Events held for the ”Celebration of the 113th Anniversary of Korea University and KU Alumni Day”
* Crimson Award: Taewon Choi, the President of SK Group; Gyu-young Moon, the CEO of Aju Group; the late alumnus Dong Woo Lee; MooHyun Song, the Chairman of Songhyun Group
* The Proud Alumni Award: Sang Young Choi, the President of Youngsteel Co., Ltd. (Business Administration ‘69); Myung Sook Seo, the Chief Director of Jejuolle Corporation (Education ’76)
* KU PRIDE CLUB Award rewarded to donors who actively participate in the Regular Small Sum Contribution Campaign 

 

Korea University and the KU Alumni Association held events at 10:30 on Thursday May 3 at the KU Inchon Memorial Hall for the “Celebration of the 113th Anniversary of Korea University and KU Alumni Day”.
 
At the celebration, the following awards were presented: Crimson Award (Advancement Achievement Award); KU PRIDE CLUB Award; Proud Alumni Award; Special Achievement Award; Social Service Award; Achievement Award; Seoktap Outstanding Lecture Award, Seoktap Research Award, and Seoktap Technology Award; Employee Achievement Award; KU Family Award; Long-term Service Award; Role Model Award.

Crimson Award (Advancement Achievement Award) Recipient

 
The Crimson Award (Advancement Achievement Award), which was established to honor those who continuously contribute to the advancement of KU, was awarded to Taewon Choi, the President of the SK Group (Physics ‘79); Gyu-young Moon, CEO of Aju Group (Agriculture ‘70); the late alumnus Dong Woo Lee (English Literature ‘53); and MooHyun Song, the Chairman of Songhyun Group (Metal Engineering ‘69).

Taewon Choi, the President of the SK Group, has been creating social value by inheriting the founding philosophy of ‘business patriotism,’ which is to provide service to the country through business. Choi has also largely contributed to the establishment of the SK Future Hall, the innovative education space in Korea University for future education.  

Gyu-young Moon, the CEO of Aju Group, has consistently donated scholarships for KU students and funds for school development since 2001; in 2017, he generously contributed the students’ education and research activity fund. Moreover, Moon has practiced social contribution by opening educational and cultural spaces for the disadvantaged in the founder’s birthplace. 

The late alumnus Dong Woo Lee, who had to work his way through college in the US, established the ‘Five Talent Scholarship Foundation’ for students of his alma mater.  By providing scholarships to students with financial difficulties and providing mentoring via letters, Lee contributed toward fostering talented individuals who would serve society. Lee’s wife, Chunja Lee, continued Lee’s work even after his death, by donating the condolence funds collected at Lee’s funeral, along with an additional scholarship. At the awards ceremony, Chunja Lee received the award on behalf of Lee.

MooHyun Song, the Chairman of Songhyun Group, has contributed to the development of engineering by donating development and construction funds for the New Engineering Hall. In particular, Song has contributed to the enhancement of KU’s research capacity by providing support for creative research activities. This support led KU’s professor Jong Heun Lee to develop a response sensor for volatile organic compound, a world-class technology.

KU PRIDE CLUB Award Recipient
 

The KU PRIDE CLUB Award, established in 2017, honors individuals and groups who have contributed to the development and expansion of the KU PRIDE CLUB, which is a club for regular small sum donation. This year, the Alumni Association of Female Judicial Officers was selected as the group recipient and Myung Hwa Nam, the former president of the Female Alumni Association, and Jung Chul Lee, the head of the Facilities Management Team were selected as individual recipients. To celebrate the 110th anniversary of Korea University, the school has been operating the KU PRIDE CLUB campaign since May 5, 2015. The campaign aims to unify the efforts of KU’s 300,000 graduates, faculty, staff, parents of students, and the general public to support the University and its students by making a small monthly donation of at least KRW 10,000.  Donations accumulated through the campaign are used as scholarships for students’ living expenses or for exchange students; these provide opportunities to more than 1,000 students each year to regain the time they had lost on part-time jobs, to focus more on their studies, and to gain broad experiences. Only four months after the initiation, the number of registered donators reached 1,000 and the enthusiastic support continues today, the third year of the campaign, with over 4,200 registered donators and 14,000 accounts (about 38 billion won) donated.

