Student Spotlight: Sayoko Kawabata

Sayoko Kawabata is an international scholar from Japan who recently defended her dissertation for the PhD program in the Division of Occupational Science and Occupational Therapy.  Prior to starting her PhD, she earned her Bachelor of Science in Psychology from Doshisha University and later received her Master’s of Science in Health Science from Bunkyo Gakuin University. She worked as an occupational therapist for nine years before transitioning into a faculty role in Japan.

In 2020, Kawabata began her PhD at UNC-CH, and sought a community to connect with. Through the Community Practice Lab, led by Dr. Ryan Lavalley, she was introduced to the Fairview Community and Habitat for Humanity of Orange County. There, she began building relationships through working on an oral history project, documenting the neighborhood’s history.

UNC enabled Kawabata to delve deeply into occupational science. The flexibility of the program allowed her to “explore and understand what occupational science is and envision what [she] wanted to do.” Kawabata’s dissertation, titled “A Community Engaged Ethnography of Play in Fairview–A Historically Black and Multicultural Neighborhood in Hillsborough, North Carolina”, focuses on the occupation of play among children and youth in a historically Black and multicultural neighborhood in North Carolina. Kawabata explains that a significant part of her research involved participating in the community and building connections. Specifically, she worked closely with a group of middle schoolers, who named themselves the “Kool Kid Squad”.

Kawabata says that UNC-CH is a place where “the faculty are incredibly supportive. [you’re not required] to know what your project will be when you enter [the program]–but you have to stay curious and engaged.”

Kawabata is currently applying for Optional Practical Training (OPT), a program that enables international students to work in the United States for up to one year while gaining practical experience in their field of study. She is eager to continue contributing to and advancing the discipline of occupational science through this opportunity.