Students from private schools in New York visited the Department of Global Korean Studies at Sahmyook University to learn the Korean language and culture.

Sahmyook University’s Department of Global Korean Studies (Department Director Bong-geun Kim) invites students from the Whispering Pines SDA School in New York to participate in the ‘Korean Culture Experience and Department Visit Program’ for three weeks from the 21st to April 9th. Eighteen Whispering Pines School students in 7th and 8th grade, parents, and teachers participated in this program.

Whispering Pines School is a private school in Long Island, New York, with students from Pre-K (Pre-K=Korea’s nursery school) to eighth grade (second year of junior high school). In particular, this school adopted Korean as a second foreign language subject along with Spanish, so all students learn Korean twice a week. The Korean language class, which started in 2012, is taught by Lee Yong-geun Lee (Sahmyook University Counseling Psychology graduate in 2012), the school’s first Korean language teacher.

Students visiting Sahmyook University take Korean language classes in the morning for three weeks. In the afternoon, they experience Korean culture with students from Global Korean Studies, such as K-pop dance, Samulnori, Korean cooking class, Korean crafts, and calligraphy. After the class, they will visit representative attractions in Seoul, such as Gyeongbokgung Palace, Cheonggyecheon Stream, the National Museum of Korea, Namdaemun Market, Myeong-dong, and Ttukseom Island.

Sung-woo Park, a student at the Department of Global Korean Studies (freshman, member of a dance group called ‘The Plague’), who taught K-pop dance to the students on the first day, said, “I was surprised that the students knew more about K-pop groups than I thought. I hope it will be an opportunity to understand the Korean language and culture better. I look forward to future activities.”

Yong-geun Lee, a Korean language teacher at Whispering Pines School, said, “In Korea, it is crucial that the students hear a lot of Korean wherever they go. I hope this will motivate them to study Korean, find more interest in Korea and continue to learn Korean even after returning to the United States.”

Sahmyook University’s Department of Global Korean Studies and Whispering Pines School plans to make this visiting program a biennial event. In addition, a memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed on the 21st to send students and graduates of the Department of Global Korean Studies to various schools in New York, including the Whispering Pines School, as internships for Korean language teachers.

Director Kim Bong-geun said, “Seeing the students’ response from the US, I can feel the global Hallyu craze and pride in Korean culture. I hope that through continuous exchanges with schools in New York, students of the Department of Global Korean Studies will greatly improve their major skills and, after graduation, serve as an opportunity to work as Korean language teachers and propagators of Korean culture in the US and abroad.”

Meanwhile, Whispering Pines School donated 10 million won to the development fund, requesting that it be used as scholarships for Sahmyook University’s Department of Global Korean Studies students.