UW–Madison alumna Woo-Jung Amber Kim was featured in a news article and video profile for Teacher’s College (TC) at Columbia University, where she graduated from the International Educational Development program in TC’s Department of International and Transcultural Studies in 2020.
Previously, Kim received her bachelor’s degree in biology from UW–Madison, as well as her master’s degree in secondary education and science from the School of Education’s Department of Curriculum and Instruction in 2017.
Kim was the convocation speaker for her graduating class at Teachers College, where she saluted her fellow graduates on their “incredible adaptability” in their final semester that was upended by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Our moment for celebration has been redefined by the global crisis,” she said in her address.
Though her focus at Teachers College was on international development and education, including work and research in Cambodia, Kim is now working as a science instructor at a private international school in California.
“I realized that I’d never really had an opportunity to have my own classroom,” she said. “Even though I had worked as a substitute, I thought maybe I should backtrack to see what it is like to plant my feet in one classroom and develop lesson plans and grade papers on a daily basis.”
Read more about Kim and her journey to Teachers College on the college’s website, here.