Our Team
HISAO IHARA
- Founder and Director
With a background in art, and a passion for early childhood education, Hisao Ihara founded Tokyo Children’s Garden in 2016 with a vision of combining the beauty of Japanese education with an international approach.
Born and raised in Japan and having lived in the United States for more than 20 years, Hisao has spent a large part of his life learning in an international environment.
Whilst living in the United States, Hisao gained an MFA in Digital Art from New York State University. As a professional artist, he ran showings of his artwork and led lectures and workshops in America and abroad.
Returning to Japan in 2013, Hisao pursued his passion for early childhood education, becoming the principal of a preschool in Hokkaido Japan for three years.
Hisao is currently the director of the Association of International Early Childhood Education, which provides workshops and seminars on early childhood education to teachers and parents. He is also the Japanese representative for the World Forum Foundation, an organization that promotes the ongoing global exchange of ideas on quality services for young children.
ANN NISHIGAYA
- Founder and Principal
Ann Nishigaya was born and raised in the United States and has more than 20 years of experience working with children.
She holds a BA from the University of Washington and a MA in Early Childhood Education from the University of Sheffield in the UK.
Ann moved to Japan in 2009 and was the Education Director at Willowbrook International School in Tokyo for almost 10 years before deciding to open Tokyo Children’s Garden.
Having experience in inquiry-based learning in three different countries, including experience in the International Baccalaureate program, has given Ann a unique perspective on how children learn best.
Ann believes that changes in the world start in the classroom and is very passionate about professional development for teachers. She presents at workshops and seminars for educators in Tokyo and around Japan and is a long standing member on the board of directors for the Tokyo Association of International Preschools (TAIP), an organization dedicated to the professional development and promotion of international schools in Japan.
Felicity Crawford
- Advisor
An associate professor of Special Education in the Integrated Elementary and Special Education Department at Wheelock College, Boston, Felicity has taught in a variety of international classroom settings, from preschool to university level.
Her research interests include teacher ideology, the social context of urban special education, and examining the experiences of students from diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds in urban special education classrooms. Her most recent study focuses on the academic experiences of adults with dyslexia who are enrolled in higher education institutions in the Eastern Caribbean.
Makiko Hamase
- Advisor
As corporate director and head of global human resources at LIXIL Corporation, Makiko leads approximately 130 HR staff in an organization of 80,000. Previously she worked for Sony Corporation both in Japan and New York as a general manager and director of human resources for more than 15 years. While covering Sony’s overall human resources and organizational development in areas such as HR strategy, talent management, executive development, and diversity management both domestically and globally, one of her core roles was to establish Sony University in 2000, to help develop tomorrow’s leaders.
Makiko is an experienced and appointed board member of National University; an auditor of business schools for the Japan University Accreditation Association; and a member of various committees at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Her aim is to help develop future global leaders, enhance diversity and the acceptance of global people in Japan, and make robust the HR management mechanism. She gives lectures and seminars at universities, companies, and public bodies including prefectural governments.
Mary Nobuoka
- Advisor
Since coming to Japan in 1994, Mary has taught English at every proficiency level, and from age two to eighty-two. She was editor of the children’s resource column for the Bilingualism Japan newsletter. Between 2011 and 2015, she was an executive board member of the Japan Association of Language Teachers and served as coordinator of its Bilingualism Special Interest Group. She also coordinated English language playgroups.
Mary currently teaches various courses at Gakushuin University, Waseda University, and Keio University. In addition, she teaches literacy skills to bilingual elementary and junior high school students. She also holds a teacher’s license from the Sogetsu School of Ikebana and sometimes offers Ikebana courses in English.
In her free time she enjoys gardening and cooking for her husband and 14-year-old bilingual son. She has two cats. She serves as a volunteer at Kohoku-ku Public Library, reading children's books in English.
Mary’s most recent research focused on student perspectives of teachers using presentation software in the classroom.
Marianne Valentine
- Advisor
Originally from Scotland, Marianne trained first as a classical dancer. An interest into children's creativity then led Marianne to become an early years and elementary teacher. After working in Edinburgh for some years in Edinburgh private schools Marianne moved to Reggio Emilia in Italy, where she has been living with her family for over twenty years. The educational experience of this small Italian town captured Marianne and completely changed her thinking on children, their potential, how we see them and how they learn. Marianne has been collaborating within the school system of Reggio Emilia from pre school to elementary as a parent, an educator and a researcher in different ways throughout this time. Four years ago Marianne moved into the International school system where she now works as 'pedagogista' for the International School of Europe group of IB schools. Marianne now also consults internationally on co-constructivist learning within the international and intercultural school system.