Jim Yong Kim
Dartmouth College President |
By Kang Shin-who
Staff Reporter
Jim Yong Kim, 49, a Korean-American, has been named president of Dartmouth College. Kim, who is a Harvard University medical doctor and anthropologist, has fought diseases that affect the poor around the world.
He is the first-ever ethnic Korean to lead an Ivy League school, succeeding James Wright, 69, who has headed the school for 11 years, said Dartmouth, based in Hanover. Kim will officially take the president's office from June as the 17th president of the university.
``I am honored and humbled to accept this role, and look forward to building on the many achievements of Jim Wright and his predecessors that have made Dartmouth the vibrant, world-class institution it is today. Dartmouth is a unique and special place with a powerful sense of community,'' Kim said in a statement.
``The educational opportunities it offers, both at the undergraduate and graduate levels, are exceptional, and the loyalty and passion of its alumni, faculty, staff and students are unrivaled. I could not be more excited about this opportunity to help build on Dartmouth's great traditions as well as its singular role in higher education."
Born in Seoul, Kim immigrated with his family to the United States when he was five years old. He attended Muscatine High School, where he was valedictorian, president of his class and quarterback of the football team. He then went to Brown University, where he graduated magna cum laude in 1981.
Dartmouth College enrolls some 4,100 undergraduates in the liberal arts and 1,700 graduate students. Inviting professors and students from around the world, Dartmouth is devoted to advancing the principles of liberal education within a diverse community of students, teachers and scholars. The university also has the nation's fourth-oldest medical school.
kswho@koreatimes.co.kr
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