Proud Alumni Award Recipient

 
The Proud Alumni Award went to Sang Young Choi, the President of Youngsteel Co., Ltd. (Business Administration ‘69) and Myung Sook Seo, the Chief Director of Jejuolle Corporation (Education ‘76).

Sang Young Choi, the President of Youngsteel Co., Ltd. Graduated from the Department of Business Administration in 1973. Until he attained his current position as the President of Youngsteel, Co., Ltd., Choi engaged in import/export trade businesses with steel manufactures in Japan, playing a key role in bridging the trade between Korea and Japan for over 45 years. Choi also serves as an envoy of nongovernmental diplomacy in Japan via various activities such as serving as chairman of the Korea Sports Council in Japan. Furthermore, President Choi has shown great interest in social activities and has contributed greatly to enhancing the status of overseas Koreans by opening a gateway for over 200 overseas Koreans to participate in elections by filing a constitutional petition in 2004 along with Korean residents in Japan. Since 2001, Choi has held office as the President of the KU Alumni Association in Japan, donating scholarships and development funds for younger students, and playing a crucial role in promoting mutual understanding between Korea and Japan by actively supporting exchange activities between KU and its sister school, Waseda University.

Myung Sook Seo, the Chief Director of Jejuolle Corporation graduated from the Department of Education in 1980, devoted herself as a journalist for 26 years, fought for her principles and convictions, and accomplished various feats such as being the first female head of a political department, editor-in-chief at Sisa Journal, and chief editor of Ohmynews, an internet newspaper. In particular, from 2007 to 2012, Seo, as the Chief Director of Jejuolle, established 26 courses along the Jeju Olle Trails, stirring up the boom of Korea’s ‘Olle syndrome’ and ‘fever of walking,’ creating a new paradigm of travel. The ‘Olle’ brand is also being exported to Japan and Mongolia, contributing to the enhancement of the nation’s status. Chief Director Seo has contributed to social change and innovation with female leadership by cultivating the environment-friendly and ecological Olle Trails and creating region-based socioeconomic models.

Special Achievement Award Recipient

The Special Achievement Award was awarded to Gyu-young Moon, the CEO of Aju Group (Agriculture ’70).
CEO Moon is an entrepreneur who has been demonstrating noblesse oblige for over 40 years since his graduation from the Department of Agriculture in 1977. Moon has made various social contributions by establishing the Very Happy Study Room, Dreaming Little Library, oversees volunteering for Vietnam and Cambodia, emergency relief activities, and scholarships, and has been a great role model for other Korean entrepreneurs. Moon has also donated development funds totaling more than 30 billion won for the advancement of KU and scholarship programs for current students. He has done all this while holding office as the chair of the planning committee for the 40th anniversary of returning alumni of class of 1970 and as the President of the KU Businessperson Association. While in office as the President of KU Businessperson Association, Moon set an example for other alumni associations by systematizing and normalizing social volunteer activities of the Businessperson Association under the slogan: “Participate and Serve.”

Social Service Award Recipients

 
The Social Service Award was awarded to Professor Chang Duck Kim (Medicine ’71) of KU Medical School and Hwan Gi Son, the honorary ambassador of Truly Good Friends Corporation (Professional Graduate School of Business Administration).

Professor Chang Duck Kim has served as a professor at KU medical school for 40 years, following his graduation from the medical school in 1977. Not only did he contribute to the advancement of medical education and medical treatment in Korea, but he also demonstrated devoted social service, setting a great example for younger students. Following the legacy of his father who donated an extensive fortune for medical welfare, Kim established a welfare foundation to provide medical and scholarship support to the socially disadvantaged. Since 2003, he has been operating the ‘Raphael Clinic,’ which is a free clinic for immigrant workers, and has consistently provided overseas medical volunteer work each year. Kim has raised the honor of KU by receiving the POSCO TJ Park Prize and Ho-Am Prize for social service. 

