Staff

Sarah Thompson
Executive Director

Sarah first traveled to Japan as an exchange student in 1995, sponsored jointly by the Japan Diet and U.S. Senate, and returned on concert tour with a symphony orchestra in 1997. Since 2001, Sarah has supported international exchange programs in Washington, DC, including the U.S. State Department's International Visitor Leadership Program, administered by Meridian International Center. Sarah also served as Executive Director of Meridian’s affiliate, The Hospitality and Information Service for Diplomats. At the Brookings Institution, Sarah organized large-scale international conferences and a visiting fellows program as manager of the Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies. More recently, Sarah served as managing editor of Review of Policy Research and assisted in planning the UNESCO World Conference on Higher Education. Sarah earned a B.A. from the University of Minnesota and a M.A. with Distinction from Georgetown University.

Sarah Soo-kyung Henriet
KASC Program Manager

Soo-Kyung was born in France and raised in South Korea. Prior to joining ISC, she interned with the Woodrow Wilson Center for International Scholars, the Korea Economic Institute, the Citizens’ Alliance for North Korean Human Rights, and the National Assembly of South Korea. Soo-kyung earned a B.A. from American University in International Relations with a minor in Chinese. Her languages include Korean, French, Chinese, and English.

Dan Jodarski
JASC Program Manager

Dan first became interested in Japan while living in an international dorm as an undergraduate at the University of Wisconsin La Crosse. He spent a summer in Japan studying Japanese language and culture in Aomori where he learned of JASC from an alumnus of the program. He later served as Student Chair of the American Executive Committee in 2011 and led JASC through a challenging period (following the unthinkable events of March 11) that concluded with a successful and meaningful Conference in Japan. Dan holds a B.S. in Economics with minors in Mathematics and International Studies.

Joy Hopkins
Administrative and Development Assistant

A 13-year resident of the District of Columbia, Joy Hopkins brings to ISC 11 years of non-profit experience with organizations including the The Posse Foundation, the American Architectural Foundation, Washington Scholarship Fund, KaBOOM!, Washington Chamber Symphony, Washington Shakespeare Company, Washington Review, American Diabetes Association, Wolf Trap, Iraqi Cultural Society, and the National Symphony Orchestra. Her duties have included proposal management, database management, publications management, public relations, sales, event management, office management and project management. Joy holds a Master of Arts from American University and a Bachelor of Music from James Madison University.

Mariko Onishi
Intern

Mariko began a year-long internship with ISC in November 2011. Prior to this, she worked for a trading company as a sales representative in Japan and interned at the Shangri-la Hotel in Dalian, China as a guest relations officer. Mariko received a B.A. in Comparative Culture from Tsuru University in Yamanashi, Japan. She is interested in a career in Cultural Exchange Programs or as an international student liaison and therefore came to ISC for experience to redirect her career.