Fulbright in Korea's Future by Seoul Selection

The Fulbright Korea Alumni Association (FKAA) was formed in 1987. By that time, there were about 700 Korean alumni of the Fulbright program, and local alumni chapters had been set up in each of the provinces. In May 1987, chairmen of the eight provincial chapters met in Seoul to establish the FKAA.

1. Human beings are born with the inalienable rights to pursue happiness, free from fear, poverty, ignorance, and tyranny. 2. Conflicts among nations and countries, part of which are related to the Cold War legacy, must be resolved through mutual understanding and respect. 3. Countries must exert efforts to communicate and understand each other through educational and cultural exchanges.

We Fulbrighters believe that realizing these ideals will lead to the peaceful and sustainable coexistence of the peoples and countries in the world. We reaffirm our cherished hope, as expressed in the 2000 Seoul Statement, to extend the Fulbright program to the entire Korean Peninsula.... From the Seoul Statement 2010

US$ 35.00 25,000 won

http://www.fulbright.or.kr Dust jacket artwork by Youngsun Jin

Jai Ok Shim | James F. Larson Frederick F. Carriere | Horace H. Underwood

The Korea Fulbright Foundation – The Korea Fulbright Alumni Association set up a committee in 1989 to look into the formation of a foundation, and in January 1991 the Korea Fulbright Foundation was established.

... we Fulbrighters proclaim the following three points:

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

The Korean-American Educational Commission (KAEC) – The agreement to form a binational Fulbright Commission was signed in Seoul on April 28, 1950, and the United States Educational Commission in Korea (USEC/K) was established in 1960 and renamed as the KAEC in 1972.

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

This book chronicles the evolution of Fulbright Korea, from its humble beginnings in 1950, through its contributions to Korea in the aftermath of the Korean War and through rapid industrialization, to its development into one of the most active Fulbright Commissions worldwide today. In these pages you will find more than a mere history of Fulbright; this book is a direct reflection, in many ways, of the history of modern Korea. It offers a decade-by-decade account of changes in the political and social climate of Korea, documenting how Fulbright Korea has progressed and expanded in response to these changes, always striving toward the fulfillment of the mission of the Fulbright Program. From the Preface

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History J. William Fulbright

Korean-American Educational Commission 한미교육위원단

J. William Fulbright was born on April 9, 1905, in Sumner, Missouri. He grew up in Arkansas and played football at the University of Arkansas. Upon graduation, he won a Rhodes Scholarship in 1924 and studied in England from 1925 to 1928. Prior to his departure for England, he had traveled very little outside of Arkansas. As a Life magazine report put it, the best of Europe was opened up to the roaming hill boy within him, and he came away from this grand tour and his reading of modern history and political science at Oxford with a wide-eyed internationalist outlook. On returning from his Oxford years, he worked briefly in Washington as a Justice Department lawyer, but then returned to Arkansas. He loved teaching and the life of the university. When the board of trustees of the University of Arkansas made him its youngest president at the tender age of 34, he considered himself pretty well settled. Fulbright was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1942 and to the Senate in 1944. His political career of more than thirty years in the U.S. Congress was marked by his unequaled contribution to international affairs and his tenure as the longest-serving chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The Senator is particularly well remembered for his opposition to the Vietnam War. In the 1960s, he led Senate hearings into the conduct of that war. Today, of course, Senator Fulbright is also widely known as the founder of the intercultural and educational exchange program that bears his name. The Fulbright program is recognized around the world as the largest and most prestigious such program. On February 9, 1995, Senator J. William Fulbright died in Washington, DC, at the age of 89.

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

All Rights Reserved No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without the permission of the Korean-American Educational Commission. Korean-American Educational Commission Fulbright Building 168-15 Yomni-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul 121-874, Korea Tel: 02-3275-4000 Fax: 02-3275-4028 E-mail: admin@fulbright.or.kr Website: www.fulbright.or.kr

Published by Seoul Selection B1 Korean Publishers Association Bldg., 105-2 Sagan-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul 110-190, Korea Tel: 82-2-734-9567 Fax: 82-2-734-9562 E-mail: publisher@seoulselection.com Website: www.seoulselection.com ISBN: 978-89-91913-73-8 03330 Printed in the Republic of Korea

Fulbright in Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Future A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

Jai Ok Shim, James F. Larson, Frederick F. Carriere & Horace H. Underwood

Table of Contents

Forewords Acknowledgements and Editorial Notes

vii xviii

A Biographical Note on Senator J. William Fulbright

xix

Preface

xxi

Chapter 1

Changing Cannons to Cultural Currency

The Origins of Fulbright Korea Chapter 2

The 1960s

Revolution, Development, and Formation of the Fulbright Commission Chapter 3

The 1970s

Fulbright During Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Rapid Industrialization Chapter 4

The 1980s Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Domestic and International Political Transformation

Chapter 5

The 1990s

119

Mobile Communications, the Web, and Surging Interest in English Chapter 6

The Fulbright Building

147

A Resource for the 21st Century Chapter 7

The Hubert H. Humphrey Fellowship Program, EWC, and Other Grants

173

Chapter 8

History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

183

Chapter 9

Taking Stock

199

Fulbright Korea at 60 and Its Future Epilogue

Observing the 60th Anniversary of Fulbright Korea

219

Endnotes

227

Appendix I: “The Importance of Cultural Diplomacy”

248

Appendix II: The Fulbright Song

252

Appendix III: Fulbright Grant Awards by Academic Field from 1950 to 2010 Appendix IV: KAEC Budget and Awards by Grant Program from 1978 to 2010

viii

Foreword

send greetings to those celebrating the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea. I congratulate the Republic of Korea, the members of the Korean-American Educational Commission, and the many Fulbright alumni whose commitment has fostered cooperation between our two countries. Senator J. William Fulbright recognized that, after World War II, increased understanding among peoples through educational exchanges would serve as a powerful tool for promoting peace and friendship among nations. His vision became the Fulbright Program, which has lived up to this ambitious aspiration to forge strong bonds between Americans and men and women in communities around the world. Korea signed a bi-national agreement to commence Fulbright exchanges with the United States on April 28, 1950. Weeks later, North Korea launched a surprise attack on the South, plunging the nations into war. Following the end of the Korean War, few would have predicted South Korea’s democratic transformation and remarkable economic rise. The success of the Republic of Korea is a testament to both the great resolve of the Korean people and the strength of the United States-Korean alliance. The Fulbright Program remains a key supporting element of the long-lasting friendship between the United States and Korea and continues to expand our nations’ understanding of each other. As we celebrate 60 years of success, we look forward to the continued vitality of the Fulbright Program around the world. Our need to vigorously pursue Senator Fulbright’s vision has not diminished. Rather, its importance has increased; today’s global challenges are more complex, requiring continued collaboration and understanding. In celebrating the Fulbright Program, we reaffirm its original purpose of helping build a world more secure, prosperous, and free for our children to inherit. I wish you all the best for a joyous celebration.

