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Contributions to national economic growth through development in the public works and construction industries... Received ‘honorary doctorate in engineering’ Rose the corporate ladder by successfully leading overseas public works and construction projects Founded Samwoo Public Works in 1991... Continued success as entrepreneur Founded Choi Hyeok-young Scholarship Foundation to ‘practice sharing’... Provided financial support and served as mentor [September 15, 2021] YU (President CHOI Oe-chool) bestowed an honorary doctorate’s degree to Choi Hyeok-young Scholarship Foundation Chairman Choi Hyeok-young (78, right on photo) at the 3rd floor Conventional Hall of the YU Chunma Art Center at 2 p.m. on the 15th. This was in response to his contributions for the growth of the Korean public works and construction industries and for the development of the national economy. Mr. Choi, from the class of ‘63 in civil engineering at YU (formerly Chunggu College), began his professional career at Shinjin Motor Group through open recruitment immediately after graduating university in 1970, and started working at Shinwon Development. He was a successful salary man in the public works and general construction industry until retiring from Samsung Construction in 1987. While working at Shinwon Development, he was dispatched to the ‘Khorramshahr Port Construction in Iran’, which was the third overseas construction project of Korea and successfully led the project, receiving a medal from the CEO and showing his excellence in the industry early on. After changing jobs to Samsung Construction in 1979, his achievements stood out even brighter. He exhibited especially outstanding capacities in winning overseas construction orders. At the time, Mr. Choi created a cost estimation manual needed for winning overseas construction bids to create the foundation for calculating overseas construction estimates. He came up with cost calculation methods and process management techniques even before the process management sector was systemized, thus contributing to corporate performance, and hinting to his unique managerial abilities. Mr. Choi left Samsung in 1987 and started his own business, which was an opportunity to show his true capacities as an entrepreneur. He founded Samwoo Public Works in 1991 as a company specializing in construction, and won numerous constructions bids such as eight blocks for expressways, eight blocks for subways, four land development sites, and two plants, as he continued his success as an entrepreneur. Mr. Choi then established Samwoo Development and Mihye Industries to expand to real estate development businesses, real estate leasing and managing businesses, and even clothing businesses, as he still continues his endless challenges. Mr. Choi has also been continuously stepping forward to practice sharing. Among them, the scholarship business is one of the projects that he is most attached to. It reflects his conviction that the most important thing for national development is ‘finding talents with proper character.’ Mr. Choi established the Choi Hyeok-young Scholarship Foundation in 2013 and has selected and supported about 300 students for scholarships at over 20 universities and high schools so far. In particular, the Choi Hyeok-young Scholarship does not stop at merely providing financial support. Mr. Choi also acts as a mentor for the scholarship students. He exchanges letters with students to share his wisdom with them and also gets together regularly for meals and meetings, thus offering both material and psychological. Mr. Choi is an alumnus of YU and he has a special affection for his alma mater and juniors. He has donated over 700 million KRW to the university as development funds including scholarships for his juniors at YU. In particular, he contributed greatly to the establishment of the YU campus landmarks such as the ‘Chunma Tunnel Fountain’ installed at the front gate of YU and the large clock ‘Big Time’ installed on the upper part of the outer wall of the YU Central Library in 2018. Mr. Choi said, “50 years ago, I was on the verge of being expelled because I was unable to pay tuition when I was in college. I was able to continue my studies thanks to the dean. I have never forgotten my appreciation for him. I promised that I would live my contributing to the school and society.” He added, “I am proud that during my corporate career and my life as an entrepreneur, I participated in many construction projects that will be remembered in the history of Korea’s development. But it is a great honor to receive this honorary doctorate’s degree despite being lacking in so many areas. On the other hand, I feel a huge sense of responsibility. I plan to continue focus more on the scholarship project during the life I have left. I will do what I can to foster talented human resources with expertise, creativity, and an innovative mindset based on strong character, and foster people who will contribute to our country and society.”
