The $5.1 million donation, announced this week, created the new post, according to a news release from the university. The grant was awarded in recognition of Mike Mansfield, the longest serving U.S. ambassador to Japan. The new chair plans to foster opportunities for multidisciplinary education in Japanese and Indo-Pacific studies, including trade, rural affairs, public health, language, society and culture, the news release stated.

“Because of your generosity, we will be able to better support our shared interests in promoting deeper understanding of Japanese politics, foreign policy, Japan-U.S. relations, and research and exchanges on the promotion of a free and open Indo-Pacific,” UM President Seth Bodnar said of the donation.

Consul General of Japan in Seattle Makoto Iyori visited UM on Thursday for a celebratory lunch with Bodnar and Mansfield Center Executive Director Deena Mansour. Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte, Missoula Mayor Andrea Davis and UM Foundation President Cindy Williams also attended, along with Mansfield Center board members.

UM’s Department of World Languages and Cultures offers the most Japanese courses in Montana, and the Japanese language and literature program is the second-largest language-based program at UM, the news release stated. Several UM students study in Japan each year at one of eight of UM’s partner campuses. Visiting Japanese students also come to Montana in return.

“This grant reflects Mansfield’s lasting legacy of addressing the complex issues facing the world today through deep cultural understanding and rigorous scholarship,” said UM Associate Professor of Japanese Brian Dowdle. “I am excited by the range of new courses made possible by this gift, which will not only complement our students’ cultural and linguistic training but also ultimately better prepare them for work in the public and private sector."