Barack Obama President of the United States

vii

xiii

Foreword

extend my heartfelt congratulations on the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea. Over the past 60 years, the Republic of Korea has pulled itself up from postwar ruin to achieve both remarkable economic growth and democratization. All these accomplishments have been possible thanks to the high educational zeal of the Korean people and their strong will to learn even under the most difficult circumstances. This is why many Koreans place Abraham Lincoln on the top of the list of the most revered great historic figures from other countries. The Fulbright Program has been a gracious friend of Koreans who has helped their will to learn come to fruition. As it has always been there with Koreans during the entire years of modernization, it has become an integral part of modern Korean history. I would like to pay my profound respect to the noble inspiration of Senator James William Fulbright who established this wonderful international exchange program. There are nearly 2,000 talented Koreans who have benefited from the Fulbright Program, and they are now playing an important part as core leaders in Korean society. I have had chances to work with some of the Fulbright alumni who have outstanding expertise and a great sense of responsibility. There is a well-known proverb, â&#x20AC;&#x153;A friend in need is a friend indeed.â&#x20AC;? Americans have always been our true friends. They stretched out warm helping hands to us when we were in direst need. The Fulbright Program, which was initiated in the throes of the Korean War, has been one such helping hand. The Fulbright Program has made great contributions to enhancing friendship, cooperation, and mutual understanding between America and Korea. Some 1,800 Americans, who have worked on research and education in Korea through the Program, have been a strong bridge for Korea-U.S. friendship and cooperation. Today, the South Korean Government is funding approximately 40 percent of the annual budget of the Fulbright Program in Korea. In other words, Korea and America are joining their hands to create a brighter future together. In the years to come, the cooperative relationship between Seoul and Washington will go beyond our national boundaries to develop to the global scale.

Acknowledgements & Editorial Notes

he Korean-American Educational Commission would like to gratefully acknowledge the assistance of several organizations and many individuals in producing this historical account. These include all of the individual alumni, both Korean and American, who took the time to send us their reminiscences and comments on the Fulbright Program, only a few of which have been used in this publication. The Korea Fulbright Alumni Association helped solicit these from Korean alumni and, along with the Korea Fulbright Foundation, supported the project from start to finish. We also want to thank Vera Ekechukwu, Fulbright Papers Research Assistant, Special Collections at the University of Arkansas Libraries. With her assistance, we received material from the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs archives to fill in the gaps in our own files, especially for the early years of the Fulbright Program in Korea. Editorially speaking, this book attempts to use the official Korean government system for Romanization of Korean words throughout, except in the case of proper names where the individual prefers otherwise or where longstanding convention dictates another usage. Korean names are spelled with the family name first, followed by the given name(s). No hyphens are used, except in the case of public figures who prefer that usage. Information on how to access the e-book edition of this volume, as well as future access to the scanned source materials, will be made available on Fulbrightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s main web site, www.fulbright.or.kr, as well as on its alumni site, http://alumni.fulbright. or.kr.

xviii

A Biographical Note on Senator J. William Fulbright

William Fulbright was born on April 9, 1905, in Sumner, Missouri. The headline of a 1966 Life magazine article on Senator Fulbright noted that he was in the center of arguments about U.S. foreign policy and that he “stirred up stands.” It described him as an “aloof, thorny, unpredictable intellectual shaped by Oxford and the Ozarks.” 1 Senator Fulbright grew up in Arkansas. He played football at the University of Arkansas and, upon graduation, won a Rhodes Scholarship in 1924 and studied in England from 1925 to 1928. Prior to his departure for England, he had traveled very little outside of Arkansas. In fact, Fulbright himself described his pre-Oxford days as follows: “Remember, I’d never been anywhere to speak of. I’d never been to New York or San Francisco or Washington or any of those places. And here I’m picked up out of a little village at an early age...” As the Life report put it, the best of Europe was opened up to the roaming hill boy within him, and he came away from this grand tour and his reading of modern history and political science at Oxford with a wide-eyed internationalist outlook.2 On returning from his Oxford years, he worked briefly in Washington as a Justice Department lawyer, but then returned to Arkansas. He loved teaching and the life of the university. When the board of trustees of the University of Arkansas made him its youngest president at the tender age of 34, he considered himself pretty well settled. The Senator is particularly well known for his opposition to the Vietnam War. In the 1960s, he led Senate hearings into the conduct of that war. In 1963, Walter Lippman wrote of Fulbright, “The role he plays in Washington is an indispensable role. There is no one else who is so powerful and also so wise, and if there were any question of removing him from public life, it would be a national calamity.”3 Fulbright had deep doubts about the Vietnam War, which also affected his view of possible government service. In late 1960, when there was talk that Fulbright might be picked for Secretary of State in Kennedy’s Cabinet, the possibility thoroughly distressed him. “It’s not my dish of tea,” he said at the time. “I’d hate

the protocol, and I’d be damned uncomfortable getting up and giving

xix

speeches with which I didn’t agree. The poor fella in that job never has time to think for himself.” The Life magazine report noted that Fulbright “…was an anomaly, especially in gregarious Southern politics, a man of intellect, almost a seminarian, pursuing an aloof career as an often dissident public counselor….” 4 Fulbright was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1942 and to the Senate in 1944. His political career of more than thirty years in the U.S. Congress was marked by his unequaled contribution to international affairs and his tenure as the longest-serving chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.5 Senator Fulbright was married to Elizabeth Williams Fulbright for more than fifty years, from 1932 until her death in 1985. They had two daughters, Roberta Fulbright Foote and Elizabeth Fulbright Winnacker. Senator Fulbright married Harriet Mayor in 1990. On February 9, 1995, Senator J. William Fulbright died in Washington, DC, at the age of 89.6

Preface The Fulbright Commission in Korea takes great pride in celebrating its sixtieth anniversary in 2010. In connection with this anniversary, the commission’s executive director, Shim Jai Ok, proposed writing a history of the Fulbright Program in Korea. Having served the commission in different capacities for over thirty-three years, she had personally witnessed many of the vast changes in Fulbright Korea’s programs. To her, it seemed only fitting that we finally compile a history of this program that has touched the lives of so many. In 2006, Shim suggested such a project to the KAEC staff and members of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association. The idea was met with agreement that it would be both significant and appropriate, considering the importance of the occasion. But where does one begin to research the history of a program such as Fulbright in Korea, and who writes it? In our case, we turned for support to the staff members of KAEC, who have contributed significantly to the process of researching the commission’s long history. We also received significant support, including financial assistance, from the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association and the Korea Fulbright Foundation. The organization and writing of the text fell largely on current and former administrators from the Fulbright Commission.1 Shim’s strong commitment to the book was the major factor in its successful completion. Another was the collaborative effort and dedication of two former executive directors of the Korean-American Educational Commission—Frederick F. Carriere and Horace H. Underwood—as well as James F. Larson, a former grantee who has served as the commission’s deputy director since 2005. For raw data on which to base the history and cross-check their recollections, the authors turned first to the minutes of Fulbright Commission meetings, annual reports, and other documents that were on file in storage rooms in the Fulbright Building in Mapo. These documents proved very useful for reconstructing events from the 1970s onward. However, the commission had no records on file from the 1950s and most of the 1960s. After the initial drafting of chapters had begun, the authors, in a major stroke of good fortune, discovered that the J. William Fulbright Archive at the University of Arkansas Libraries housed archives from the State Department’s Bureau of Cultural Affairs. Consequently, we were able to quickly order more than 500 photocopied pages of documents about Fulbright Korea’s early years that filled in most of the gaps.