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Former National Assemblyman Kim Gwang-rim and Former Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Lee Dong-il Appointed as Special Chair Professors Top experts who served in key government positions for economy, agriculture, etc. who served as heads of major agencies Expected to pass on ‘expertise and leadership’ gained in administrative and legislative bodies to juniors [September 14, 2021] <Former National Assemblyman Kim Gwang-rim (left) and Former Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Lee Dong-pil (right) who were appointed as special chair professors of YU> YU (President CHOI Oe-chool) appointed two minister-level figures as special chair professors. They are former Assemblyman Kim Gwang-rim (73) and former Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Lee Dong-il (66). They are all alumni of YU and with their appointment as special chair professors, they will begin fostering their juniors at their alma mater. Their tenure is until August 2022. In the morning of the 14th, President CHOI Oe-chool held an appointment ceremony at the president’s reception room and appointed them as special chair professors. Special Chair Professor Kim Gwang-rim (School of Economics and Finance) is from the YU Department of Economics class of ‘69. He earned his master’s in public administration at Harvard University Graduate School of Public Administration and Seoul National University Graduate School of Public Administration, and earned his PhD in public administration at the Kyunghee University Graduate School of Public Administration. After graduating from the YU Department of Economics, he passed the public administration exam and worked at the Economic Planning Center and Finance and Economy Center, then served as the 16th director of the Korean Intellectual Property Office and Vice-minister of Finance and Economy, thus being one of Korea’s top economic bureaucrats of the Republic of Korea. He served three terms as an Assemblyman in the 18th, 19th, and 20th National Assembly, and he is an expert of economics and finances who worked both in administrative and legislative branches, working in the planning and finance committee for about 11 years. Special Chair Professor Lee Dong-pil (Department of Food Economics and Service) is from the YU Department of Livestock Management class of ‘74. He earned his master’s degree in agricultural economics at Seoul National University and his PhD in agricultural economics at the University of Missouri. He served as the 12th director of the Korea Rural Economic Institute and the 61st Minister of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs. Minister Lee graduated from YU majoring in livestock management in 1978 and joined the Korea Rural Economic Institute in 1980, and is an expert on researching development directions for agriculture and rural areas for over 30 years. He worked as a working-level member of the agricultural policy review committee under the Prime Minister’s Office in 1994, full-time member of the presidential committee on regulatory reforms, chair of the regulatory review committee of the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, mid-term finance task force leader in the agriculture and food sector of the Ministry of Strategy & Finance, and an expert member of the presidential committee for regional development. The two special chair professors appointed have spent decades in key government positions where they have gained practical experience and expertise, and were recognized for their leadership abilities by serving as the heads of their respective institutes. Their extensive experience and expertise are expected to be handed down directly to their journals from the podium of YU, which is their alma maters. YU President CHOI Oe-chool said, “It is a great honor to be able to have YU alumni who spent decades in government agencies that establish the major policies of the Republic of Korea, and who event headed those agencies,” adding, “I believe that the paths of the alumni right next to the development of Korea will be great motivation for students and serve as their role models. I humbly ask that alumni pass on their expertise and experiences in various fields to their juniors.”
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Kim Jung-soo (-90kg) wins gold and Seo Bo-min (-66kg) wins bronze Bronze medal in team match to continue pride as a judo powerhouse [September 14, 2021] The YU Judo Team (Head Coach Lee Jung-hwa) won one gold and one bronze medal in the individual matches and the bronze medal in the team match at the 2021 Summer National Men’s and Women's Collegiate Judo Federation Championship. At this tournament held at the Yanggu Culture and Sports Hall in Gangwon-do from September 3 to 6, Kim Jung-soo (20, Sport Science, sophomore) took first place in the -90kg division, while Seo Bo-min (22, Special Physical Education, senior) won the bronze medal. Kim Jung-soo, who won the gold medal, took the win by forfeit from Yoon Dong-hwan (Sehan University) on the first round, and then at the round of 16, defeated Sohn Gang (Kyungwoon University) by ippon with a shoulder throw counter. He faced off against Lee Gyeong-ho of YU at the quarter finals and won by ippon with a shoulder throw. Then in the semi-finals, he defeated Jung Hae-min (Cheongju University) by waza-ari. And in the final match, he took the victory against Kim Jae-min (Yongin University) by being awarded a waza-ari with a kata guruma just one second left in the match. YU Judo Team Head Coach Lee Jung-hwa said, “I think that in this tournament, our athletes showed their potentials despite the various hardships,” while adding, “We will move forward so that we will have good outcomes while showing the true colors of YU at the 102nd National Sports Festival that will be held in Gyeongbuk in October.” The YU Judo Team that was founded in 1956 has continuously left good records in Korean judo together with Yongin University and Korea National Sport University as it continues its legacy as a powerhouse for college judo.
