majority of JETs, their time in Japan lives on through fond memories: bowing on instinct, deciphering kanji-packed paperwork, and forming friendships over cups of green tea and numerous omiyage snacks. But for Nichole Mayfield, the experience didn’t end with a plane ride home.

“The days and months are travellers of eternity, just like the years that come and go. For those who pass their lives afloat on boats, or face old age leading horses tight by the bridle, their journeying is life, their journeying is home.”

-Matsuo Basho, Oku no Hosomichi, Translated by Tim Chilcott (The Narrow Road to the Deep North, 2004)

If Tuan Do’s parents had their way, he would have become a doctor. Instead, Tuan parlayed a passion for languages into an international career — including a stint on the JET Program and positions in the United Nations that have taken him to Jordan, Switzerland, and Vietnam over the last 24 years. 

This profile of JET alumnus Harry Hill highlights how his early experiences in Japan laid the groundwork for a dynamic career bridging U.S.-Japan relations. From interpreting for local officials to launching successful businesses, Hill turned his time on JET into a lifelong mission. His story highlights the power of building meaningful relationships, embracing challenges, and seeing one's outsider status as a strength.

Anthony Bianchi is the first American-born person to hold public office in Japan. In 2003 he was elected to the Inuyama City Council winning the most votes in history. This unpredictable and surprising event was a culmination of his devotion to community, empathetic nature and his staunch, stubborn sense of justice.

Speaking to Anthony, he isn't what you would expect a politician to be…

Kennedy acknowledged that it took awhile to understand the value of living in two cultural contexts that differed from the context they grew up in. “I think the moment this was most stark is when I moved back to the states and realized that what I expected as natural had changed: I expected people to be on time all the time, to take off their shoes at the door, for trains and buses to work well and be clean…