Our Team
HISAO IHARA
- Founder and Director
With a love for art and a deep passion for early childhood education, Hisao Ihara founded Tokyo Children’s Garden in 2016, dreaming of a place where the beauty of Japanese education meets an international approach—a space where children could grow through creativity, curiosity, and connection.
Born and raised in Japan, Hisao spent over 20 years in the United States, learning in diverse and creative environments. He earned his MFA in Digital Art from New York State University, sharing his work through exhibitions, lectures, and workshops both in the U.S. and abroad.
Returning to Japan in 2013, Hisao’s journey took a new turn as he became the principal of one of his family’s preschools in Hokkaido for three years, where he nurtured his passion for early childhood learning. After the challenges of the pandemic, Hisao felt deeply the importance of nurturing children's curiosity and sense of wonder through nature and cultural experiences. These moments lay the foundation for meaningful learning and drives Hisao’s commitment to project-based learning and creativity. He understands the power of encouraging children to follow their curiosity, dive deeper into their ideas, and bring their unique creations to life.
Hisao is also the Director of the Association of International Early Childhood Education (AIECE), an organization offering workshops and seminars for teachers and parents.
Ann Nishigaya was born and raised in the United States and has more than 30 years of experience working with children. She holds a BA from the University of Washington and a MA in Early Childhood Education from the University of Sheffield in the UK. Ann worked in early childhood centers in Seattle and Tokyo before moving to London in 1997, where she worked in early childhood education for 10 years.
Ann moved to Japan for the second time in 2007 and was the Education Director at Willowbrook International School in Tokyo for almost 10 years before opening Tokyo Children’s Garden. Having experience in early childhood emergent learning in three different countries, including experience in the International Baccalaureate program, has given Ann a unique perspective on how children learn best.
Ann believes that changes in the world start in the classroom and is very passionate about professional development for teachers. She presents at workshops and seminars for educators in Tokyo and travels to schools around Japan to train teachers. Ann was a long standing board member for the Tokyo Association of International Preschools (TAIP), an organization dedicated to the professional development and promotion of international schools in Japan. She continues her passion for training teachers through the Association of International Early Childhood Education (AIECE).
ANN NISHIGAYA
- Founder and Principal
Felicity Crawford
- Advisor
An associate professor of Special Education in the Integrated Elementary and Special Education Department at Wheelock College, Boston, Felicity has taught in a variety of international classroom settings, from preschool to university level.
Her research interests include teacher ideology, the social context of urban special education, and examining the experiences of students from diverse racial, cultural, and linguistic backgrounds in urban special education classrooms. Her most recent study focuses on the academic experiences of adults with dyslexia who are enrolled in higher education institutions in the Eastern Caribbean.
Makiko Hamase
- Advisor
As Senior Executive Officer and CHRO (Chief Human Resources Officer) at Toyota Tsusho Corporation, Makiko leads approximately 1400 HR staff in an organization of 70,000 employees covering 130 countries around the world. Previously she worked for the Sony Corporation both in Japan and New York as a general manager and director of human resources for more than 15 years after finishing her MBA.
Makiko is an experienced and appointed board member of many Toyota Tsusho affiliated companies and an auditor of business schools for the Japan University Accreditation Association. She is also a member of various committees at the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry. She gives lectures and seminars at universities, companies, and public bodies including prefectural governments.
Her dream is to help develop future global leaders and enhance DE&I (diversity, equity and inclusion). From her rich business experience, she is convinced that the experiences of creative thinking and dialogue in a psychologically safe environement will have a significant impact on the development of children's social and emotional skills. These social emotional skills will contribute to their future ability to become happy and effective leaders.
Mary Nobuoka
- Advisor
Since moving to Japan in 1994, Mary has taught English across all proficiency levels and to students ranging in age from two to eighty-two. In the early 2000s, she served as editor of the children’s resource column for the Bilingualism Japan Newsletter. She has also coordinated various English language playgroups and literacy cooperatives for bilingual children.
Mary has been actively involved with the Japan Association for Language Teaching (JALT), serving as an executive board member from 2011 to 2015 and again from 2020 to 2024. During her tenure, she led the Bilingualism Special Interest Group and served as president of the Yokohama Chapter. In the years before the pandemic, she also volunteered at Kohoku-ku Public Library, reading English-language children’s books.
Currently, Mary teaches academic and discussion-based courses at Keio University, Waseda University, and Aoyama Gakuin University. In addition to her work in language education, she holds a teaching license from the Sogetsu School of Ikebana and occasionally offers English-language Ikebana classes.
Her most recent research explores language-learning activities and teaching practices that promote positive psychology in the classroom. In her free time, she enjoys gardening and cooking for her husband.
Marianne Valentine
- Advisor
Originally from Scotland, Marianne trained first as a classical dancer. An interest into children's creativity then led Marianne to become an early years and elementary teacher. After working in Edinburgh for some years in Edinburgh private schools Marianne moved to Reggio Emilia in Italy, where she has been living with her family for over twenty years. The educational experience of this small Italian town captured Marianne and completely changed her thinking on children, their potential, how we see them and how they learn. Marianne has been collaborating within the school system of Reggio Emilia from pre school to elementary as a parent, an educator and a researcher in different ways throughout this time. Four years ago Marianne moved into the International school system where she now works as 'pedagogista' for the International School of Europe group of IB schools. Marianne now also consults internationally on co-constructivist learning within the international and intercultural school system.