[POSTECH’s greatest strength lies in the ‘power of together’]

The inauguration ceremony for POSTECH’s eighth president Moo Hwan Kim was held at 11a.m. on September 3rd at the POSTECH Auditorium.

Over one thousand POSTECH students and staff, and guests from academic and government organizations attended the inauguration, including Chairman Jeong-Woo Choi of POSTECH Foundation, Chairman Myung-Chul Lee of Korean Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), President Yong-Hak Kim of Yonsei University, President Mooyoung Jung of UNIST, President Jin Taek Chung of Korea University, President Sun-Heung Jang of Handong University, President Ik Jang of Uiduk University, Mayor Kang-deok Lee of Pohang City and President Byung Joo Min of Korean Nuclear Society.

In his inaugural speech, the newly appointed president Moo Hwan Kim stated, “POSTECH was able to grow into a representative university in Asia in a short time because all members of the university, POSCO, the local and central governments joined together under the goal of advancing POSTECH into a world-class research university.” He emphasized that “the true strength of POSTECH lies in the power of together.”

President Kim introduced his plans for innovation in education that students demand, education that industry and future require and the university management that today’s POSTECH demands. Underlying these plans is “self-managed” innovation, in which each member and unit of organization proactively detect the status quo and improves on their own.

He declared that “instead of leading in front, (he) will be a president much like a coxswain of the boat, reading the wind and tide ahead for (his) crew, steering when each unit makes a spurt.”

He quoted Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, who said, “Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success” and encouraged “to work together to make POSTECH the pride of our nation, worthy of respect and esteem.”

In his appointment speech, Chairman Jeong-Woo Choi congratulated the new president by stating, “Dr. Moo Hwan Kim is both capable and passionate to realize POSTECH’s founding tenets as he possesses excellent leadership and communication skills and demonstrates strong initiative. We agree that he is the most qualified leader for POSTECH.”

Chairman Choi described Ubuntu, a word of greeting of South African tribes meaning “I am because we are,” and asked the POSTECH community to “create a new momentum for growth and development for POSTECH under President Kim’s leadership by inheriting and developing the founding tenets and implementing the vision that responds to the societal changes and calling of the times.” He added that “the foundation and its board have great confidence in the new president and promise to partake in the valuable path of history that the university will take and pledge our utmost support.”

POSTECH’s eighth president Moo Hwan Kim was born in Busan in 1958 and received his bachelor’s (1980) and master’s (1982) degrees in nuclear engineering from Seoul National University. He completed his Ph.D. at University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1986. In 1987, he joined then young POSTECH’s Department of Mechanical Engineering faculty and has served as the department head of Division of Advanced Nuclear Engineering and has held major leadership roles, including the vice president of student affairs, admissions (now admissions and student affairs), and planning.

As an expert in the field of nuclear safety, he displayed great leadership as an administrator in the field of science and technology by serving as president of Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety (KINS) from 2013 to 2016, a member of International Nuclear Safety Group (INSAG) at International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) from 2014 to 2018 and as a commissioner of Nuclear Safety and Security Commission.