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Turning Saemul Undong into an academic discipline, fostering human resources for overcoming poverty, utilization of the YU global network New model for industry-academic cooperation with public and private sectors... Pursuing ‘Saemaul international development’ [September 14, 2021] YU (President CHOI Oe-chool) and the Korea Saemaul Undong Center (Chairman Yeom Hong-cheol) entered a work MOU for national and regional development and fostering human resources. At the MOU signing ceremony held at the 3rd floor main conference room at the main building of YU on the 10th at 2 p.m. were present YU President CHOI Oe-chool, Vice-president of Management and Strategy Lee Hwan-beom, International Development and Cooperation Center Director Kim Gi-soo, Park Chung-hee School of Policy and Saemaul Dean Lee Hee-wook, and Communication Cooperation Office Director Heo Chang-deok, while Saemaul Undong Center Chairman Yeon Hong-cheol and Secretary General Kim Seok-jin. With this MOU, the two institutes agreed to cooperate in areas like ▲fostering human resources to overcome poverty in developing countries ▲development of joint projects linking local industries and local innovative growth ▲cooperation to realize carbon neutrality ▲support for operation and management of Saemaul Undong clubs at universities ▲participation of college students related to domestic and overseas Saemaul Undong volunteer activities ▲research related to education and academics and support and participation in events, etc.. The Saemaul Undong that pursued under the leadership of the government in the 1970s contributed in the development of local communities through various pan-national movements such as economic recovery movements to overcome economic difficulties, life movement for practicing carbon neutrality, etc. focusing on the lifestyle reform movement and community movements by switching to be led by the private sector in the 1980s. YU has been taking the lead to systemize the Saemaul Undong into an academic discipline to foster experts in Saemaul and international development, while helping the Saemaul Undong to settle down as a major development policy for developing countries. As YU has become a global education and research hub university for expanding Saemaul Undong to expand into a model for overcoming global poverty, this work MOU with the Korea Saemaul Undong Center will not only expand the global Saemaul Undong, but also contribute to upgrading Korea in the international society. YU has entered a work MOU for supporting companies to enter foreign countries using the global Saemaul human resource network and the globalization of Saemaul together with the Daegu Chamber of Commerce back in August. It is receiving attention as a new type of industry-academic cooperation that pioneers overseas markets for companies using a global network constructed by the university. YU President CHOI Oe-chool said, “When the education and research assets in the Saemaul international development sector and its global network constructed by YU are used to pursue cooperative projects in different parts of society with public organizations, companies, etc., Korea will be able to broaden its role as a developed country.” He further commented, “Cooperative projects pursued by various institutes and companies including the Korea Saemaul Undong Center will become a model case for the Saemaul international development project.” YU has been practicing the spirit of sharing, serving and creating, while taking the lead to foster human resources who can contribute to human society. A total of 4,000 public employees and private sector personnel from 79 countries were cultivated into Saemaul international development experts and regional development experts through the Park Chung Hee School of Policy and Saemaul and the International Development Cooperation Center. They are currently active all around the world as Saemaul international development and local development experts.
