No. 150 / Mar 8, 2021
The unveiling ceremony of the statue was held to mark the first anniversary of the death of Kim U-jung, founder of the school corporation, Dae-woo Academy. The ceremony was held on December 9 last year, in the presence of the bereaved family and officials from Dae-woo Group, Dae-woo Academy, and Ajou University. The event started with a brief profile of the founder by executive director of Dae-woo Academy Lee Young-hyun, followed by a screening of a memorial video and a report on the production of the statue. After the memorial ceremony in the auditorium, the attendees moved to the lawn in front of Yul-gok Hall, where the statue stands. They spent time laying flowers and holding a silent prayer.
Chairman Kim U-jung founded Dae-woo in 1967 at the age of 30 and devoted his private fortune to the Dae-woo Academy in 1977. He pioneered an unknown market with the goal of “world management” and in 1983 became the first Asian entrepreneur to receive the International Business Award, the so-called Nobel Prize for Entrepreneurship. Thirty years after its establishment, Dae-woo Industries, which started with capital of 5 million won, had grown to second place in the business world ranking with 41 affiliates and 396 overseas subsidiaries as of 1998. However, the Dae-woo Group fell into a liquidity crisis when its joint venture between Dae-woo Motor and General Motors was shaken. The restrictions on issuing corporate bonds made things worse. After all affiliates were dissolved, Kim received a particular pardon in 2008. He stayed in Vietnam after the breakup of the Dae-woo Group and devoted himself to the Global Young Business Manager, a youth entrepreneur training program to help young people enter global markets. At the age of 84, the core dynamic root of the university died of a chronic disease at Ajou University Hospital on December 9, 2019.
Although it has been more than two years since he left us, Ajou University has gone through various changes and growth and is now approaching its history of fiftieth year. The national history that we learn in high school is not all that history is about. Individuals have a history of their own lives. The town we live in has a local history, and so does every family and school. Ajou Engineering Junior College, the forerunner of Ajou University, was founded in 1973 by the Yusin Institute in the midst of industrialization. In the following year, the school was elevated in status and renamed “Ajou Engineering College,” having its first graduates in 1977. That same year, chairman Kim appropriated his private property to establish the Dae-woo Academy and later acquired Ajou University as well. Kim’s principle of non-intervention guaranteed the autonomy of the university, allowing Ajou University to become a model university with fair and honest management. In the late 1970s, Ajou University set itself the goal of becoming the “Massachusetts Institute of Technology of Asia” by training skilled engineers and leaders capable of competing on the global stage. To achieve this goal, Ajou established humanities and social sciences departments and introduced a “special scholarship system.” In 1981, Ajou Engineering College was raised to “university” status with three department branches, including engineering, business administration, and humanities. In the late 1990s, specialized graduate schools such as the Graduate School of Education and Graduate School of International Studies were opened. That was when Ajou University emerged as a leading private university through various evaluations by the government and press.
In commemoration of its thirtieth anniversary, Ajou University created a new vision for development called Ajou Vision 4U, which will help propel it toward its goal of becoming a world-class university. In accordance with this new vision, Ajou University will improve its learning environment and actively support the research activities of its faculty by implementing progressive policies while encouraging student activities both on and off campus. In 2018, Ajou Vision 4.0, a 10-year development plan, was announced to drive changes in the new period represented by the Fourth Industrial Revolution. The vision sets out strategies for comprehensive innovation in education and research, industry-academia cooperation, and campus culture. The university is making efforts to provide education focused on improving overall student capabilities rather than simply expanding knowledge, creating values shared in society, and strengthening global competitiveness.
Since its foundation, Ajou has pursued the following three virtues as guiding principles: “Respect for Humans,” “Seeking Truth from Fact,” and “One World, One Family.” It teaches us to connect ourselves to our neighborhoods, nation, and the world through respect and understanding, regarding a human being not as a tool, but as an ultimate value. It seems that the essence of education has not changed since the olden days. Learning from the history of the school, one can realize that history bridges the gap between past and present. From that realization, we can reflect on the future and through that experience, we can promote our growth. From now on, the founder’s statue will guard the campus and keep watch as the students grow even further. All students at Ajou University will inherit the will of our forebears who made history, and they will surely go on to lead the nation and community as outstanding members of society. The Ajou Globe (The AG) sincerely hopes for a bright future ahead for all Ajou University students.
By Kim Si-eun, AG Reporter
monica1522@ajou.ac.kr
Comments