xxi

This book is the first ever history of the Fulbright Program in Korea and one of the first publications of its kind by any Fulbright Commission. Although not the only sort of history that may be written about this program, it fills an important niche. It is our hope that this book will serve as an important historical record that may be updated and maintained well into the future to reflect the endeavors of Fulbright Korea. Not only this book but also the scanned documents and records upon which much of the narrative is based should be a valuable resource for future historians. It is written from the perspective of a group of administrators who altogether have worked with the program for over sixty years, although those years are concentrated in the past three decades. It chronicles the evolution of Fulbright Korea from its humble beginnings in 1950 through its contributions to Korea in the aftermath of the Korean War and through rapid industrialization, and on to its development into one of the most active Fulbright Commissions worldwide today. In these pages, you will find more than a mere history of Fulbright; this book is a direct reflection, in many ways, of the history of modern Korea. It offers a decade-by-decade account of changes in the political and social climate of Korea, documenting how Fulbright Korea has progressed and expanded in response to these changes, always striving toward the fulfillment of the mission of the Fulbright Program. The purpose of this book goes beyond providing a look at the past. We also offer a glimpse into the future and the tremendous things that can be accomplished through the Fulbright spirit. Although much has been accomplished over Fulbright Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s sixtyyear history, one important task remains yet unfinished. It is our hope that the Fulbright Program will be expanded to include educational exchanges with North Korea so that all Koreans may know the benefits of Fulbright and peace can be a gift shared across the entire Korean Peninsula. We truly believe that international education and cultural exchange will be vital factors in the reunification of Korea. Just as Senator Fulbright believed that international education could transcend politics and bring to light our shared humanity, so we believe it will open the hearts and minds of all Americans and Koreans, giving us the chance to build peace and harmony together. We know such a vision cannot be realized without overcoming many obstacles; however, in accordance with Fulbrightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision for international understanding, we hope we can pursue a peaceful end to this conflict, which has gone on far too long. Although it is difficult to envision when this will come to pass, let us not stand by and allow it to take another sixty years.

xxii

Fulbright in Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Future A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

xxiii

Fulbright in Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

xxiv

Chapter 1

Changing Cannons to Cultural Currency The Origins of Fulbright Korea

Making the Korea Connection

The day Senator J. William Fulbright and his wife Harriet Mayor Fulbright had been looking forward to all week–Saturday, September 22, 1990—dawned crisp and clear under a bright blue sky. It was one of those absolutely pristine fall days in Korea traditionally described as cheongo mabi (“the sky is high and the horses are fat”). The conditions were ideal for the promised daylong excursion to Gangwha Island. In those days, Gangwha still seemed like a very distant and remote place despite its geographic proximity to Seoul. With farming villages, an outdoor periodic market, and an ancient Buddhist temple nestled in an idyllic mountain setting, it was a virtual microcosm of a quintessentially rural Korea. Even if not quite in reality, then at least in imagination, it evoked images of an earlier time in Korea when Western forms of modernity were atypical. In this sense, Gangwha Island afforded a much welcomed contrast with Seoul. This excursion took place during a weeklong stay in South Korea by Senator Fulbright, his first and only visit to the Korean Peninsula. The occasion for the visit was an invitation extended to him by the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association to be the guest of honor for the official commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the establishment in Korea of the international exchange program that bears his name. Due to his advanced age and declining health, right up until the last minute it was thought to be unlikely that Senator Fulbright would actually be able to come to Korea. In the end, he was able to come, and

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History his presence made the 40th anniversary commemoration a landmark event and the most memorable moment in the history of the Korea Fulbright Program up until that time. Among all the achievements of a distinguished career in public life extending over more than half a century, the international exchange program Senator Fulbright established in 1946 came to be recognized as the centerpiece of his legacy virtually from its inception. Over the years, he increasingly came to embody the ethos of the exchange program in his own life. This was evident from the energy Senator Fulbright devoted to learning everything he could about Korea during his brief visit. Even though he was already over eighty-five years old, throughout his stay Senator Fulbright seemed more like an attentive—even eager—student than an octogenarian. He demonstrated an enthusiastic interest in everything going on around him as well as a seemingly insatiable curiosity that generated a constant stream of pertinent questions. He seemed especially enlivened by the excursion to Ganghwa Island, perhaps because it opened for him—albeit only briefly— a window onto a distinctive way of life based on traditions so deeply rooted in the past as to seem in some ways to be timeless. The daylong excursion also was an opportunity for Senator Fulbright and his wife Harriet to compare notes with their guide for the day1 and to generally assess their visit up to that point. There already was a great deal to mull over since the major high points of the visit had occurred earlier in the week. Senator Fulbright began to share his thoughts on these events as soon as the excursion got underway, and it soon became obvious that there would be ample time for reflection, since the traffic conditions on the way out of Seoul were, as usual, a veritable nightmare. One thing that really caught Senator Fulbright’s attention and was especially fascinating to him, he said, was how government and academia seemed to be unusually well interconnected through the Fulbright Program in Korea. This was an astute observation, of course, as Fulbright scholars in Korea have typically been represented prominently both in government and in academia. In this sense, the parallel with traditional Korea’s yangban (“scholar official”) class, which explicitly linked scholarly achievement with public service, is striking. Quite often, even those cabinet ministers and other high-ranking government officials who had not received a Fulbright award themselves were still connected personally to the program by having once served on the Fulbright Commission—essentially in the capacity of board members—during a previous academic career. This combination of academic and government service of course resonated meaningfully with Senator Fulbright, as it paralleled his personal history. It also affirmed his conviction that developing leadership potential should be a primary objective of the Fulbright Program.

Changing Cannons to Cultural Currency The Origins of Fulbright Korea

Senator Fulbright’s weeklong visit began with a meeting with President Roh Tae Woo at the Blue House.