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Library named after ‘Korea Former Chairman Lee Jong-woo’ opened Donated 5 billion KRW worth of real estate for renovation of library “Value of life is determined not by ‘gathering’ but by ‘sharing’!” Entrepreneur who put into practice his beliefs for his entire life [September 1, 2021] The YU Science Library completed renovations and greeted students with the new name ‘Lee Jong Woo Science Library’ as the second semester began. YU completed the expansion and renovation of the science library and named it the ‘Lee Jong Woo Science Library’ and held a construction completion ceremony at 2 p.m. On September 1. It was named after Korea Former Chairman Lee Jong-woo who donated 5 billion KRW worth of real estate for this expansion and renovation to remember his lofty spirit. In 2019, he made news by donating real estate worth 5 billion KRW to his alma mater, YU. At the time, Chairman Lee was serving as a director the Yeungnam School Foundation and felt bad seeing difficulties with renovation of the science library, and thus decided to donate a large sum for development funds. At the completion ceremony were present Yeungnam School Foundation Chair Han Jae-sook and Director Lee Shi-won, YU President CHOI Oe-chool, former YU President Sur Gil-soo, YU General Alumni Association Chairman Jung Tae-il, Dongsun Synthetic Fiber CEO Seo Seok-hong (former chairman of the YU Finance and Economy Alumni Association) to congratulate the opening of the Lee Jong Woo Science Library. Chairman Lee Jong-woo attended the ceremony and stated, “It is an honor that a library named after me is opened at my alma mater’s campus where I studied with great dreams when I was young.” He added, “I hope that this library serves as the platform for fostering the ‘pillars of national restoration’ that is the founding spirit of YU. I hope that my juniors dream big and become leaders of Korea beyond their seniors who are currently making great achievements in different parts of society.” The Lee Jong Woo Science Library is four stories tall and has a total floor area of 10,031㎡ and is composed of a science technology archive room, small lecture hall, mobile learning zone, creative lounge, seminar room, and employment study room. On the second floor is the Songam Lounge named after Chairman Lee’s nom de plume ‘Songam.’ <Interior of Lee Jong Woo Science Library> YU President CHOI Oe-chool said, “It is very meaningful to open the Lee Jong Woo Science Library that will continue to share Chairman Lee’s message of sharing throughout his entire life.” He added, “I hope that juniors studying here will continue Chairman Lee’s philosophy of life and become figures who contribute to human society. The Lee Jong Woo Science Library will be the starting point for fostering talented individuals with the spirit of sharing, serving, and having a sustainable creative spirit.” Chairman Lee practiced his belief that ‘sharing’ and not 'gathering’ determines one’s life. In addition to the donation of the real estate worth 5 billion KRW, Chairman Lee also founded the ‘Songam Scholarship Association’ at YU in 2002 to help his juniors having difficulties with studies, where he has donated over 1.2 billion KRW in scholarships up to now. Outside of YU, he established the Songam Lee Jong-woo Scholarship Foundation where he delivered scholarship funds for high schools and colleges around the nation to help foster talented human resources. He was recognized for his contributions to the development of education in the Republic of Korea and last year, he received the honor of being awarded the ’Order of Civil Merit, Peony Medal’ from the government. In July, he published his autobiography ‘Pine Tree Rooted in Stone’ to tell his life story.
