Friday, March 31

Last week, SIS dean Louis Goodman and Korean ambassador Lee Tae Sik strolled past blooming cherry trees, planted 63 years ago to commemorate AU’s support for Korean independence. It was the third time in as many years that the Korean ambassador has visited AU to admire the trees and discuss “the long-standing and deep ties” between AU and Korea, said Goodman.

The trees, which flank SIS, celebrate the friendship between Korean president Syngman Rhee and AU president Paul Douglass, who later became Rhee’s advisor. During the planting, on Apr. 8, 1943, Douglass read from the Korean Declaration of Independence, and Korean folk songs filled the quad.

During the visit, which coincided with the cherry blossom festivals in both Washington and Korea, Goodman also introduced Lee to Jungho Yoo, the new chair of Korean Studies. —AF