The senator and his wife had arrived in Seoul earlier in the week, on Tuesday, September 18. After a day of rest and recuperation, the visit got underway officially on the morning of Thursday, September 20, with a courtesy call on President Roh Tae Woo in his office at the Cheong Wa Dae (The Blue House), the official presidential residence. President Roh spoke at length and with conviction about the many important contributions made to the national development of Korea by Fulbright scholars, and he thanked Senator Fulbright for establishing the program that made it possible for them to study in the U.S. In his disarmingly gracious way, Senator Fulbright—with perhaps just a bit of hyperbole—replied, “I would consider that my life has been worthwhile if the program has made a contribution to the development of your great country.” 2 Reflecting on this visit, Senator Fulbright said he became increasingly intrigued by President Roh during the informal discussion that followed the initial polite exchanges. One reason for this interest was that Senator Fulbright was aware of the public commitment to implement democratic reforms President Roh had made just three years earlier. It was a commitment he had kept, marking a sharp break with past military

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History governments. In fact, he had launched his political career illegitimately by lending critical support to a military coup led by his predecessor, although he later came to office through a democratic election. This seemed to be one of many revelatory moments for Senator Fulbright during his visit to Korea, as he had long argued in his foreign policy discourses for the need to allow the space for just this kind of internal reform of undemocratic regimes to take place. In fact, the Korea experienced by Senator Fulbright and his wife in 1990 was exemplary in numerous other ways as well. By then, it already was an advanced and rapidly developing industrial economy that was beginning to emerge from the shadows of the Cold War.3 The 1980s had been a decade of spectacular development for South Korea’s export-led economy, setting the stage for the country’s further progress in later years. The spectacularly successful Seoul Olympics in 1988 had helped to lower many ideological barriers; China, Vietnam, the Eastern European countries of the Soviet Bloc, and even the Soviet Union itself had all participated in the Games. If one considers that just four decades earlier the Korean Peninsula had been torn apart and largely devastated by war, the sheer rapidity with which this economic and political transformation had occurred in South Korea was unprecedented anywhere else in the world. As the subsequent chapters of this book will show, the Fulbright Program played an important role in South Korea’s spectacular rise from the ashes of the Korean War to become the great success story it is today. At this point, with the wrong kind of assist from Seoul’s notoriously snarled traffic, the Fulbrights and their guide were just passing Nanjido, an island located in a branch of the Han River, which at the time was the municipal garbage dump for the City of Seoul. It was said to be the largest such facility in the world, allegedly thirty-four times larger than the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt–a frequently noted although rather tasteless comparison.4 Noticing only the sides of this huge mound of garbage, which were planted deceptively with grass, Senator Fulbright was suddenly moved to comment effusively about the peerless beauty of the Korean countryside “with the low range of mountains you can see in the foreground set off against the backdrop of high mountains in the distance.” This awkward moment was allowed to pass unnoted by the guide. In retrospect, however, the spontaneous comment has turned out to be prophetic, like so much else Senator Fulbright said during his lifetime. Today, following its closure as a garbage dump in 1993, Nanjido is well on its way to a final transmogrification into a world-class ecology park by 2020. Continuing with a review of the events of the past week, Senator Fulbright recalled how impressed he had been by the 40th anniversary commemoration. This gala dinner was held in the Grand Ballroom of the Intercontinental Hotel on the evening of Thursday, September 20. With Prime Minister Kang Young-Hoon presiding, there were

Changing Cannons to Cultural Currency The Origins of Fulbright Korea

around seven hundred guests in attendance, including many high-level government officials, members of the foreign diplomatic corps, prominent individuals from all walks of life, and hundreds of Korean alumni of the Fulbright Program. It constituted recognition on an unprecedented scale of the important role the Fulbright Program has played in higher education in South Korea. The event also broke ground as the first American-style fundraising dinner ever held in Seoul, even if it did not immediately establish a new trend in fundraising for the nonprofit or NGO sector in Korea. The official commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea came to a perfect ending the following day—Friday, September 21—with a gala reception for all the Korean alumni of the program that was hosted by Ambassador Donald P. Gregg and his wife Margaret (“Meg”) Curry Gregg in the garden of the U.S. ambassador’s official residence. With nearly four hundred alumni of the Fulbright Program in attendance, the reception was an unambiguous expression of their deep respect and affection for Senator Fulbright as well as a confirmation of the enormous impact the program he established has had on the lives of so many educators, government officials, and professionals from other sectors in contemporary South Korea. Harriet Mayor Fulbright is better qualified than most Americans to assess the impact of the program from a historical perspective. For unlike her husband, she was not making her first visit to Korea. She had lived in the country over thirty years earlier for about two years, from 1958 to 1960, which coincided with one of the most critical junctures in contemporary Korean history. At that time, Harriet Fulbright, who was then teaching English at Ewha Womans University, had personally witnessed the April 19 Revolution that launched South Korea on the long road from autocratic to democratic government.5 On the same day as the U.S. ambassador’s reception, Dr. Yoon Hoo-Jung, the president of Ewha Womans University, hosted a luncheon in honor of Senator and Mrs. Fulbright, an event that evoked many vivid memories of her earlier stay in Korea. This elegant luncheon was held at Aryeong Dang, a Korean-style banquet facility on the Ewha campus, with the university’s Fulbright alumnae, other faculty members, and several students in attendance. Recalling her previous stay in Korea, Harriet Fulbright marveled at how dramatically the country had been transformed. She jokingly relayed a story about how the first thing her husband said upon their arrival in Seoul was, “Well, show me around...and I had to tell him I couldn’t possibly show him anything because Seoul now looks like New York City.” In a way, it was precisely for this reason that they were on their way to Ganghwa Island. Apart from the physical transformation of the country, however, the most vivid memories Harriet Fulbright retained from her previous stay were all about students. She expressed her deep conviction that students were the key to South Korea’s dramatic

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

Senator Fulbright and his wife Harriet Fulbright at the Korean-American Educational Commission during their 1990 visit.

transformation from a poor authoritarian to a rich democratic society in little more than a quarter of a century. Moreover, as she readily acknowledged, the students she taught at Ewha also had changed her: I was in Korea for two years and teaching, and it was interesting because I walked into class on that first day and all the students looked alike to me. But on the last day they didn’t look alike at all. They had extraordinary, different personalities and purposes in life, and one of them even reminded me of my younger sister. So what one finds out is how alike we are as human beings, how we have the same desires, how we long to be seen for who we are, not defined by our country, our race, or our religion.6 The stock of reflections on the past week were exhausted just as the Fulbrights crossed the bridge and arrived on Ganghwa Island. The timing was perfect in another sense as well because the first scene they came upon was a bustling farmer’s market. Coincidentally, they had chosen exactly the right day in the traditional marketing cycle to observe a periodic market in progress. As iron is drawn to a magnet, so the scene immediately captured Senator Fulbright’s attention. Ginkgo nuts on skewers, bundles of flattened dried squid, and roasted silk worms—delicacies never found in American supermarkets, for sure–as well as agricultural tools and implements, pots and pans, woven