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In the 2021 Leiden Ranking, proved world-class research capacities and placed 50th in Asia and 171st in the world Received good scores in various academic sectors such as 14th overall in Korea and 8th in life & earth sciences Excluded qualitative elements such as university reputation and focused on achievements and quality of research [August 30, 2021] 2021 Leiden Ranking in Mathematics & Computer Science 2021 Overall Leiden Ranking Korea ranking University Korea ranking University 1 YU 1 UNIST 2 Sejong University 2 Sejong University 3 UNIST 3 POSTECH 4 Kyunghee University 4 KAIST 5 POSTECH 5 DGIST 6 Korea University 6 Korea University 7 KAIST 7 Ulsan University 8 Seoul National University 8 Seoul National University 9 Gyeongsang National University 9 Hanyang University 10 Ulsan University 10 University of Seoul 11 Kyungpook National University 11 GIST 12 Sungkyunkwan University 12 Sungkyunkwan University 13 Ewha Womans University 13 Yonsei University 14 DGIST 14 YU 15 Chung-Ang University 15 Ewha Womans University 16 Yonsei University 16 Kyunghee University 17 GIST 17 Dongguk University 18 Catholic University 18 Inha Univesity 19 Seoul National University Of Science And Technology 19 Ajou University 20 Hanyang University 20 Konkuk University YU (President CHOI Oe-chool) was once again proven to have world-class research capacities. YU took first place (50th in Asia and 171st in the world) in the Mathematics & Computer Science sector in the ‘2021 Leiden Ranking’. YU has been exhibiting dominating research capacities by taking first place seven years in a row in the 2020 Leiden Ranking for mathematics and computer science. YU also placed 14th in the overall ranking. YU ranked 8th in Life & Earth Sciences and 23rd in Physical Sciences & Engineering in the nation, thus being recognized for its extraordinary research capacities over various academic fields. YU President CHOI Oe-chool commented, “YU has been ranked first for seven straight years in the math and computer science sectors in Korea through global university evaluations, thus being recognized for its unparalleled research capacities.” He further stated, “We will spare no support so that YU’s research capacities become similar to global levels in various academic sectors.” The Leiden Ranking is a world university ranking by Leiden University of the Netherlands that evaluates the research capacities of university research capacities based on the qualitative levels of research papers. It excludes subjective qualitative evaluation elements such as university reputation, and ranks universities based on the number of theses and frequency of citation, and therefore, it is judged to be an important indicator for assessing the research outcomes of universities and the quality of the research. This year, it evaluated a total of 1,225 universities around the world that published a minimum of 1,000 studies in international academic journals over a period of four years from 2016 to 2019. 46 Korean universities were included in the rankings. Leiden Ranking awards the overall ranking and a total of five sectors such as Mathematics & Computer Science, Biomedical & Health Sciences, Life & Earth Sciences, Physical Sciences & Engineering, and Social Sciences & Humanities.
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Global attention on 40 years of research on the ‘Imdang Remains’ in the ancient Gyeongsan region Inter-disciplinary research in history, anthropology, medicine, and natural science sectors Videos containing important contents from the special exhibit to be produced as a creative animation and unveiled via YouTube [September 1, 2021] YU (President CHOI Oe-chool) will hold the ‘Imdang Excavation and World of Archeology’ special exhibit (9/1 - 11/30/2021) that explains the society such as the life and death of people in ancient Gyeongsan through an archaeological approach as the second semester begins. YU Museum has continuously excavated and examined historical site 516 Gyeongsan Imdan-dong and the Joyeong-dong Ancient Tombs since 1982. Various investigative institutes also participated since the 1990s for full-fledged investigations, and massive excavations were conducted in Imdang-dong and its vicinity. In result, it was possible to procure huge amounts of archaeological materials making it possible to restore the ancient society of the Gyeongsan area. Excavations in the Imdang area are still ongoing. It has been 40 years since YU Museum began excavations at Imdang Remains, and as inter-disciplinary research encompassing archeology, history, anthropology, medicine, and natural science, work on restoring the daily life of people in ancient Gyeongsan began in earnest. In the center of this was YU Museum. In particular, the research achievements based on the latest DNA analysis methods received global attention. This special exhibit summarized and introduced various research achievements made up until recently focusing on the excavation of the Imdang ancient tomb remains that our museum has led for a long time. It arranged the features and meaning of various artifacts such as iron items and accessories, as well as earthenware that is always a part of archaeological studies. Furthermore, it will provide a comprehensive introduction on the analysis and research achievements of ancient human skeletons and animal remains that were conducted over the past few years. Various analysis results made possible by the latest technologies are introduced. More importantly, the main contents of the special exhibit will be produced in six videos and two creative animations for people having difficulty visiting due to COVID-19 and it will be revealed through various online media such as the YU YouTube channel every Wednesday starting on September 8. YU Museum Director Jung In-sung, who oversaw this exhibit, said, “YU Museum is striving to hold exhibits that clarify its identity as a university museum of the region. In-depth research was conducted on the ancient human skeletons and natural artifacts of the ancient Imdang remains through this project for investigating Imdang Remains that represent Apdok. This is quite rare anywhere in the world. The achievements made here will contribute greatly in researching the living history of the ancient people of Apdok.” He added, “I hope that many people will visit YU Museum or see the special exhibit in cyberspace.” This special exhibit was held with funding from the ‘2021 Korean University Museum Promotion Support Project’ hosted by the Korean Association of University Museums and sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. YU Museum has also been conducting the ‘Apdok Cultural Heritage Research Utilization’ project sponsored by Gyeongsangbuk-do and Gyeongsan for three years since 2019. Basic analysis of ancient skeletons stored at the museum was conducted, and the study is being carried out by applying the latest science technologies such as DNA analysis by collaborating with various research institutes both in and outside of Korea. It has become possible to get a more vivid look into the lifestyles of the people of Apdok. This year, analysis on the Imdang-dong animal remains collected by the YU Museum will begin in earnest.
