Jim Kim, Assistant Dean of First Year Students and Freeman Grant Coordinator since July 2003, has decided to leave the College at the end of this academic year.
"I love Bowdoin. I love working at Bowdoin. I love the people I've met here. Professionally, I couldn't be happier," Kim said.
But, "as I look at Bowdoin, for me, I think it would have been a great place during college and would be a great place after I've started a family. This has been a great opportunity, but it has come at a time right between those two, and so the timing just feels off."
Although Kim has no definite destination when he leaves Brunswick at the end of July, he has a general idea of where he is headed. Kim is "going to look for a city or a more urban location."
Students and Kim's fellow administrators are sad to see Kim go.
"Dean Kim is an invaluable member of the Bowdoin community," said Appleton Hall head proctor Thomas McKinley '06, who has worked with Kim on numerous occasions. "He will be greatly missed.
"He is a really friendly face around campus and has taken the time to get to know many students," said Courtney Camps '08. "Dean Kim has been deeply involved in helping to generate a better sense of community," she added.
"It has been great?a really terrific opportunity?working with Jim," said Dean of First Year Students Margaret Hazlett.
"He is very competent...and we tag-team on a lot of issues. The communication between us has been really strong," Hazlett said. "Jim also has a great sense of humor and he's a lot of fun."
For Kim, the most rewarding part of the job is working with students. He likes "working with first years in particular because it is a year of such growth?a year of people finding their own place here and learning to become their own advocate," Kim said. "It's really neat to watch."
While Kim spends most of his time working with first-year students, his counseling duties also include administering the Freeman Grant.
According to Kim, the Freeman Grant "was given to Bowdoin to help promote the study of Asian culture." Most grants are given to "send students and faculty to East and Southeast Asia for language study or course development."
The fund runs out at the end of next year.
A native of St. Louis, Missouri, Kim graduated from Johns Hopkins University and Harvard University's Graduate School of Education before coming to the College.