Changing Cannons to Cultural Currency The Origins of Fulbright Korea

mats, and even more exotic items all drew the Senator’s animated attention. As he moved through the market, however, the bantering interaction between the buyers and sellers soon came to interest him even more than the exotic merchandise. Their intense bargaining at first seemed like cutthroat competition, but in the end resolved into something more resembling a game. The essentially cooperative dimension of the transactions finally became fully apparent when sellers routinely gave buyers an extra measure while wrapping their goods. Even though it is a practice virtually mandated by custom, the formalized magnanimity it expresses exemplifies how open-ended, reciprocal exchanges can be deployed socially to promote cooperation and build mutually beneficial relationships. As he explained in The Price of Empire, which was published just a few months before his visit to Korea, Senator Fulbright found the view that human beings “in the original state of nature... had to be cooperative to survive” fully persuasive.7 He also expressed his conviction that this fundamental human proclivity toward cooperation was the foundation for the ethos underlying the educational exchange program he had established. Further, he believed this human propensity toward cooperation could and should be enhanced through practice, in effect, to promote the further humanization of mankind. It seems what accounted for Senator Fulbright’s fascination with the farmer’s market, then, was the concrete way it validated his deepest convictions about the human potential for cooperation. Although the same ethos is at the root of all trust-based transactions, including those conducted in modern supermarkets and department stores, the haggling and other forms of negotiating behavior seen in a traditional farmer’s market reveal its workings in a more immediate and vivid way. Senator Fulbright also wrote about the other dimension of human nature, however, which can be described succinctly as a tragic tendency to engage in organized slaughter of one’s own kind. This dimension came to the fore as well during the tour since the next stop was Gwangseongbo Citadel. A series of defensive walls, gun emplacements, and command posts, the citadel was the site of the sinmiyangyo, known in English as the Korean Expedition of 1871, which was the first American military action undertaken in Korea. Never widely known and now long forgotten by Americans, this “First American Korean War” serves for Koreans as a classic example of abortive “gunboat diplomacy,” since the isolationist traditional Korean government of the day—through its sheer determination—managed against enormous odds to thwart the imperialist assertiveness of the invading Americans, albeit at the cost of 243 Korean (and three American) lives. In the end, though, it was a Pyrrhic victory since Korea was compelled to end its isolationist policy only five years later—under even less favorable circumstances—due to a successful exercise in gunboat diplomacy by Japan. In retrospect, it became U.S. foreign policy from

Fulbright in Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

Chapter 3

The 1970s

Fulbright During Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Rapid Industrialization

During the 1970s, the Fulbright Program in Korea continued to operate in a context of occasional political turmoil. Near the beginning of the decade, President Park Chung Hee imposed the Yushin (â&#x20AC;&#x153;revitalizing reformsâ&#x20AC;?) system of government in order to prolong his authoritarian rule. While he managed to stay in power under that system of government for most of the decade, in October 1979 he was assassinated by the chief of his own intelligence service. The Korean economy continued its development in the 1970s, but at a more rapid pace than before. Between 1972 and 1978, the economy grew at a rate of more than 10 percent, and per capita GNP surpassed $1,000 for the first time. This growth was achieved largely through long-term plans that emphasized development of the heavy and chemical industries (HCI), including steel, machinery, shipbuilding, petrochemicals, and automobiles.1 Notably, although electronics are included in the HCI industry group and there were efforts to develop the semiconductor industry in the 1970s, the electronics sector overall was rather stagnant during the decade. That would change dramatically in the 1980s.

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

A Brief Description of Life in Seoul Edward Schultz As a Ph.D. candidate, I moved with my wife into Fulbright House in the fall of 1973, with a grant to carry out dissertation research on Goryeo history at Sogang University. Little did I realize that during that one year, I would not only renew old acquaintances with former fellow Peace Corps volunteers and East-West Center grantees, but meet and work with others as well, all of whom have remained close friends to this day. In part because of Fulbright support, I have had the privilege of growing up with a whole generation of scholars of Korea, both Korean and American. To this day, we continue to meet, study, and learn together. Living in Korea in the early 1970s posed all sorts of challenges, from watching soldiers march out to check student unrest, to racing home before the midnight curfew, to traversing town and country on crowded buses. Despite the travails, even a casual observer could not but be impressed by the Korean spirit and the Korean commitment to build their country. The “Miracle on the Han” that we enjoy today was predictable and is a testament to the tenacity, the diligence, and the sheer will of the people of Korea.2 Not only economically but socially as well, the pace of change quickened in Korea during the 1970s, and the Fulbright Program in Korea adapted to the new environment. As noted in the commission’s program plan for 1972, in its social science project the commission continued to seek ways to encourage and support American and Korean scholars who wished to engage in teaching, study, and research in the social sciences, with particular focus on the process of national development. “Korea is an ideal place for such an endeavor, given the rapid and dramatic change in Korean society in recent years,” the annual report stated.3 The 1970s ushered in several changes for the Fulbright Program in Korea and set some precedents that have continued as part of the program to this day. The decade began

The 1970s

Fulbright During Korea’s Rapid Industrialization under the leadership of Edward Wright, who served until 1977, becoming one of the two longest-serving executive directors in the history of the program. Student counseling formally began during this decade, as did the Fulbright Forum, a public lecture series that provided an opportunity for American Fulbright Scholars to share their research with other Fulbrighters and the Seoul academic community more widely. Also, it was in this decade that the commission was enlarged and its name changed to the KoreanAmerican Educational Commission to more accurately reflect the binational character of the Fulbright Program in Korea.

Leadership Changes in the 1970s

At the board meeting of November 14, 1977, the commission decided to endorse the executive director’s hiring of Shim Jai Ok as administrative officer. Until then, Shim had worked as budget and fiscal officer/program officer for the Peace Corps. On an initial interim basis, her work was to be divided between East-West Center liaison work, budget planning and reporting, and general administrative work. These duties would be reconsidered at such time as funding or staff adjustments might allow.4 At the end of that same year, KAEC executive director Edward Wright notified chairman of the board James Hoyt of his intention to resign, effective either April 1, 1978, or September 30, 1978, in order to pursue a research project in Japan. In response, a special commission meeting was called for January 20, 1978, to discuss the letter of resignation. The commission formally approved acceptance of Wright’s resignation as of April 15, 1978. An ad hoc personnel committee was formed to a) articulate the qualifications for the executive director position and b) receive applications from candidates, which would then be submitted to the commission as a whole.5 The search for a new executive director was successfully concluded during the summer of 1978. At the commission meeting of September 20, 1978, Hoyt extended a welcome to the new executive director, Mark Peterson, who was asked if he had a statement. Peterson replied that he welcomed the opportunity to serve and was looking forward to working with the commission. At a November 1978 workshop held at Soraksan, an ad hoc committee on the commission’s bylaws recommended several changes, including changing references to the Department of State to the International Communication Agency wherever applicable. Also, the following sentences were added: “The executive director shall prepare an administrative budget to be approved by the commission. Non-budgeted expenditures must receive prior approval of the Treasurer.”6

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

Program Priorities

The 1970s began with a continuation of the emphasis on national development that had characterized the program during the previous decade. The program proposal for the year 1971 was discussed at the board meeting of February 18, 1970, and passed unanimously. It included a section on national development that, as noted by chairman of the board Daniel Moore, suited the aspirations of the Korean people and government as well as the country plan of the U.S. embassy.7 In its annual workshop and meeting at Soraksan in October 1970, the board established the following program priorities: 1. Social Sciences–particularly as they relate to various developmental programs, 2. Area Studies, including both Korean Studies and American Studies,

3. Science Education, with every effort being made to provide grants in the basic and applied sciences, and to find related sources of funding for other candidates in technical fields, based on MOE emphases. (This latter effort was particularly geared toward training persons in modern electronic data processing and similar fields.)

