The 90%+ Resolution Record

02During the Gakuryokukai Period, Resolution Meant Successful School Transfer

During the period of Gakuryokukai Co., Ltd., one of the main groups supported consisted of students who had experienced school refusal or dropped out of high school and wanted to resume their education at another high school. Particular emphasis was placed on transfer support to Tokyo metropolitan high schools, including Shinjuku Yamabuki High School.

The outcome measure was therefore clear:

1. School refusal or dropout
2. Transfer support to a Tokyo metropolitan high school
3. Successful transfer examination

This was an objectively verifiable educational result. Official materials from the Itabashi Management Quality Award recorded the following acceptance rates:

At that stage, resolution was measured primarily through successful transfer into another high school.

03Outcomes Were Recorded, Measured, and Disclosed Publicly

Gakuryokukai did not end its involvement when support was provided. Results were followed. Records were maintained concerning the student’s history of school refusal or dropout, the schools they applied to, and the educational destinations they subsequently entered.

The operating principle was:

1. Practice
2. Confirm outcomes
3. Record results
4. Measure them
5. Disclose them externally

This approach formed an important part of the evidence culture that later developed into JADA.

04External Review Through the Itabashi Management Quality Award

In fiscal year 2010, Gakuryokukai Co., Ltd., led by Takanobu Sugiura, received the Special Award of the 14th Itabashi Management Quality Award.

The recipient was Gakuryokukai, not JADA. This award belongs to the earlier history of the practice from which JADA’s current framework later developed.

The award used an assessment approach modeled on the Japan Quality Award. Applicants were assessed on an absolute 1,000-point scale based on the Japan Quality Award assessment criteria, and only organizations that exceeded a set standard were recognized. The assessment examined areas including:

• Understanding and responding to customers and markets
• Leadership
• Social responsibility
• Strategy development and deployment
• Development of people and organizational capability
• Customer-value creation processes
• Information management
• Organizational results

According to the list of past recipients printed in the official booklet, the highest award was not given in 8 of the 14 years from the 1st to the 14th award. The program therefore did not automatically recognize applicants.

05Five to Six Assessors Visited Gakuryokukai

During the assessment process, approximately five to six assessors visited the Gakuryokukai classrooms. They examined client records, histories of school refusal and high school dropout, and the educational destinations of the students after support.

The review went beyond company descriptions or self-reported figures. It examined actual support records and subsequent outcomes.

The detailed assessment report is no longer available. However, the following remain as evidence that an external review took place:

• The official award booklet (fiscal year 2010)
• The record of Gakuryokukai in the booklet
• The record of the Special Award
• The documented transfer outcomes

06NPO High School Support Association Was Operating at the Same Time

While operating Gakuryokukai Co., Ltd., Takanobu Sugiura was also developing the NPO High School Support Association. The purpose was broader than school transfer alone. The activity expanded to support:

• School refusal
• High school dropout
• Educational re-engagement
• High school completion
• Further education
• Social participation

The practical knowledge accumulated through Gakuryokukai was carried forward into the nonprofit work.

07Support Outcomes Were Presented at a Press Conference

Results from support for transfers into Tokyo metropolitan high schools were publicly presented at a press conference. Participants included representatives from:

• NHK
• Asahi Shimbun
• Yomiuri Shimbun
• Nikkei
• Mainichi Shimbun
• Tokyo Shimbun
• Takarajimasha

Takanobu Sugiura explained the option of transferring to Tokyo metropolitan high schools, including Shinjuku Yamabuki High School, for young people affected by school refusal or high school dropout. He also presented support outcomes, acceptance rates, and the practical approach used.

If results exist, record them, measure them, and make them open to external scrutiny.

08Publication by Takarajimasha

The accumulated experience and support records were also shared with publishers. This later led to the publication by Takarajimasha of “Koko Chutai Futoko demo Hikikomori demo Yarinaoseru”.

The book presented the idea that young people affected by school refusal, dropout, or hikikomori can restart their lives when their environment is adjusted and appropriate support is provided.

