FUJIMOTO, Masakazu Jack PhD

      Masakazu Jack Fujimoto was born in 1928  and raised in Encinitas, California to Morizo and Emi Annie Fujimoto, as the eldest of the six children.  On May 15, 1942, Jack, his parents, and siblings, Fumie, Yoko, Takashi, and Fujie, were evacuated from Encinitas and relocated to the Poston, Arizona internment camp block 28-2-D.   On September 8, 1945, the Fujimoto family left Poston and resettled in Encinitas, California, where his parents established a successful carnation farm.  Jack graduated from San Dieguito High School in Encinitas, and volunteered in the U.S. Army, where he was trained in Counter-Intelligence and served during the Korean conflict in 1950.

     Jack earned both a B.S. and M.B.A. degree from UCLA, and a PhD in Education in 1970. Dr. Jack Fujimoto was the first Japanese American college president in the mainland U.S. in 1977.  He has served as president of Sacramento City College, Los Angeles Mission College, West LA College, LA Pierce College and interim superintendent/president of Imperial Valley College. He also served for 12 years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Institute of Buddhist Studies in Berkeley. 

     Jack has served as President of the Japanese Institute of Sawtelle, the West Los Angeles Buddhist Temple and the Japanese American Historical Society.  He was named 2003 Nisei Week Pioneer.  He has lectured to Japanese students at Kagoshima Junshin College and Kyushu Sangyo University. 

     Jack met his future wife, Grace at her father's store in West Los Angeles Sawtelle's Japantown.   They have four children, Crystal, Randy, Jolie and Maya.  Jack developed the book, "Sawtelle: West Los Angeles' Japantown".

Source: PR.com, Dawna Lee Heising of "Eye on Entertainment" Interviews Internationally Renowned Educator Dr. Jack Fujimoto"