Hello, everyone! Welcome (or welcome back) to the University of Shimane.

There have been some changes to the LLSR this year. The previous LLSR administrator, Mrs. Victoria Thomas, has returned to America to further her academic studies, and I hope you will join me in wishing her all the best with her future plans. My name is Tyler Thomas, and I am the new LLSR administrator. I look forward to working with all of you this year!

Let me briefly introduce myself. I am from Washington State in the USA. I graduated from Central Washington University, which is a partner institution with the University of Shimane. In university, I studied English literature and then got an MA in TESOL, which stands for “Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages.” After graduation, I taught English in America for a few years before taking a new job, which was teaching English in Saudi Arabia. I worked at King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals in Saudi Arabia for a couple of years, and then began the process of coming to Japan. I arrived in Japan in 2021 and began teaching here at the University of Shimane. Therefore, although this is my first year in the LLSR, I am not completely new to the university.

In my spare time, I enjoy hiking and traveling around Japan. Currently, I am trying to improve my Japanese language skills while learning about Japan. I am especially interested in Japanese history and castles, so if you want to stop by and talk to me but don’t know what to talk about, those are all good subjects to start with!

I hope you all have a wonderful start to the year!