4. Language Skills, Humanities and Fine Arts. (It was felt that the commission had played an integral role in the 1960s in encouraging the adoption of modern methods of English language teaching and that this focus could now be relegated to last priority position, along with humanities and the fine arts.)8 As the decade unfolded, the Fulbright Commission adjusted its program goals from its focus on development to a new attention to rapid industrialization. At the workshop and meeting at Soraksan on October 25-26, 1974, a committee on project priorities suggested that the Fulbright Program in Korea be devoted to “the study of man in a rapidly industrializing society” and that emphasis be given to non-developmental fields that were not receiving substantial support from government and international agencies. The committee recommended that social sciences remain the first priority, with humanities given virtually equal attention as second priority. Business administration would be dropped from the program. Art would be made the third priority project, as distinct from the humanities. Language skills would be eliminated, with linguistics being retained as a field of study under social sciences. The report was unanimously accepted.9 At the board meeting of November 13, 1975, the following draft statement was introduced: “The Korean Commission in Program Year ’76 established a program theme related to the study and problems of man in a rapidly industrializing society. In the selection of grantees, therefore, preference will be given to applicants whose proposed

The 1970s

Fulbright During Korea’s Rapid Industrialization fields of study in all appropriate disciplines are oriented in direct and indirect ways to the investigation of problems unique to man in a rapidly industrializing society.” The statement was adopted for inclusion in in-country scholarship announcements, and the commission recommended it be sent to CIES for inclusion in any information sent to prospective American candidates for KAEC programs.10 At the board meeting of March 10, 1976, there was consideration of a State Department suggestion that the commission consider broadening its perspective from grants to persons only in higher education to inclusion of grants in the professions. Explaining the general background of the State Department suggestion, Edward Wright pointed out that evidently any professional field would be acceptable provided that it was not technically within the realm of academe. The discussion then proceeded to address the administrative aspects of such a grant. The chairman polled the members on their opinion on giving a grant opportunity to professionals in addition to academics. The feeling was positive, and the suggestion would be given serious consideration. A decision was reached that the chairman and one other commission member would study the question and make a report at the next commission meeting.11 At the workshop and meeting of October 15-17, 1976, the board, after considerable discussion, authorized the executive director to seek approval from both BFS and the Department of State to amend the Program Year 1977 program proposal to include grants for professionals. A decision was finally made to try to offer two grants for professional development in PY77. There was also thorough discussion of the thematic approach to the program. Wright explained that the commission had, in reality, established a dual approach in its programming, namely a thematic approach and program priorities. He offered the opinion that the latter had been more successfully implemented than the former. Clyde G. Hess suggested the idea of maintaining the theme while also recognizing a different emphasis of its application in various award categories. That is, it would be more applied in the senior/professional grant selection and less adhered to in the student selection. A general agreement was reached to continue with the program theme of “the place of man in a rapidly industrializing society” in a flexibly applied manner, as suggested by Hess. On October 16, 1976, the workshop discussion opened with the topic of the place of the natural sciences in the general program. Hess stated that due to the availability of funds from the Korean government and other sources for programs in the natural sciences, he would not object to the elimination of the field from the program altogether. A final decision was reached to exclude the natural sciences, including mathematics, from the program henceforth. In addition, the program priorities were reordered in the following manner: 1) Social Sciences, 2) Humanities, and 3) Arts.12

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Chapter 8

History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association The establishment of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association (KFAA) in 1987, over a year before the Seoul Olympics, was a major milestone for the Fulbright Program in Korea. As already described, the Korean government began to play a more active role in the Fulbright Program from 1980, when it increased its financial support to the program tenfold. However, the formation of the KFAA would add a broad new dimension to Fulbright Korea that we will describe in this chapter. It set off a sequence of events that would culminate in the establishment of the Korea Fulbright Foundation, which was officially announced during Senator Fulbrightâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s visit to Seoul in 1990. This chapter looks at how the process of creating an alumni association, and later a foundation, took place. It provides a brief history of the KFAA and explores some of its significant accomplishments to date. Many of the major accomplishments, such as the associationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s active involvement in planning and hosting major commemorative events, as well as the purchase of the Fulbright Building, are dealt with more extensively in other chapters of this book.

The Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

As described in earlier chapters, the genesis of the Fulbright Program in Korea can be traced to the binational agreement signed on April 28, 1950, but the disastrous Korean War nearly brought its implementation to a halt. It was not until the United States

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A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History Educational Commission in Korea (USEC/K) was formed that scores of Korean students selected as grantees began to depart annually for study in the United States, with the first group departing in 1961. The Fulbright grantees represented the cream of the crop in those days, and even today the Fulbright scholarship is regarded as one of the highest academic honors a Korean aspirant can receive. Those early grantees studied at prestigious universities in the United States and returned to Korea upon completion of their studies to inhabit positions of leadership in academia, politics, officialdom, business, culture, science, and technology. Their combined expertise contributed powerfully to the drive for national development. Despite the Fulbright Programâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s tangible contribution to modernization, it took quite some time to found the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association (KFAA). One reason for the belated advent of the KFAA might be the lack of a feeling of solidarity like that felt by graduates of the same university. Most universities provide their students with opportunities to share a common experience of studying and to enjoy a good degree of solidarity. That makes it easier to bring graduates together into a fraternal society. Such an opportunity was not readily available to Fulbrighters. Once a year, recipients of Fulbright scholarships were brought together for an orientation program prior to departure for the United States, after which they were dispersed to various universities all over that country. Upon returning to Korea after their U.S. experience, they had too few meetings at which they could share common experiences and recollections. Consequently, they lacked a common frame of reference to bind them into a fraternity.

Gathering Support for the Idea

By the late 1980s, there were about 700 Korean alumni of the Fulbright Program. In those days, Fulbright executive director Frederick Carriere felt strongly that a Korean Fulbright alumni association should be formed, and so he and Shim Jai Ok approached leaders of the Fulbright alumni in all major regions of the country and asked them to form such an association. They traveled throughout South Korea to meet with alumni of the Fulbright Program in order to persuade them of the need for some sort of formal alumni association. They visited each of the major regional cities several times, holding conferences and offering support. Formation of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association followed the establishment of local chapters in each province. Of course, because it had so many more alumni, the Seoul metropolitan region formed the largest organization, initially designating six charter trustees and 24 regular members. The formation of all of these regional alumni associations, including that of Seoul, was what propelled formation of a national Fulbright Korea alumni organization.

