Program chairs Dr. Victor Cha of CSIS and Dr. David Kang of USC and a distinguished group of American and Korean senior advisors with vast experience from academia, government, and the private sector, along will mentor the 2020-2021 NextGen Scholars.

 

Victor Cha

Victor Cha holds the D.S. Song-KF Professorship in Government and International Affairs at Georgetown University. In 2009, he was also named as Senior Adviser for Asia and Korea Chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C. He left the White House in 2007 after serving since 2004 as Director for Asian Affairs at the National Security Council.  At the White House, he was responsible primarily for Japan, the Korean peninsula, Australia/New Zealand and Pacific Island nation affairs.  Dr. Cha was also the Deputy Head of Delegation for the United States at the Six Party Talks in Beijing, and received two Outstanding Service commendations during his tenure at the NSC.  He is the author of five books, including the award-winning Alignment Despite Antagonism: The United States-Korea-Japan Security Triangle (Stanford University Press) (winner of the 2000 Ohira Book Prize), and The Impossible State: North Korea, Past and Future (Harper Collins Ecco, 2012) which was selected by Foreign Affairs as a “Best Book on the Asia-Pacific for 2012.” His newest book is Powerplay: Origins of the American Alliance System in Asia (Princeton University Press, 2016). He has testified before Congress numerous times on Asian security issues.  In 2018, he joined NBC and MSNBC as a News Contributor.  Prior to joining NBC, he had been a guest analyst for various media including CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, The Colbert Report, Sports Illustrated, ESPN, Fox News, PBS, Huffington Post, Wall Street Journal, MSNBC, CNBC, BBC, and National Public Radio.  His op-eds have appeared in the Washington Post, New York Times, Los Angeles Times, USA Today, Foreign Policy, Japan Times, and Financial Times. He holds a B.A., an M.I.A., and a Ph.D. from Columbia University, as well as an M.A. from Oxford University.

 

David C. Kang

David C. Kang is Maria Crutcher Professor in International Relations, Business and East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of Southern California, with appointments in both the School of International Relations and the Marshall School of Business. At USC he is also director of the Korean Studies Institute. Kang’s latest book is American Grand Strategy and East Asian Security in the 21st Century (Cambridge University Press, 2017). He is also author of East Asia Before the West: Five Centuries of Trade and Tribute (Columbia University Press, 2010); China Rising: Peace, Power, and Order in East Asia (Columbia University Press, 2007); Crony Capitalism: Corruption and Development in South Korea and the Philippines (Cambridge University Press, 2002); and Nuclear North Korea: A Debate on Engagement Strategies, co-authored with Victor Cha (Columbia University Press, 2003). Kang has published numerous scholarly articles in journals such as International Organization and International Security, and his co-authored article “Testing Balance of Power Theory in World History” was awarded “Best article, 2007-2009,” by the European Journal of International Relations. Kang has also written opinion pieces in the New York Times, the Financial Times, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times, as well as writing a monthly column for the Joongang Ilbo in Korean. He received an A.B. with honors from Stanford University and his Ph.D. from UC Berkeley.

 

Bridget Coggins

Bridget L. Coggins is Associate Professor of Political Science at the University of California, Santa Barbara. She is also an adjunct fellow and a member of the Washington Research Consortium at CSIS Korea Chair and a 2015-2016 U.S.-Korea NextGen Scholars Program scholar. Her research interests lie at the intersection of domestic conflict and international relations, including studies of secessionism, rebel diplomacy, civil war and terrorism, maritime piracy, illicit trafficking, and refugees. Coggins' first book is Power Politics and State Formation in the 20th Century: The Dynamics of Recognition (Cambridge 2014). Her second major project examines the international security consequences of state failure, combining large N data and detailed case studies of Somalia, North Korea, Colombia, and Afghanistan. Coggins scholarly work appears in Foreign Policy Magazine, International Organization, Journal of Conflict Resolution, Journal of Global Security Studies, Journal of Peace Research, and at various university presses. She speaks Spanish, Mandarin, and a bit of Korean, and taught previously at Dartmouth College.  Dr. Coggins received her B.A. from the University of Minnesota and her Ph.D. from Ohio State University.

