JLTANE 2026

The 39th Annual Conference of the Japanese Language Teachers’ Association of the Northeast Region of the United States (JLTANE) will be held virtually via Zoom this year, hosted by Bates College, Asian Studies Program, on Saturday, May 23, 2026.

This year, we are collaborating with the Northeast Council of Teachers of Japanese (NECTJ), an AATJ affiliate and 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Together, we aim to ensure the conference is accessible and welcoming to all educators in the field, specifically engaging professionals across K-12, community, heritage-language, and postsecondary sectors in the Northeast and beyond.

Conference Details

• Date: Saturday, May 23, 2026

• Time: 8:45 a.m.–5 p.m., Eastern Time

• Host: Bates College (Lewiston, Maine), Asian Studies Program

  • In collaboration with the Northeast Council of Teachers of Japanese (NECTJ)

• Proposal Submission Deadline: Sunday, March 15, 2026 Extended to Sunday, March 29, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time and now closed.

• Keynote Address: Jisuk Park "Beyond the Illusion of 'Neutrality' in Japanese Language Education: Decolonizing and Reconstructing the Field Through Learners’ Voices" (see Keynote page for more details)

• Registration Fee: Free (maximum 200 attendees)

  • Registration is now open (Link) and will close on May 22, 2026. The Zoom link will be sent to those who register. To keep this meeting secure, do not share the meeting link.

• Professional Development: We are pleased to provide certificates of attendance for your professional record.

• Program: The conference program with abstracts will be available in early May 2026.

• Contact: Keiko Konoeda, kkonoeda@bates.edu