Professor Sim Jong Hyeok Appointed
as the 16th President of Sogang University
Sogang University Corporation (Chairperson Rev. Park Munsu) appointed Professor Sim Jong Hyeok as the 16th president of Sogang University during its fifth board meeting, held on Wednesday, December 9, 2020.
The decision was made by the Presidential Candidate Recommendation Committee (Chaired by Professor Lim Chae-Un, Department of Business Administration), which consisted of 29 representatives from members of the faculty, staff, students, alumni, and the Society of Jesus. The committee held a presentation session where the candidates presented their visions for relevant representatives from the university on Tuesday, November 3. Then, after interviews held the following Monday, November 9, three individuals were chosen as final recommended candidates to the board of directors. With one withdrawing, the remaining two candidates went through in-depth screening by Sogang University Corporation, after which Professor Sim Jong Hyeok was finalized as the next president.
In his presentation on his vision, under the title of 'Sogang, All the Excellences,' Professor Sim Jong Hyeok unfolded his proposed plans to reinforce the excellence and pride of Sogang education through various means: strengthening research power through research promotion policies, securing financial transparency, establishing a 'post-COVID-19 Sogang education model,' expanding globalization and networking, and practicing the education goals of the Society of Jesus.
Professor Sim Jong-hyeok (Graduate School of Theology) entered Sogang in the Department of Mathematics in 1974. He then earned master's degrees in Sogang's Department of Physics and in Theology and Ministry from Weston School of Theology, U.S.A., followed by a doctorate degree in Dogmatic Theology from Pontificia Universitas Gregoriana. He has been serving as a professor at Sogang since 1992, also taking charge as Vice President of HR and General Affairs in 2001, Vice President of Budget and Planning in 2003, Foreign Cooperation Chief (currently Vice President of International Affairs) in 2013, and Dean of Graduate Schools from 2015 through 2017.