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YUMC of YU joined by various majors such as philosophy, computer engineering, visual design, etc. to quickly build a ‘metaverse campus’ ‘Expertise/creativity’ beyond a college club level... Pursued ‘metaverse project’ after receiving proposal from LG Electronics Hold various interactive meetings and events such as admissions ceremony and military send-off ceremonies... Space to form ‘social relations’ for the MZ generation [August 11, 2021] <Members of the YU Metaverse Club, ‘YUMC (Yeungnam Univ. Minecraft Server)’> (From left to right: Park Gwan-gyu, Jang Seon-ah, Seo Seung-wan, Chae Si-eun, Lee Bo-gyeong, Kim Hyun-do) What can students majoring in completely different areas such as philosophy, computer engineering, chemistry, materials engineering, English language and literature, family housing studies, and visual design gather to do? The ‘YU Metaverse Campus’ created by various majors has been the talk of the town lately. The word metaverse is a combination of the word meta that means abstract and universe that represents the real world. It has recently become a global issue and has exhibited possibility of use in various sectors such as the industry. At the spotlight is the YUMC (Yeungnam Univ. Minecraft Server) club. They used ‘Minecraft (metaverse game of Microsoft)’, which is the representative platform for configuring metaverse, to build the YU campus. YUMC President Seo Seung-wan (24, master’s degree program in philosophy at the YU graduate school) said, “I felt bad over the loss of the value of communication and interaction within school due to the prolonging of COVID-19. I organized this club thinking that it would be nice to form a student community for engaging in interactive activities in the virtual space of Minecraft.” YUMC, which was founded in February, already has 300 members. The club members voluntarily cooperated and set up the YU campus in the real world exactly the same in metaverse. Starting with the Central Library that represents YU, major buildings such as the Student Hall, Outdoor Auditorium, Chunma Art Center, and International Exchange Center were constructed identically as that in reality. But they did not stop at just imitating the exterior of buildings on campus. The library reading room also has information known only among YU students such as the best restaurants on campus, tips for registering for classes, test information, etc., and actual individual students are freely visiting campus to enjoy campus life. It held admissions ceremonies and is also holding various meetings and events like military send-off ceremonies for students. <Metaverse campus constructed by YUMC (view of YU Central Library)> Lee Bo-gyeong, a senior majoring in English Language and Literature, said, “We held the new ‘21 freshmen admissions ceremony via metaverse in March of this year. We wanted to hold an admissions ceremony prepared by seniors of freshmen who did not get to have a proper admissions ceremony due to COVID-19. We worked day and night for about two weeks for the admissions ceremony to construct the interior of the Chunma Art Center and invited the new freshmen. Though not many new students were able to participate, it was a meaningful event to our YUMC clubs by holding the admissions ceremony, which is the first step to life in college, via metaverse.” As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to go on, students from ‘20 and ‘21, who had few opportunities to visit the real-world campus, have now become more familiar with the metaverse campus than the real campus. Park Gwang-gyu (sophomore, Family and Housing Studies) who enrolled to YU last year, said, “As soon as I was admitted, classes were offered online due to COVID-19, so I visited the YU campus constructed on Minecraft before visiting the actual campus. I visited various parts of campus in the metaverse, and I was surprised when I visited the actual campus because it was exactly the same as that in the metaverse.” YUMC should not be viewed as a club that simply follows trends. The metaverse industry says that it has gone beyond the level of college clubs that simply share hobbies. It recently received a proposal for a project from a conglomerate and successfully completed it. YUMC received an offer from LG Electronics to construct a metaverse for the in-company training program