As part of ongoing efforts to further internationalize its research and education, Kyoto University has concluded a memorandum of understanding for academic cooperation and exchange with Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering. The signing ceremony for the agreement was held at the offices of the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) in Tokyo on July 10, 2014. The agreement was signed by President Hiroshi Matsumoto of Kyoto University and President Richard K. Miller of Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering in the presence of Mr. Hakubun Shimomura, minister of education, culture, sports, science and technology, Dr. Shuzaburo Takeda, senior advisor to MEXT, and other delegates.
The ceremony began with an introduction to Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering by Proffessor Toshiyuki Awaji, Kyoto University's executive vice-president for education, who explained that although Olin College was founded only a decade ago, it is ranked among the top institutions in the U.S. Executive Vice-President Awaji then went on to explain the process leading up to the conclusion of the cooperation agreement. Short speeches were then given by President Matsumoto and President Miller before they signed and exchanged copies of the agreement.
Following a photo session, Minister Shimomura delivered a congratulatory address to the two presidents in which he said that the conclusion of the agreement responded to the demands of the present era, in which both Japan and the U.S. sought to dramatically increase the number of students exchanged between the two countries.
 President Matsumoto, left, and President Miller, right, posing with Minister Shimomura, who presided over the signing ceremony |
 The signing ceremony attendees |
