Ryleigh Line

    As a double major in International Relations and Japanese Studies, I am so grateful for the rounded and multifaceted education I have received here at William & Mary. At the end of my time in the MLL department, I am beyond honored to have been selected as the recipient of the 2024 Book Prize in Japanese as a graduating senior.  Additional highlights of my time studying Japan under MLL include receiving the Kinyo Prize for Excellence in Japanese in 2021, induction into the Japanese Honor Society, and my study abroad at Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto in the spring of 2023.  Thanks to the instruction in language from professors Kitamura, Kato, and Shimoura, and in history, culture and media from Professors Sasaki and Cronin, I am excited to now embark upon a career focused on an ongoing study of and interaction with Japan.  Next year I will spend ten months in Yokohama, Japan at Stanford's Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies with the support of the Blakemore Freeman Fellowship in order to achieve an N1-level proficiency in Japanese.  Following my time at the IUC I intend to return to the United States to pursue a law degree, with the goal of entering a career in international law with a regional focus on Japan and East Asia.  I will never forget my time in the MLL department, and I will carry with me the knowledge and kindness offered to me by my W&M professors and peers for the rest of my life.