Columbus State students prepare for two-week study, cultural trip to South Korea
WEST POINT, Ga. (WRBL) — A group of Columbus State University students is getting ready to expand their educational experience in a big way.
The students will be leaving Friday for two weeks of study in South Korea.
They will be studying Korean culture, the military relationship and the business relationship between the Republic of South Korea and the United States.
“We’ve spent the last year studying the relationship between the United States and Korea for the past 70, 75 years, starting with understanding the origins of the Korean conflict, 1950 to 53, all the way through the Cold War,” said Dr. David Kieran, the CSU Associate Professor and Hallock Distinguished Chair in Military History who is leading the excursion. “The current diplomatic, economic and security relationship between our two countries.”
The students and faculty members will be making the trip from Atlanta to Seoul, South Korea, this weekend to be immersed in the Korean culture. They’re going to study business, cultural and economic changes. They’re also going to look at the military relationship between the U.S. and South Korea.
“I think the most important thing for our students to experience is the is the vibrancy and the centrality of the U.S. Korea relationship as it’s developed over the past 70 years,” said retired Maj. Gen. Patrick Donahoe a Special Assistant to CSU President.
The students plan to do just that.
“This is a wonderful experience, honestly,” Kyla Byrd, a CSU senior. “I think it’s very educational for people like me who may not know a lot about Korea, and also the relationship with the US. We only got bits and pieces of the Korean War, especially me growing up, and now it’s like I’m actually going to Korea. I get to hear the American soldiers who are currently in Korea. I can hear their experience and as well as the Korean soldiers are in the U.S. and hear their experience.”
Thursday morning, the students spent time at Kia, Georgia, up in West Point. Kia is a South Korean company with deep roots into the Chattahoochee Valley. For these students, they see the connection between South Korea and West Georgia.
“My grandfather served in Korea and used to talk about his time serving up there almost every time he spoke to him,” said Kelly Britt/, a rising senior “He served from 51 to 53 and he passed away in 2017. So I just want to go back and just see where he was.”
One Columbus State University professor, Dr. Daewoo Lee, will get to take his students back to his homeland.
“I’m a teacher. I’m excited to give them an opportunity to open their eyes,” Lee said. “For many of them, this is their first time overseas, first time ever to take the flight.”
Even more will be experiencing food and culture they have never seen.
“It’s going to be live octopus,” Lee said. “So, there’s like they are still moving. And but you just put it in your mouth.”
“I’m a foodie at heart,” Byrd said. “I love food. I would definitely try anything.”
The trip to the Kia plant was part of the week-long preparation the students have been doing for the time in Korea.
They got a plant tour of Kia and a history on the South Korean-owned company’s investment in Troup County and West Georgia.
The class — in large part — was underwritten by a $60,000 donation from the Hyundai Motor Group – Kia’s parent company.
“The investment of Hyundai Motor Group cannot be overstated,” said CSU President Dr. Stuart Rayfield. “This trip — this educational experience — could not happen, but for their generous contribution and investment in our students and the experiences they’re having in Korea. And it is just amazing that they are willing to invest that kind of money in students in at Columbus State University. And I think it shows their commitment to students in the state of Georgia given our great relationship.”
These students are not the only ones from Columbus State studying abroad this summer. There are about 85 students in various programs across the world.
Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WRBL.
