Hoongil Choi
August 30, 2024 – August 30, 2025
Mr. Hoongil Choi has worked as a journalist for 17 years at Korean media companies, including EDAILY. From 2014 to the present, Mr. Choi has covered government ministries and reported on policies, and earned a master’s degree at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management. In addition to this, Hoongil has lived with his family for 9 years in Sejong City and learned various aspects of the administrative city.
“I’m going to study policies that help Korea in Washington, D.C., the future of Sejong City. In particular, 2025 is a really important time with three changes. First of all, depending on the results of the U.S. presidential election, there may be a big change in the U.S. and Korea. And it is a time when there is an economic change as interest rates are cut. Also, as the coin market grows, the asset market is expected to change.
I will study the changes and repercussions of various policies during this period of change. I would like to compare the policies of Korea and the United States, and find the policies of the United States that can be benchmarked in Korea. For example, I would like to examine what policies are being pursued in the United States to prevent unfair trade in the capital market, and compare the policies of Korea and the United States. I will study what policies are being pursued to protect investors and increase market trust.
I have two sons in the 2nd and 5th grades of elementary school. I go to school with my children in the United States every morning, and I go to church every Sunday and make this pledge. I pray that my children will live in a better future than they do now. I am going to do policy research to create a world where future generations can live well.”
Juri Kang
Feb 07, 2025 – Feb 06, 2026
Juri Kang has been a journalist at Seoul Shinmun Daily, the longest-running major newspaper in South Korea, founded in 1904, since 2006. She is an experienced journalist with extensive knowledge of Korean politics, society, government, business, economy, and online news. With 18 years of experience, she has covered a wide range of beats, from political parties in the National Assembly to government agencies and conglomerates. Immediately before joining GWIKS as a visiting scholar, She covered the martial law incidents and disasters in Korea while reporting on social ministries such as Ministry of the Interior & Safety, Ministry of Personnel Management, and National Fire Agency at the Government Complex Sejong.
She has received numerous awards, including Newspaper Planning Award of the Year (2023) from the Korea Advertising Association (KAA) for “Visa System Series That Hampers Industrial Sites” and Commendation Award from the commissioner of the National Fire Agency (2024).
She majored in journalism during her undergraduate studies and earned a master’s degree in Journalism & New media at the Yonsei University’s Graduate School of Journalism, Media & Mass Communication. She wrote her thesis on the topic of “Digital Innovation Resistance Factors of News Production Process of Newspaper Journalist”(2020).
She plans to study how digital journalism was implemented during the U.S. presidential election, a time when deep fakes and fake news were rampant. Amid the crisis in the newspaper industry, she will examine the efforts and challenges faced by major U.S. media journalists in digital innovation. She believes that this study will make a significant contribution to fulfilling news consumers’ right to know, ensuring the sustainability of the press, and advancing democracy in both South Korea and the U.S.
Kyoung Suk Kang
August 05, 2024 – June 04, 2025
Kyoung Suk Kang is an experienced journalist and columnist who has worked for 15 years at Dong-A ILBO, one of the most influential newspapers in South Korea since its founding in 1920. For nearly half of his career, he covered various administrative bodies, including the Police, Supreme Court, prosecutors’ offices, and the Seoul Metropolitan Government. In the second half of his career, he worked in the political desk, covering major political parties and reporting on two presidential elections, local elections, and parliamentary elections. In 2020, during the newspaper’s 100th anniversary, he was part of the Corporate Strategy Division, where he contributed to producing and preparing internal and external content related to the centennial celebration. Based on these contributions, he has received various
awards, demonstrating his capability as a journalist.
Leveraging his experience in the political desk, in 2021, he earned a master’s degree in policy studies from Seoul National University. His thesis, titled “Effects of Policy Pledge Fulfillment on National Assembly Elections: Focus on the 20th and 21st National Assembly,” explored the impact of fulfilling policy pledges on election outcomes. In November 2024, he plans to conduct research on how the fulfillment of campaign promises by U.S. presidential candidates influences their electoral success.
Seung Wook Kim
December 16, 2024 – December 15, 2025
Seung Wook Kim has been a reporter at Yonhap News, South Korea’s leading global news agency, since 2008. He has worked in the social, political, and economic departments for the past 16 years, striving to deliver fact-based articles to readers. He also produced exciting sports news while covering the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and the 2018 Pyeongchang Olympics on-site. Before coming to the GWIKS as a visiting scholar in December 2024, he led junior reporters as the head of the police team.
He plans to study AI utilization methods to reduce industrial accidents in Korea. While working as a reporter, he learned that countless accidents occur in industrial sites, causing precious lives to be lost. Most accidents can be prevented with just a little bit of caution. He believes that AI, which is a global topic, can greatly contribute to reducing industrial accidents. Based on the research results, he hopes to raise safety awareness in the Korean industrial sector and help save the precious lives of workers.
Ji Eun Kim
September 1, 2024 – August 31, 2025
the capital of the United States, is home to numerous hospitals and medical research institutions, making it a key location where significant medical policies are initiated. Since medical directly impacts the public’s health, she hopes that this research will yield meaningful results for the medical systems of both countries.
Kibong You
July 29, 2024 – July 28, 2025
Kibong-You is a South Korean government official working for the Ministry of Unification. Prior to coming to The George Washington University, he was the director of the message planning team at the Ministry of Unification. For 15 years, he was responsible for unification and North Korea policy, planning the minister’s speeches and political activities, analyzing North Korea’s political, military, social, and cultural sectors, and inter-Korean humanitarian issues and exchange cooperation.
Mr. You graduated from the Department of Political Science and Economics at Seoul National University and received a Master of Public Administration from Seoul National University. He is currently a PhD candidate at Seoul National University, specializing in policy studies.
Mr. You’s main areas of interest are Korean unification, North Korean issues, and inter-Korean relations. He wrote his master’s thesis on whether North Korea’s nuclear tests affect changes in South Korea’s North Korea policy. He is also interested in the impact of science and technology on policy. Therefore, he plans to conduct research on how to link science and technology, access to information, and North Korea policy.
