For 23 years, Un Chong Kim has been dedicated to teaching at Shorewood, though if you’re not a senior you may not know who she is. By teaching history- primarily Civics for seniors-, Kim has helped maintain the educational level of excellence that people strive for here at Shorewood. 

Before she began her career in teaching, she went to the University of Puget Sound for her undergrad, then Seattle University for her master’s. At Shorewood, she has taught pretty much every history class that’s been offered here: World History, World Geo, US History, Ethnic Studies, and more. But she’s mostly taught Civics, which is the class she currently teaches. In her free time, she enjoys going on walks, watching shows, and being with her friends and family, including her daughter and their family’s pet parakeet, named Kiwi. 

Kim’s reason for teaching, as she explains to her students, has roots that go all the way back to her childhood. “This is the story I tell my students early on: my parents moved us here from Korea when I was 4 or 5 years old. Their primary purpose of bringing us here was to get education and opportunities that are provided here in the United States-that we couldn’t get in Korea or could not afford in Korea,” she said. Teaching is important to her because it gives her “a sense of purpose…it lets me be a student as well so I get to dig in and keep learning in preparation for teaching,” she said. 

When she was in college, Kim says that she saw a piece of art that shaped her view and desire for teaching. By Norman Rockwell, “The Problem We All Live With” is a painting from 1964 that depicts a young Black girl, Ruby Bridges, who is integrating her elementary school during the Civil Rights Movement. She says, “When I first saw that in college, as I was still deciding what to do, it spoke to me, and I thought- education’s always been in the background for me, in my own personal story, but [seeing this] gives me my greater sense of purpose. To be part of something that is really important- not just to me and the people right in front of me but also to our society.”

So why did she choose to teach history specifically? “I particularly like teaching history because it’s a subject area that covers so much ground and so many interesting events and turning points. It links past and present,” she said. She’s always been intrigued by history, even before college. For her, the purpose of social studies comes down to “understanding people, societies, and our history to link our past and present and future together.”

Throughout her many years of experience, some of her favorite moments came the year we got back in-person after COVID. “That particular fall- it was heavy lifting and it was a tough transition for everybody but there was something about being in it together…I feel like that semester for me was filled with a kind of gratitude from my students and myself and from all of us being here. That particular time- it was weird and it was challenging but it felt really fulfilling,” she said. 

Overall, her favorite thing about teaching at Shorewood isn’t the subjects or the curriculum. “It’s the people. Honestly, it’s the colleagues I get to work with, who are stellar, and it’s the students I get to have in front of me, who are also stellar.”