was a Japanese educator and politician who served as a member of the House of Councillors. She is believed to be the first woman to become the principal of a Japanese school.
Name
Her maiden surname was , and her pen name was .
Biography
Kiuchi Kyō was born on 14 February 1884 in the Asakusa Morishita town in the Asakusa ward of Tokyo, the first-born child of artist . The Awashima family business was a well-known honeycomb toffee shop, but they made a living by charging rent for the remaining estate and selling it, such as giving up the store with her grandparents.
Even when she was nine years old, her father did not allow her to enter elementary school. Worried after her graduation from high school, she attended a normal school, and she graduated from
Tokyo Women's Normal School
is a women's university in the Ōtsuka neighborhood of Bunkyō-ku, Tokyo, Japan.
Ochanomizu University is one of the top national universities in Japan.
Ochanomizu is the name of a Tokyo neighborhood where the university was founded.
Histo ...
in March 1903 and was assigned to Minamikatsushika Ordinary Primary School. In March 1909, she married , a teacher at Urawa Junior High School, and she chose to maintain her work–life balance. In April 1910, she was transferred to Nihonbashi-no-Jōtō Ordinary Elementary School. She entered the Tokyo Women's Normal School's advanced courses in April 1926, and after completing the course, she was transferred to Jūon Ordinary Primary School. In October 1931, she became the principal of Itabashi no Shimura First Ordinary Primary School of Itabashi, and she remained in that position until July 1941. She also founded Kiuchi Academy in Takinogawa and served as the head of a pigeon garden.
She was also vice-president of the National Primary School Union's Female Teachers Association, director of the Tokyo Education Association's Women's Training Department, a member of the Japan International Association's Women's Committee, director of the Tokyo Women's Patriotic Association, and a councillor of the Dai Nippon Women's Association. She was a representative of the 1928 Pan-Pacific Women's Conference in Hawaii. During World War II, she became a member of the Imperial Rule Assistance Association's Central Cooperation Council.
After an unsuccessful attempt in the
1946 Japanese general election
General elections were held in Japan on 10 April 1946, the first after World War II. Voters had one, two or three votes, depending on how many MPs were elected from their constituency. The result was a victory for the Liberal Party, which won 141 ...
, where she received 21,185 votes for the
House of Councillors national district
The was a 50-member electoral district for the House of Councillors, the upper house of the National Diet of Japan, from 1947 to 1980. It consisted of the whole country. In staggered elections, it elected 100 of the 250 members of the House of ...
among 120 candidates, she was elected to the
House of Councillors national district
The was a 50-member electoral district for the House of Councillors, the upper house of the National Diet of Japan, from 1947 to 1980. It consisted of the whole country. In staggered elections, it elected 100 of the 250 members of the House of ...
in the
1947 Japanese House of Councillors election
House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on 20 April 1947.Minshu Club and dedicated herself to issues involving education and female teachers.''教育一路'', p. 145
Kiuchi Kyō died on 7 November 1964 at the age of 80.