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History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

Foundation of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

On May 22, 1987, the chairmen of the regional alumni associations convened in Seoul for a breakfast meeting at the Seoul Plaza Hotel, and the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association was formed. Structurally, the organization was established with eight regional independent chapters. Each of the regional chairmen would formally serve as a vicechairman under the single person selected to be chairman of the new national association. Professor Kim Doo Hyun of the Korean Legal Institute, who was president of the Seoul Metropolitan Area chapter, was selected as the first president of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association. His vacant presidential seat in the Seoul chapter was filled by Han Sang Joon, who had been serving as vice-president. Kim’s remarks, published on the occasion of the first anniversary of the formation of the association, took note of the turbulent political context in Korea: The outset of the KFAA, as you are well aware, was coincidental to waves of political movements crying out for democracy. The campus was so much disturbed that one year passed without a tangible outcome we could show off. With one year yet to serve as the president, I am under pressure to get something done. It was in this mental framework that we came to celebrate the first anniversary of KFAA. This is the time to renew our commitment to educational programs, the achievement of which depends heavily on the support and cooperation of our fellow Fulbrighters.1 Another important event coincided with the formation of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association. In commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the Fulbright Program worldwide and the 25th anniversary of establishment of the United States Educational Commission in Korea, a colloquium was held at the Seoul Plaza Hotel with a keynote address by Fulbright Anniversary Distinguished Fellow Robert A. Scalapino. He spoke on “U.S. Foreign Policy and Northeast Asia.” At the same colloquium, former Deputy Prime Minister Lee Han Bin gave an important address, cited elsewhere in this book, in which he talked about early educational exchanges with the U.S. and the position of American-educated intellectuals in Korea. His comments included the following: The student-sending program in the post-liberation period had a strong pragmatic tone, as the Korean participants chose to study in the United States. The Garrio Program sent assistant professors to further their higher education in the United

185

Fulbright in Koreaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History States and their fields of study were limited to agriculture, forestry, fishery, nutrition, geology, medical science, engineering and management. Subsequently, the U.S. State Department launched a program that invited leaders in various walks of life to short-term educational programs in the 1950s. The participants in this program represented education, journalism, law, and social welfare. The pragmatic orientation of the educational program was clearly manifest in the military training program. According to the national plan for the expansion of the armed forces in the wake of the Korean War, ranking officers were dispatched to Staff College or schools of strategic studies in the United States. Pragmatic orientation was an alien concept for Koreans who had experienced the humanity-orientation of education. The blind acceptance of the strange concept brought back a nostalgic yearning among Korean scholars for the humanities. The Yenching Institute of Harvard University surfaced to quench Koreansâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; thirst for humanities. It was the Korea Fulbright Program that mediated between Harvard University and Korean aspirants hoping to study the humanities. By mediating between the two, the Korea Fulbright Program opened a new chapter in the annals of educational exchange. Started in the 1960s, this program expanded the area of studies to social science and added a new role as an inviter of American scholars to teach at Korean universities or research in cooperation with Korean counterparts. The 1960s witnessed the proliferation of programs to provide greater opportunities for Koreans to further their higher education in the United States. Most typical of them was the East-West Program. It sent scores of Korean students to American universities, and their repatriation provided a motive to sharpen the development edge of scholarly expertise to bear on national development. The self-financed students whose number increased in the 1970s had their shares of contribution to national development after they obtained advanced degrees from American universities.2 On June 8, 1987, the new association acted to establish a Fulbright Alumni Fellowship program. On July 11, 1987, the first Fulbright alumni fellow was selected. In May 1988, the inaugural issue of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Newsletter was published. On May 20, the first anniversary of the establishment of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association was celebrated at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul. U.S. Ambassador James R. Lilley delivered a congratulatory address for the occasion.

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History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

On September 22, 1989, the second anniversary of the establishment of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association was celebrated at the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry. There, Hahn Sang Joon was selected as the second president of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association. Lee Hyun Jae, the former Prime Minister, delivered a special address on the topic of “Educational System of Korea and New Direction.”

The Korea Fulbright Foundation

At the September 1989 meeting of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association, a preparation committee was established to form the Korea Fulbright Foundation. Finally, on January 11, 1991, the foundation was legally established. The Korea Fulbright Foundation has carried out several important activities over the years. First, on four occasions thus far the foundation has hosted dinners for Korea Fulbright alumni and American grantees. At these dinners, American grantees have been able to network with their Korean colleagues and, on many occasions, have questions answered through them. In this manner, Korean alumni are able to provide valuable assistance to American grantees. Second, the foundation has given awards to American student grantees to assist with their research. In 2008, awards of $1,000 were given to Franklin Rausch for his research on Ahn Jung Geun and Aimee Lee for her research on Korean paper making (hanji). In 2009, Carla Stansifer received a grant of $3,000 to help her with filming the processing of Korea lacquer art. As of this writing, these awards are still being offered. Third, when Hurricane Katrina struck the United States, the foundation donated $10,000 through the deputy chief of mission at the U.S. embassy, Mark Minton. This was supplemented by $38,000 donated by the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association. Finally, on October 23, 2009, the Korea Fulbright Foundation sponsored a symposium to help commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea. The topic was “The Direction of Korea’s Education in the Twenty-First Century.”

Major Accomplishments of the Alumni Association & Foundation

Both the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association and the Korea Fulbright Foundation have contributed to the growth and development of the Fulbright Program in Korea in various ways, including the following:

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Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History • H elping to finance and organize commemoration of important historical occasions in Fulbright Korea’s history, • Fundraising for the purchase of the Fulbright Building in 1999, • C haritable contributions in the wake of the Asian tsunami in 2004 and Hurricane Katrina in 2005, • Participation in U.S. Fulbright Association meetings and other international meetings of Fulbright alumni from around the world, and • Program initiatives that would not have been possible for the commission itself with only grant funding from the two governments.

Fulbright 40th Anniversary Commemoration

This book opened with an account of the 40th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea, which was the occasion for Senator Fulbright’s only visit to Korea. The Korea Fulbright Alumni Association and the Korea Fulbright Foundation both played key roles in organizing and making possible the commemoration of that milestone in Fulbright’s history.

Senator J. William Fulbright and Harriet Fulbright greet guest at the 40th anniversary celebration of the Fulbright Program in Korea.

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History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

Senator J. William Fulbright greets Korea Fulbright Alumni Association member Professor Ro Jung Hyun at the 40th anniversary commemoration of the Fulbright Program in Korea, which was celebrated in Seoul on September 2021, 1990.

Fulbright 50th Anniversary Commemoration Project

In September 1994, members of the Korea Fulbright Foundation and the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association formulated an idea for a Fulbright 50th Anniversary Research Award. The concept was to have awards given to American scholars whose research would “promote academic understanding between America and Korea.” Of course, they also saw the significance of acknowledging the vision of Senator J. William Fulbright. That vision was planted in 1946 and in fifty years had spread worldwide, influencing untold numbers of world citizens.3 Key members of the foundation and the alumni association worked with the secretariat to develop this grant program. The project received many good proposals before finally awarding grants of $5,000 each to three American scholars: Mel Gurtov, a political scientist; James F. Larson, a communication scholar; and Robert R. Swartout, Jr., a historian. They co-authored a book, edited by Ray E. Weisenborn, titled Korea’s Amazing Century: From Kings to Satellites. The book was originally printed, published, and copyrighted in Seoul by the Korea Fulbright Foundation and the Korean-American Educational Commission in 1996. In 2009, the Fulbright Foundation and the Korean-American Educational Commission decided to digitally publish the book through Google Books to ensure wide availability

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Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History while retaining the copyright. The volume can be read online or downloaded in a PDF version on Google Books.4 The dedication page of the book reads as follows. To the Fulbright program for its fifty years of nurturing world peace and understanding; To the memory of Senator J. William Fulbright whose vision lit this candle and carried it forth; To t h e K o re a n a n d Am e r i c a n Fulbright scholars who have shared their lives with commitment to a global village.5 On November 25, 1996, the 50th anniversary of the worldwide Fulbright Program was commemorated at the Korea Press Center, and a copy of Korea’s Amazing Century: From Kings to Satellites was presented to Mrs. Harriet Mayor Fulbright, who, along with Dr. Cho Soon, was a keynote speaker.

