Hinoki International School was established in 2010 as the Japanese American School of South East Michigan (JASSEM, or 南東ミシガン日米学校), by Ted Delphia, co-owner of Himawari Preschool and head of the Michigan Japanese Bilingual Education Foundation (MJBEF), a 501(c)(3) public charity.
Using over $500,000 in Federal Charter school program grants and input from Eastern Michigan University's World Language Department, Hinoki enrolled 13 students in 2010 in a single kindergarten class.
[2] Hinoki had 185 students enrolled for 2014-15 when it received notice that MJBEF would be withdrawing as educational service provider.
"[5] Hinoki was granted a new charter from Saginaw Valley State University, and moved to 29230 W. 12 Mile Road, Farmington Hills, Michigan, and began enrolling students in Kindergarten through 5th grade for fall 2015.
[7] Hinoki's Japanese-English immersion program was a blend of both Japanese pedagogy and Michigan’s educational standards within the framework of a dual language classroom.