GPASC Summer Grants 2025: Reports

 The two recipients of GPASC Summer Grants 2025 have submitted the following reports. Their original proposals can be found in the previous post on this blog. 

Michael Giammasmi (Thomas Jefferson University)

 GREATER PHILADELPHIA ASIAN STUDIES CONSORTIUM UNDERGRADUATE SUMMER GRANT REPORT 2025

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Michael Giammasi

GPASC 2025 Summer Grant Recipient

Project Report

This summer at Shofuso has been both a continuation of a year-long journey and the beginning of new possibilities and responsibilities. What began as a simple research paper at the Community College of Philadelphia has evolved into a body of work that has taken me to Honolulu, Washington, D.C., and back home to Philadelphia, earning recognition at national conferences and ultimately leading to a summer fellowship at the Japanese House and Garden in Fairmount Park.

My goal for the summer was not only to expand my research into a permanent historical narrative exhibit but also to reconnect Shofuso with the architectural and landscape architecture communities of Philadelphia. The relevance of Shofuso’s architectural teachings has become obscured by its role as a cultural educator and exchange facilitator, so this summer I focused on reengaging that dimension of its story.

On May 9, I presented my research in Shofuso’s fifteen-mat room as part of a joint JASGP–AAPIDA program. This marked the first time my work was shared in the very space it represents. Supported by Claudette McCarron, AAPIDA, and the JASGP staff, the event included a tea ceremony and house tour that reinforced Shofuso’s role as a living site of cultural exchange.

Over the past year, my presentations at the Japan Studies Association, the East-West Center, and the Greater Philadelphia Asian Studies Consortium have garnered recognition, including awards for Best Student Paper and Outstanding Presentation. Bringing that work home to Shofuso was both humbling and affirming, underscoring the importance of interpreting the house not only as an aesthetic marvel but also as a symbol of international reconciliation and design innovation.

A central focus of my fellowship was the archives. I organized, digitized, and indexed a vast trove of photographs, CDs, and digital media. Many of these materials had been scattered across files without naming conventions or context. By the end of the summer, I established an accessible system that will allow staff and researchers to quickly locate materials, ensuring Shofuso’s history is preserved and usable.

Along the way, I rediscovered long-forgotten photographs of the house in New York and Philadelphia, providing new visuals to tell its story. I also curated historical artifacts, including a carpenter’s happi coat belonging to a MoMA curator and a Christmas card signed by architect Junzō Yoshimura, generously donated by the curator’s niece. These pieces will debut in Shofuso’s new permanent exhibit in Spring 2026.

Another core project was laying the foundation for continuing education programs for architects and landscape architects, using Shofuso as a case study. Licensed professionals are required to complete continuing education hours, and Shofuso’s rich design language offers unique opportunities in sustainability, traditional joinery, water features, and garden philosophy. Through my connections with AAPIDA, PEA, AIA, and ASLA, I began planning a series of seminars that will reintroduce Shofuso to Philadelphia’s design community. This effort revives the original vision of Shofuso as both a cultural and design educator, echoing its early days in New York when every major architect of the era studied its construction.

Beyond Shofuso, I also engaged with Japanese and Asian cultural heritage in the region and abroad. I celebrated the star festival at Tanabata and honored the ancestors at Obon in Seabrook, New Jersey. I visited the historic Japanese garden at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, and deepened my studies through international coursework, including a class on Asian Landscape Humanities at the University of Zurich, Asian Landscape Literature at the National University of Taiwan, and an Asian Garden Design course at Longwood Gardens. These experiences provided critical context for my 

fellowship, situating Shofuso within a global discourse of Asian garden design.

This summer has been transformative. I entered with a vision of honoring Shofuso’s legacy, and I leave with concrete progress toward making its story permanent, accessible, and relevant to new audiences. From archival preservation to artifact acquisition to professional engagement, each piece contributes to Shofuso’s enduring mission: bridging cultures, reconciling histories, and inspiring new generations through design.

Looking ahead, I will continue developing the permanent exhibit and refining the education programs. I will also take Harriet Henderson’s course at Longwood Gardens, further deepening my ability to interpret Shofuso’s design principles and articulate them to architects and the public alike.

As I pursue my Bachelor of Landscape Architecture (expected May 2026), this work represents a pivotal step in my education and career. More importantly, it is a chance to give back to a place that has given me so much.

Shofuso is not simply a house or a garden. It is a living testament to resilience, cross-cultural dialogue, and design excellence. I am deeply grateful to the Japan America Society of Greater Philadelphia, AAPIDA, and my mentors and colleagues for entrusting me with this work.

This summer has shown me that legacy is not something we inherit passively, it is something we actively shape. And at Shofuso, that legacy continues to unfold.

GREATER PHILADELPHIA ASIAN STUDIES CONSORTIUM UNDERGRADUATE SUMMER GRANT REPORT 2025

Caroline Keller (University of Delaware)

 After being awarded the GPASC Summer Grant, I was able to fund my summer language study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s SASLI program. The SASLI program provides students with the opportunity of learning less commonly taught South Asian languages at a university level, providing an intensive language learning environment through two four week semesters beginning in the last week of June ending in the second week of August. Through the SASLI program, I was able to study Hindi, which is not offered through my home university. With no prior experience in Hindi, I was placed in the Elementary Hindi program. 

Elementary Hindi had us start from the basics of reading, writing, and pronouncing the Devanagari script, from which we explored Hindi grammatical constructions using Usha Jain’s Introduction to Hindi Grammar. Our class had a total of seven students, some of whom had previous experience with Sanskrit, were hereditary speakers, or, like me, had no experience with South Asian languages. We had a really good mix of levels and experience which made our class special and in my opinion made learning easier and more fun. There was even a point nearing the end of the program where two of our classmates were able to read a signature written on a Vedic era chest that had recently been acquired by a museum local to another one of our classmates. 

Our class, along with having a wonderful group of students, was enhanced exponentially by our wonderful professor, Courtney Averkamp. Professor Averkamp created such a comfortable environment for us to speak and experiment with language during the summer. Her background in Sanskrit also provided many opportunities for our Sanskritist students to connect their previous knowledge to our class and gave us a lot of historical context and insight into how the language has evolved over time and some interesting additional vocabulary. She is such a great teacher and truly made the summer successful for all of her students. 

The program also included us taking an ACTFL Oral Proficiency Interview during the last two weeks of class. After eight weeks of intensive language learning I scored Intermediate Mid Proficiency, miles above what I had expected to get out of the program. By the end of the second semester we had completed our Beginning Hindi textbook by professors of Hindustani language Joshua H. Pien and Fauzia Farooqui and had begun to use Usha Jain’s Advanced Hindi Grammar. 

I have been in immersive and intensive language learning environments before and I can confidently say that this program is the most challenging language learning experience I have ever had. I believe that this challenge has only reinforced my drive and desire to pursue learning Hindi and the progress I have made has made me confident in my ability to continue my study and begin to incorporate what I have learned this summer into my academic pursuits in South Asian history. 

I am extremely pleased to have made such progress in such a short amount of time and I am extremely grateful for all the support I have received from GPASC and the faculty at the University of Delaware’s History Department. Without a formal classroom setting, I plan on continuing with self-study, using the resources I have gained from SASLI and through recommendations from my professors. I also plan to apply for the 2026 CLS Award for Hindi and am also considering coming back next summer to SASLI. 

GPASC thanks Michael Giammsi and Caroline Keller for their reports and wishes them the best in their continuing studies. 

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