Publication was not treated as proof by itself. Rather, it provided another opportunity for accumulated practice and documented experience to be examined and communicated publicly.

09National Media Coverage, Including NHK

Takanobu Sugiura and the support activities developed through his organizations were subsequently covered by national and other media, including NHK’s Ohayo Nippon. Coverage included not only philosophy but also elements of actual support practice, family involvement, educational pathways, and social participation.

JADA does not treat media coverage itself as proof of support effectiveness. However, independent reporting forms part of the broader public record showing that the work was opened to outside examination.

10The High School Support Association Later Became a Certified NPO

The High School Support Association continued and expanded the practice developed through Gakuryokukai. It later became a Certified NPO Corporation in Japan.

Certified NPO status requires additional standards related to public benefit, organizational operation, governance, and disclosure beyond ordinary NPO incorporation. Only around 3% of NPO corporations in Japan hold Certified NPO status.According to the Cabinet Office NPO portal, 1,311 of Japan’s 48,754 incorporated NPOs (about 2.7%) held Certified or Special Certified NPO status (figures as of October 27 and August 31, 2026). (Source: Cabinet Office NPO portal)

This adds another layer of public accountability to the history of the practice.

1. Long-term practice
2. Measured outcomes
3. Public disclosure
4. External review
5. NPO activity
6. Press conference
7. Publication
8. National media coverage
9. Certified NPO

01The Meaning of “Resolution” Has Evolved with the Scope of Support

To understand JADA’s 90%+ resolution record, it is important to distinguish between the historical outcome measure used during the Gakuryokukai period and the broader definition used by JADA today.

The historical school-transfer success rate and JADA’s present definition of resolution are not identical measures. Each reflects the population being supported and the practical objective of that period.

11JADA’s Current Definition of Resolution

Today, JADA supports not only school refusal and high school dropout but also prolonged social withdrawal and hikikomori. For this population, returning to a conventional school cannot be the only meaningful measure of resolution. JADA therefore defines an important point of resolution as:

The point at which the young person, through their own decision, takes a concrete step toward learning again or reconnecting with society.

This may include:

The central factor is agency. JADA does not define resolution simply as compliance with instructions from parents or professionals. The young person begins to make a decision and act for themselves.

12Resolution Is Not the Final Goal

For JADA, resolving school refusal or hikikomori is not the end of the support process. Resolution means the point at which a young person begins moving forward again through their own decision. The longer pathway may continue through:

1. Re-engagement with learning
2. Human connection
3. Social participation
4. Work
5. Independent daily life
6. Contribution to society

The ultimate goal is Social Autonomy: developing the capacity to learn, work, participate in society, and build one’s own life with increasing independence and responsibility.

13JADA Now Systematizes More Than 40 Years of Practice

Autonomy Stage OS

Autonomy Stage OS is JADA’s core framework for understanding the current position of a young person and family and determining what kind of support may be required. The 5-Stage Assessment sits within Autonomy Stage OS as an assessment framework. It is not a medical or psychiatric diagnosis.

JADA Support Philosophy

At the center of JADA’s approach is Parent Coaching × Direct Support for the Young Person. JADA does not assume that changing parents alone will resolve the situation. Nor does it assume that supporting the young person alone is sufficient. Both sides are addressed.

7 Steps to Autonomy

1. 1Parent Coaching & Stage Assessment
2. 2Outreach / Home Visits
3. 3Daily-Life and Environmental Restructuring
4. 4Re-engagement with Learning
5. 5Rebuilding Social Connections
6. 6Education, Employment and Social Participation
7. 7Social Autonomy

14JADA Success Hub / Evidence

JADA does not treat success stories simply as testimonials. Where possible, each case documents:

1. Situation before support
2. Family circumstances
3. Parent coaching
4. Direct support
5. Turning points
6. Re-engagement
7. Further education or employment
8. Current status

These records are accumulated through the JADA Success Hub / Evidence and are used to improve practice and support future research.

Explore the JADA Success Hub / Evidence