The 5 Pillars of Health® that represent the Nikken philosophy are endorsed at every level of the organization. One example is a scholarship that provides material assistance in supporting a healthy society. It was created by Toshizo (Tom) Watanabe as a means to help others, based on experience that helped shape his own success in life. The Toshizo Watanabe Foundation provides financial assistance to help young men and women complete an undergraduate or degree.

The founding of this program was inspired in part by Mr. Watanabe’s own history. As a student, he received a similar scholarship administered by the government of Japan. Later, the future Nikken president, CEO, and now chairman emeritus was the beneficiary of other awards including a prestigious endowment that allowed him to attend Brandeis University in the United States.

In the spirit of paying it forward, he established a scholarship program in 2008 with an initial contribution of $5 million, donated by Mr. Watanabe personally. This was increased in 2012 to $10 million. The scholarship program grants awards to recipients in amounts determined by financial need and other qualifications, including prior academic performance and recognition, recommendations from instructors and colleagues, community involvement, and more.

Application Criteria

All recipients of a scholarship will be selected solely by the Foundation’s Scholarship Committee. The criteria evaluated by the Committee for selection of scholarship recipients include, but is not limited to, the following.

1. The applicant must be the child of, or legally adopted by a Nikken Consultant. The consultant must hold a pin level of Silver or above and be active and in good standing with a member company of Nikken International.

2. Prior academic performance.

3. Financial need.

4. Recommendations from instructors and/or colleagues.

5. Entrance exam scores.

6. Community Involvement & extracurricular activities.

7. Educational awards, honors & achievements.

8. Preference will be given to applicants who have been raised by a single parent whose spouse suffered an untimely death.

9. For every scholarship awarded, the scholarship foundation will require an annual report from the recipient, of courses taken and grades received as verified by the educational institution attended by the recipient. A recipient may apply again for a subsequent scholarship, however, a recipient who does not submit the annual report will not be eligible for another scholarship if a scholarship recipient falls to fulfill the terms of the award, the scholarship funds shall be subject to immediate return to the foundation.

For questions contact Ruthann Bellino — scholarships@nikken.com