completion ceremony and to carry out the event. After two months, it successfully completed the project and received a plaque of appreciation from the company. The ‘metaverse admissions ceremony’ that was held by YUMC drew a lot of attention from metaverse communities and professional researchers, and YUMC was thus recommended to LG Electronics by a Korean metaverse expert. YUMC President Seo Seung-wan said, “It is not just a game for constructing a virtual space on an online environment. The MZ generation holds meetings and events here, and is creating social relations just like in offline worlds.” He added, “YUMC has just started but there are many members with different expertise. As it is a club where students with different majors voluntarily get together, there are many unique and creative ideas. Various events such as humanities lectures and campus tours can be held through the YU Metaverse Campus. I hope that we can come up with various programs to form social relations in the post-corona era by integrating the metaverse.
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Scholarship association founded in 2003 mainly by alumni who were recipients of the ‘Saemaul Scholarship’ and supports academic work for students every year ‘Cheering for academics’ of juniors for 16th year... 248.5 million KRW in scholarships to 264 students [August 13, 2021] The YU Saemaul Scholarship Association (Chairman CHOI Oe-chool) delivered the 'academic scholarship’ to show support for their juniors at the YU Department of International Development and Saemaul Undong on the 13th. This scholarship was made by senior alumni out of love for their juniors in hopes that students will not suspend their studies and continuously work toward their dream despite the difficulties created by COVID-19, and this is the 16th year of this program. The YU Saemaul Scholarship Association was founded in 2003 mainly around alumni who studied with the support of the Saemaul scholarship in the YU Department of Regional Development (currently International Development and Saemaul Undong) to support the studies of younger students. Since its establishment, it has been offering scholarships to its juniors, and this year, it gave 13.5 million KRW in scholarships for a grand total of 248.5 million KRW given to 264 students. Last year, members including Chairman CHOI Oe-chool, donated additional scholarships to help students having difficulties with continuing their academics because of COVID-19, and scholarships were delivered twice last year in June and December. This scholarship was given to encourage current students at the YU Department of International Development and Saemaul Undong involved in producing videos for introducing their department. The YU Department of International Development and Saemaul Undong recently held its own ‘department introduction video contest.’ The purpose of this was to provide information about the department for future freshmen and parents interested in the Department of International Development and Saemaul Undong. At this contest, the ‘New Morning!’ team composed of Jeung Seung-pil (senior) and Ha Yoon-seok and Sung Jung-eun (sophomores) won the grand prize, while two teams such as ‘Fantastic New Country’ (Jeon Chi-moo, Han Seung-ah, Jung Ye-won, sophomores) and ‘Create New Earth’ (Park Joon-young, Park Joon-tae, Kim A-reum, juniors) won second place, and two teams such as ‘REA:CH (Ready to Challenge & Change)’ (Park Se-eun (senior), Lim Myung-jin (junior), and Sung Ye-bin (sophomore)) and ‘Sangjo’ (Kang Eun-soo (senior), Kwon Hyun-jin and Lim Joo-eun (juniors)) (total 6 teams) received participation awards, and thus received scholarships. The awarded works can be seen in the homepage of the Department of International Development and Saemaul Undong. Chairman CHOI Oe-chool (current YU president) said, “Students are the future of the university. I saw the passion and creativity of students through the contest and became convinced that the future of our university is bright.” He added, “I hope that using the scholarships created through the affection of their seniors will act as a catalyst for students to realize their potentials and work toward their dreams. Furthermore, I hope that everyone develops into people who can also return what they received to society to continue the legacy of their seniors who practiced sharing.”