Hwan Gi Son, who completed a research course at KU Professional Graduate School of Business Administration in 1989, has been participating in volunteer activities for marginalized neighbors, the socially disadvantaged, and disaster areas since 1992; in particular, Son has provided free meal services and accommodations for the homeless, support rehabilitation and self-support activities, and emergency relief to domestic and international disaster areas. For 26 years, Son has provided meals to an average of 400 persons per day at Jungnim-dong soup kitchen, contributing to society by providing heartfelt and sincere service.

The Long-term Service Award Recipient Representatives

From left: General Manager Eun Joo Chung, Professor Young Shin Sung, Senior Administrative officer Sun-hong Park, Professor Jongsun Park, Assistant Manager Suk Hyun Lee, Professor Kwanho Shin

The representatives of the recipients of the Seoktap Outstanding Lecture Award, Seoktap Research Award, and Seoktap Technology Award
Fromleft: Professor Seungkwon You, President Jaeho Yeom, Professor Kyung Ho Sim, and Professor Joewon Yoon

Administrative Officer Hyojae Lee, the representative of the Employee Achievement Award recipients
 

Among the professors who lectured to undergraduate students in the second semester of 2017, 142 who were ranked in the top 5% on student lecture evaluations at the end of each semester received the Seoktap Outstanding Lecture Award. Also, the Seoktap Technology Award was given to the top three researchers who contributed greatly in technology transfer in the previous year, and the Seoktap Research Award to 48 faculty members whose research achievements in the previous year reached the top 3%.

Jae Ho Kim, the chairman of the board of Korea Choongang Educational Foundation stated, “We, the people of KU, think freely and righteously and propose the direction towards which this country should move. We should think rightly based on universally valid truth, and should prevent deceit from taking root. Moreover, KU should contribute to the constant development of Korea as the cradle of fostering creative and talented individuals who can lead the Fourth Industrial Revolution. In order to do that, we all need to try and change. We should contemplate the future of KU, improve communication among the members of KU, and actively participate in the innovation of KU. I hope that students hold grander dreams and work towards their goals. The Foundation will continue to take an interest and provide support.”  

 
Jaeho Yeom, the President of KU, stated that, “113 years ago, the pioneers of our country believed that modern education can save the country and that education should be well-established. Even today, in the 21st century, rapid development of science technology is bringing about groundbreaking changes to the future of mankind. In the 20th century, knowledge was the index of success, but in the 21st century, computers hold more knowledge than humans. However, unlike the machines, people have the ability to cooperate, to understand or share the intentions of others and to try to work together for a common goal. Therefore, connectivity has become a new key to success in the 21st century. In such a changing situation, the responsibilities of KU to cultivate a society in which people live together cooperatively will be reinforced.” President Yeom also mentioned that, “In the past three years, KU has proposed new values for universities in this rapidly changing society, and we should pledge our devotion to strive forward with infinite responsibility and mission for our society. As the 113-year history and tradition of KU matures further, we should also look forward to constantly changing and developing KU.”

Yin Kim, the chief vice-president of the KU Alumni Association said, “In 1905, at the time of facing the ruin of our country, KU was founded with the founding principle of “Education saves the country.” KU firmly overcame and developed through the Japanese colonial era and the chaos of the war, pioneered the modern history of Korea, and took part in the history of successful democratization. The driving force of such progress was the power of education, and I am proud that many talented people from KU have taken on the central role. Even in the current era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the people of KU will faithfully carry on the core roles of society with the special characteristics of KU, namely the open sociability and the firm power of execution. I hope that today’s event, the ”Celebration of the 113th Anniversary of Korea University and KU Alumni Day,“ will be the starting point to gather the strength and wisdom of all 330,000 members of the KU family and to take a powerful step and great leap forward.”

Achievement Award Recipient

KU Family Award

Three generations of alumni Hyang Taek Jung’s family, five members of alumni Kyung Ok Min’s family, three generation of alumni Jin Yik Kim’s family, five members of alumni Jung Ho Nam’s family 
 

Role Model Award

Jungnang Alumni Association, San Francisco Alumni Association, U.S., Paris Alumni Association, France