Bronze Bust of Senator Fulbright Dedicated in Fulbright Building Entryway

On October 20, 2006, a ceremony was held to dedicate a bronze bust of Senator J. William Fulbright in the foyer of the Fulbright Building. This dedication was held on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright Program worldwide and in honor of what would have been the Senator’s 100th birthday. It was the first such commemorative event among Fulbright Programs around the world. The bust was sculpted by Professor Ted Aub of Hobart and William Smith Colleges. Professor Aub’s wife, Philia Lee, had been a Fulbright grantee, and only because of this fortunate circumstance was it possible to have the project commissioned at such a low cost. The bust was made possible thanks to a contribution of $10,000 from Fulbright Korea Alumni Association members. Some associated costs for the unveiling ceremony were covered by the Fulbright Commission.6

190

Dr. James F. Larson presents Mrs. Harriet M. Fulbright with a commemorative copy of Korea’s Amazing Century: From Kings to Satellites on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the Worldwide Fulbright Program in 1996.

History of the Korea Fulbright Alumni Association

This bust was made possible thanks to the contribution of $10,000 from Fulbright Korea Alumni Association members. Pictured here from left to right: Suh Dong Hee, Yoon Bokcha, Kang Chang Hee, KAEC executive director Shim Jai Ok, and Choi Young.

60th Anniversary Commemoration Activities

As described in Chapter 6, the KFAA and the Korea Fulbright Foundation played a major role in organizing events in Korea and the United States during 2010 to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright Program in Korea. In particular, the idea to publish this 60th anniversary history was given its initial support and impetus by the KFAA, which, among its many efforts, formed a committee, undertook fundraising, and solicited Korean alumni reminiscences.

English-Cultural Program for Children of Fulbright Alumni

In 1996, the fourth president of the KFAA initiated an English language and cultural program in the U.S. for the children of Fulbright Alumni. Administration of the program was entrusted to the LCP International Institute, which provided connections to host institutions in the U.S. Following a preparatory period, the first program was offered from January 1996, coinciding with the winter vacation in Korean schools. A second program was offered from July of that year. The winter vacation program was attended by 46 secondary school and college students. Secondary school students and college students, including graduate students, were sent to college and universities in California. The

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Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History not as easily uplifted as technology is upgraded. Technology provides ever more sophisticated means to communicate, but it does not create the inevitability that the images and messages transferred will lead to better relations. Rubbing up against neighbors who have different manners and different ways of speaking can sometimes spark friction. That is why exchange programs that involve learning and living in the shoes, shirts, and dresses of others make such a difference. One of the myths of our times is that relations between countries are principally a function of government policy and that diplomacy is exclusively a governmentto-government dialogue. Actually, it is businessmen and women, unelected people of good will—be they artists or scientists, athletes, students, or scholars—who are more central to defining the tone of relations between states than public officials. Cultural diplomacy generally precedes and increasingly supersedes governmentto-government relations. Shim Jai Ok, executive director of the Fulbright Commission, also delivered short remarks at the gathering, which included the following expression of hope that the Fulbright Program could help with Korean unification:

Ambassador Christopher R. Hill congratulates the Fulbright Korea Commission.

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Epilogue

Observing the 60th Anniversary of Fulbright Korea

Korea’s Fulbright Commission has grown to be one of the largest and most active worldwide, standing out among the 190 countries currently reached by the international Fulbright Program. Conspicuously absent from this list of countries, however, is our neighbor directly to the north. It is my sincere hope that one day the entire Korean Peninsula will be able to benefit from the Fulbright mission. The central goal of the Fulbright Program is the promotion of world peace through mutual understanding. In light of current events, I believe that it is essential that international academic and cultural exchange be allowed in North Korea. Let us hope that it will not take another sixty years for North Koreans to have the opportunity to benefit from this prestigious program and, through it, learn the meaning of peace and the importance of international understanding. The events commemorating Fulbright Korea’s 60th anniversary during 2010 also included a traveling art exhibition entitled “Cross-Cultural Visions” that took place in New York, Washington, D.C., and Seoul. The venues and dates were Gallery Korea in New York, July 7-July 16; KORUS House in Washington, D.C., July 23-August 6; and the Seoul Arts Center, October 8-October 15. As noted in the book printed for the exhibition, “Korea’s Fulbright program boasts of more grantees with contributions to the global artistic community than any other Fulbright commission worldwide. To convey their gratitude to the program that allowed them the unique opportunity to study and do research abroad, 22 Korean and 13 American artists will come together in the commemorative exhibition entitled ‘CrossCultural Visions’ to celebrate the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright program in Korea.”2

Cross-Cultural Visions was hosted by the KORUS House in Washington, DC.

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List of Artists U.S. Artists Heather Bayless Richard W. Franklin Benjamin Kaplan Komelia Hongja Okim Allen Zaruba

Harris Deller Barbara Grinell Aimee Lee Carla Stansifer

Ronald duBois Adrienne Walker Hoard Bruce Metcalf Richard D. Weis

Choe Young Hoon Ha Joon Soo Im Sangbin Kim Seung Hee Lee Jung Sook Lim Mi Kang Song Burn Soo

Chung Kyoung Yeon Han Un Sung Jahng Soo Hong Kim Young Ock Lee In Gyong Lim Young Kyun Suh Dong Hee

Korean Artists Choi Ah Young Ha Dong Chul Hong Jung Hee Jin Youngsun Lee Chunghie Lee Sung Soon Park Keun Ja Yoo Lizzy

A reception by the U.S. ambassador to Korea, Kathleen Stephens, was scheduled for October 8. On that same date, a symposium on the topic of “Improving the Quality of Higher Education in Korea” was scheduled for the Korea Press Center. On October 9, a conference and gala banquet on the theme of “Toward Peace in Korea and the World” were scheduled to take place at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul. The conference included keynote speeches by former ambassador to Korea Christopher Hill and former Minister of Education, Science and Technology Ahn Byong Man.

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Epilogue

Observing the 60th Anniversary of Fulbright Korea

From left: Artists Im Sang Bin, Allen Zaruba, Lee Chunghie, Youngsun Jin, Richard D. Weis, and Komelia Okim at the opening reception of the Cross-Cultural Visions exhibition in New York City.

On the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Fulbright program in Korea, 13 American and 22 Korean Fulbright alumni came together to exhibit their work in a traveling art exhibit entitled Cross-Cultural Visions

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Appendix II: The Fulbright Song

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US$ 35.00 25,000 won

http://www.fulbright.or.kr Dust jacket artwork by Youngsun Jin

Jai Ok Shim | James F. Larson Frederick F. Carriere | Horace H. Underwood

... we Fulbrighters proclaim the following three points:

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History

Fulbright in Korea’s Future

A 60th Anniversary Commemorative History J. William Fulbright

Korean-American Educational Commission 한미교육위원단