The landscape of East Asian studies at Columbian College has been transformed under the leadership of Professor Young-Key Kim-Renaud, who steps down this month as chair of the East Asian Languages and Literatures Department. But beyond her leadership role, Kim-Renaud has been a strong mentor and generous contributor to advancing the study of the humanities.
“The humanities complement, in a crucial way, scientific and technical studies,” said Kim-Renaud. “In the 21st century, students need to have access to the study of languages, history and cultures of East Asia. Learning about others is the best way to learn about oneself; it enhances creativity and critical thinking.”
To that end, Kim-Renaud is currently helping to raise funds to endow a new Korean Studies professorship in the humanities. She and her husband, Bertrand Renaud, established the Young-Key Kim-Renaud Endowed Fund in 2011 and are now hoping to expand the fund to support an endowed professorship. To date, $600,000 has been raised toward a goal of $2.5 million for the professorship.
“This professorship would be held by someone who can expand and deepen Korean Studies at GW,” she said. “[It] would further strengthen GW’s East Asian programs and help provide a more comprehensive education for our students.”
Kim-Renaud joined GW’s faculty over 30 years ago, serving as department chair for the past 12 years. Under her leadership, the department has grown in size, quality and variety of programs as she worked to show the significance of the study of the East Asian humanities. In addition to founding GW’s Korean Language and Culture Program in 1983, she has organized academic conferences, cultural events and colloquia promoting scholarship and mutual understanding between Koreans and non-Koreans.
Beyond the Young-Key Kim-Renaud Endowed Fund, her philanthropy supports five other endowments in Korean studies at GW, including two professorships and a fund that supports the popular Hahn Moo-Sook Colloquium in the Korean Humanities. Named for her mother, an important Korean author, the Hahn Moo-Sook Colloquium provides a public forum for academic discussion of Korean arts, history, language, literature, thought and religious systems in the context of East Asia and the world.
For more information about philanthropic support of an endowed professorship in Korean Studies, contact Jay Harder at [email protected] or 202-994-9909.