Abel Lecture Series: Hanako Wakatsuki-Chong

Hanako Wakatsuki-Chong, Executive Director of the Japanese American Museum of Oregon, presents "Executive Order 9066 and Japanese American Concentration Camps." She is a public historian, political scientist, and museologist. She previously worked for state and federal agencies including the Idaho State Historical Society, the U.S. Navy, the National Park Service, and the White House Office of the Chief of Staff. In 2021, she received the Esto Perpetua Award for Lifetime Achievement from the Idaho State Historical Society for her work in preservation of Japanese American incarceration history in Idaho. She holds a BA in History and BS in Political Science from Boise State University, as well as an MA in Museum Studies from Johns Hopkins University, where she serves as an adjunct faculty member for their Krieger School of Arts and Sciences Museum Studies and Cultural Heritage Management Programs.

​The Dr. Harold Abel Endowed Lecture Series in the Study of Dictatorship, Democracy and Genocide invites to campus distinguished scholars to discuss the past, present and future of worldwide genocide. ​The series focuses on the impact of historical events such as the Holocaust and mass murders in Africa, Southeast Asia and Central America.

The endowed lecture series was established in 2009 through a $100,000 gift by the family of Dr. Harold Abel to honor and memorialize his 44-year career as an educator, which included a 10-year term as president of Central Michigan University from 1975 to 1985. Dr. Abel died in 2002.

Additional Student Opportunity

Thursday, April 17
9:00 a.m.
CLASS Hub – Anspach 144

Hanako Wakatsuki-Chong and Stacey Camp, archaeologist at Michigan State University, will be in the CLASS Hub for a student-centered discussion about chasing their dreams and finding jobs in non-profits, museums, history and more.