 

Stephan Haggard

Stephan Haggard is the Lawrence and Sallye Krause Professor of Korea-Pacific Studies, director of the Korea-Pacific Program and distinguished professor of political science at the University of California, San Diego. He has written on transitions to and from democratic rule and the political economy of economic reform, social policy and globalization. His focus on the Asia-Pacific region includes extensive work on North Korea with Marcus Noland, including Famine in North Korea: Markets, Aid, and Reform (2007), Witness to Transformation: Refugee Insights into North Korea (2011) and Hard Target: Sanctions., Inducements and the Case of North Korea (2017). Haggard is the current editor of the Journal of East Asian Studies, maintains the "North Korea: Witness to Transformation" blog and has a regular column with the JoongAng Daily. Dr. Haggard received a B.A., M.A. and Ph.D. from UC Berkeley.

 

Choi, Kang

Choi, Kang is the vice president for research and a principal fellow at the Asan Institute for Policy Studies. Prior to joining the Asan Institute, he was the dean of Planning and Assessment at the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. He also previously worked at the Institute for Foreign Affairs and National Security as the president (2012) as well as professor and director-general for American Studies (2008–2012). During that time, he also led the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia-Pacific (CSCAP) Korea as chairman (2010–2012). From 1992 to 1998, Dr. Choi worked at the Korea Institute for Defense Analyses (KIDA) as associate research fellow and director of International Arms Control Studies, and later returned to KIDA as the chief executive officer for Task Force for Current Defense Issues (2002–2005). Between those two periods, he served in the National Security Council Secretariat as senior director for Policy Planning and Coordination (1998–2002). He holds several advisory board memberships including: Committee on Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Unification in the National Assembly; Ministry of National Defense; Ministry of Unification; Air Force Development Committee; and the National Unification Advisory Council. Dr. Choi was also a South Korean delegate to the Four-Party Talks. His areas of interest include the ROK–U.S. alliance, North Korean military affairs, inter-Korean relations, crisis management and multilateral security cooperation.

 

Lee, Sook Jong

Lee, Sook Jong is professor of public administration and public policy at Sungkyunkwan University. She leads governance related research networks in academia. Currently, Dr. Lee is directing the East Asia Collaboration Center of the University. She served ten years as President of the East Asia Institute, an independent Seoul-based think tank. She holds a number of advisory positions in the South Korean government, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Dr. Lee also participates as member of the Trilateral Commission, Council of Councils, and many other transnational networks on research and policy studies. Since 2015, she is serving as a Steering Committee member of the World Movement for Democracy. She created the Asia Democracy Research Network with the support of the National Endowment for Democracy and is representing the Network as a Co-representative. Her research interests include multilateralism, democracy/civil societies, and foreign policy nexus with domestic politics and public opinion. Previously, Dr. Lee was research fellow at the Sejong Institute, visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution, professorial lecturer at the School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) at Johns Hopkins University, and visiting fellow at the German Institute for Global and Area Studies. Her recent publications include Transforming Global Governance with Middle Power Diplomacy: South Korea’s Role in the 21st Century (ed. 2016), Keys to Successful Presidency in South Korea (ed. 2013 and 2016), Korea’s Role in Global Governance for Development Cooperation (ed. 2012), Public Diplomacy and Soft Power in East Asia (eds. 2011), Japan and East Asia: Regional Cooperation and Community Building (eds. 2011), and Toward Managed Globalization: The Korean Experience (eds. 2010). Dr. Lee received her Ph.D. in sociology from Harvard University.

 

Mark Lippert

Mark Lippert is vice president of international government affairs at Boeing International. In this role, he leads Boeing International’s integrated government affairs team, developing and implementing country and regional government affairs strategies in support of the company’s non-U.S. operations and global growth plans. Ambassador Lippert joined Boeing in 2017. Prior to that, he served as U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Korea. He previously held senior positions in the Department of Defense, including as chief of staff to Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and as assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs. Ambassador Lippert also served in the White House as chief of staff to the National Security Council and in senior staff positions in the U.S. Senate. A veteran, Ambassador Lippert mobilized to active duty with the U.S. Navy from 2009 to 2011 as an intelligence officer for the Naval Special Warfare Development Group, which included a deployment to Afghanistan. From 2007 to 2008, he deployed as an intelligence officer with Seal Team One in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. Ambassador Lippert’s military awards and decorations include the Bronze Star Medal for his service in Iraq, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and the Basic Parachutist Badge. He is also the recipient of the Department of Defense’s Distinguished Public Service Award and the Department of the Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award. Ambassador Lippert graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Stanford University with a B.A. in political science and holds an M.A. in international policy studies from the same institution.

 

Evan Ramstad

Evan Ramstad has served as one of the leading analysts of the economic and business scene in Korea. A journalist since 1987, he is currently deputy business editor on the business news desk of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Before that, he was chief Korea correspondent for the Wall Street Journal from 2006 to 2013. During that time, he covered the full range of South Korea’s alliance, trade, security, business, social, and political issues. He made numerous appearances in South Korean and international media during that time and gave lectures to university and civic groups around the country. Mr. Ramstad previously wrote for the Wall Street Journal in Hong Kong and Dallas and for the Associated Press in Dallas, Minneapolis, Washington, and New York. He grew up in Grinnell, Iowa, where his first job was at the town radio station. He was a licensed FCC radio operator before the industry was deregulated. He holds a B.A in political science and journalism from Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas.

 

Kathleen Stephens

Kathleen Stephens is the new president and CEO of Korea Economic Institute of America (KEI) starting in September 2018. Since 2015, she had been the William J. Perry Fellow at Stanford University's Asia-Pacific Research Center (APARC), where she taught classes on U.S. foreign policy, diplomacy and U.S.-Korea relations. Ambassador Stephens' connection with Korea began in 1975 when she spent two years in Chungnam Province as a Peace Corps volunteer. She returned in the 1980s to serve for six years as a political officer in the U.S. Embassy in Seoul and then as principal officer at the U.S. Consulate in Busan. In 2008, she was nominated and confirmed as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea, the first Korean-language speaker and first woman in that role, serving from 2008 to 2011. Ambassador Stephens was a U.S. Foreign Service officer from 1978 to 2015. In addition to Korea, her other diplomatic postings included China, India, Yugoslavia and Northern Ireland. She was on the National Security Council staff in the 1990s, and served in senior positions at the Department of State, including Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European Affairs (2003-2005), Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (2005-2007), and acting Undersecretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs (2012). Stephens holds a bachelor’s degree in East Asian studies from Prescott College and a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University. She studied at the University of Hong Kong and Oxford University, and was an Outward Bound instructor in Hong Kong.

 

Sue Mi Terry

Sue Mi Terry joined CSIS in 2017 as senior fellow for Korea. Prior to CSIS, she served as a senior analyst on Korean issues at the CIA from 2001 to 2008, where she produced hundreds of intelligence assessments—including a record number of contributions to the President’s Daily Brief. From 2008 to 2009, Dr. Terry was the director for Korea, Japan, and Oceanic affairs at the National Security Council under both Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama. From 2009 to 2010, she was deputy national intelligence officer for East Asia at the National Intelligence Council. From 2010 to 2011, she served as the national intelligence fellow in the David Rockefeller Studies Program at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York. Since leaving government, Dr. Terry has been a senior research scholar at Columbia University’s Weatherhead East Asian Institute (2011-2015) and a senior adviser for Korea at BowerGroupAsia (2015-2017). She holds a Ph.D. (2001) and an M.A. (1998) in international relations from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and a B.A. in political science from New York University (1993).

 

Andrew Yeo

Andrew Yeo is an associate professor of politics and director of Asian Studies at Catholic University of America. He is also the author or co-editor of North Korean Human Rights: Activists and Networks (Cambridge University Press 2018, with D. Chubb); Living in an Age of Mistrust: An Interdsiciplinary Study of  Declining Trust and How to Get it Back(Routledge Press 2017, with M. Green); and Activists, Alliances, and Anti-U.S. Base Protests (Cambridge University Press 2011). Professor Yeo's research and teaching interests include international relations theory; East Asian regionalism; Asian security; narratives and discourse; the formation of beliefs, ideas, and worldviews; civil society; social and transnational movements, overseas basing strategy and U.S. force posture; Korean politics; and North Korea. He was awarded the Young Faculty Scholar's Award in 2013 and is a term member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He received his Ph.D. in Government from Cornell University in 2008 and a B.A. magna cum laude from Northwestern University in Psychology and International Studies.

 

Yoon, Young-kwan

Yoon, Young-kwan is professor emeritus of international political economy in the Department of International Relations at Seoul National University. In addition to Seoul National University, he has taught at the University of California at Davis. Dr. Yoon is currently senior adviser to the Korean Institute for Future Strategies (KIFS), a private nonprofit research institute that he established and led as president. He was also one of the founding members and first director of the Korea Peace Institute and remains a trustee for the institution. After serving as chairman of the Committee of Foreign Relations, Security, and Unification of the Presidential Transition Team from January 2003 to February 2003, he was minister of foreign affairs and trade until January 2004. Dr. Yoon has written several books and authored around 50 articles addressing international political economy, Korea’s foreign policy, and inter-Korean relations. Several of these works have been published in international academic journals such as World Politics, International Political Science Review, and Asian Survey. Dr. Yoon holds a Ph.D. from the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.