Meredith Jung-En Woo
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Meredith Jung-En Woo is an American academic and author. She is a Senior Fellow at the University Design Institute and a Professor of Practice at the School of Politics and Global Studies, both at
Arizona State University Arizona State University (Arizona State or ASU) is a public university, public research university in Tempe, Arizona, United States. Founded in 1885 as Territorial Normal School by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, the university is o ...
. She served as President of
Sweet Briar College Sweet Briar College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's liberal arts college in Sweet Briar, Amherst County, Virginia, Amherst County, Virginia. It was established in 1901 by Indiana Fletcher Williams in ...
and as the Dean of the College and Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
. She is the former director of the International Higher Education Support Program at the
Open Society Foundations Open Society Foundations (OSF), formerly the Open Society Institute, is an American grantmaking network founded by business magnate George Soros. Open Society Foundations financially supports civil society groups around the world, with the s ...
in London.


Personal life

Woo was born and raised in
Seoul Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is the capital city, capital and largest city of South Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's List of cities b ...
, South Korea, and attended an international high school in
Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
, Japan.Building American Prosperity in the 21st Century, Kenneth D. Brody
/ref> Her father, Yong-Hai Woo, was a noted economic planner and diplomat who led the reparation mission for South Korea in Japan. She graduated ''
magna cum laude Latin honors are a system of Latin phrases used in some colleges and universities to indicate the level of distinction with which an academic degree has been earned. The system is primarily used in the United States. It is also used in some Sout ...
'' from
Bowdoin College Bowdoin College ( ) is a Private college, private liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. It was chartered in 1794. The main Bowdoin campus is located near Casco Bay and the Androscoggin River. In a ...
, majoring in history. She has earned an M.A. in international affairs and Latin American studies, and a Ph.D. in political science, from
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
.


Career

Woo serves on the board of the American Hospital of Paris Foundation. She is a trustee of the
Asian University for Women Asian University for Women (AUW) is an independent, international university in Chittagong, Bangladesh. AUW admits students solely on the basis of merit, regardless of their family's income level. Currently, 85% of AUW students are on scholarsh ...
in Chittagong, Bangladesh; and in her capacity as the Director of International Higher Education Program, served ex officio on the board of the Central European University in Budapest, Hungary, and the Governing Board of the European Humanities University, Vilnius, Lithuania. Woo was appointed by President
Bill Clinton William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
to serve on the Presidential Commission on U.S.-Pacific Trade and Investment Policy. She has consulted for the
World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
, the
United States Trade Representative The Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) is an agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government responsible for developing and promoting Foreign trade of the United States, United States ...
,
Social Science Research Council The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) is a US-based, independent, international nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing research in the social sciences and related disciplines. Established in Manhattan in 1923, it maintains a headqua ...
,
Asian Development Bank The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is a regional development bank to promote social and economic development in Asia. The bank is headquartered in Metro Manila, Philippines and maintains 31 field offices around the world. The bank was establishe ...
Institute, United Nations Research Institute for Social Development, the Asia Foundation, and the
MacArthur Foundation The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private foundation that makes grants and impact investments to support non-profit organizations in approximately 117 countries around the world. It has an endowment of $7.6 billion and ...
. She is on the editorial board of the ''Journal of East Asian Politics'', ''Studies in Comparative International Development'', as well as the ''Contemporary Politics Series'' on ''Comparative Political Economy'', published in Beijing. Woo taught at
Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...
and
Northwestern University Northwestern University (NU) is a Private university, private research university in Evanston, Illinois, United States. Established in 1851 to serve the historic Northwest Territory, it is the oldest University charter, chartered university in ...
as assistant and associate professor. She then became Professor of
Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and Power (social and political), power, and the analysis of political activities, political philosophy, political thought, polit ...
at the
University of Michigan The University of Michigan (U-M, U of M, or Michigan) is a public university, public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States. Founded in 1817, it is the oldest institution of higher education in the state. The University of Mi ...
. Her teaching and research interests include international political economy,
economic development In economics, economic development (or economic and social development) is the process by which the economic well-being and quality of life of a nation, region, local community, or an individual are improved according to targeted goals and object ...
,
East Asian East Asia is a geocultural region of Asia. It includes China, Japan, Mongolia, North Korea, South Korea, and Taiwan, plus two special administrative regions of China, Hong Kong and Macau. The economies of Economy of China, China, Economy of Ja ...
politics, and U.S.-East Asian relations. She became Associate Dean for the Social Sciences of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts University of Michigan College of Literature at the university. In 2008 she was appointed as the Buckner W. Clay Dean of the College and Graduate School at the
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
. During her term as dean, she restructured the graduate programs, reallocating resources across 25 PhD granting programs based on performance, and significantly improving the amount and number of fellowships, and providing for the first time multi-year guarantees. In the six-year period she raised a total of $260 million for the School, and oversaw completion of five new construction projects. In 2015 she took leave of absence from the University of Virginia to direct the International Higher Education Program for the
Open Society Foundations Open Society Foundations (OSF), formerly the Open Society Institute, is an American grantmaking network founded by business magnate George Soros. Open Society Foundations financially supports civil society groups around the world, with the s ...
, which was responsible for creation and support of over fifty liberal arts colleges in the former Soviet bloc countries. She refocused the effort to supporting higher education for refugee populations, particularly Syrians in Turkey, Lebanon and Jordan, as well as the Rohingya population, dispersed in Burma, Bangladesh, and elsewhere.
Sweet Briar College Sweet Briar College is a Private college, private Women's colleges in the United States, women's liberal arts college in Sweet Briar, Amherst County, Virginia, Amherst County, Virginia. It was established in 1901 by Indiana Fletcher Williams in ...
announced that Woo would become the 13th president of the college; and was instated on May 15, 2017, replacing president Phillip C. Stone. During her presidency the college underwent a comprehensive restructuring, consisting of an academic reset that replaced general education with a core curriculum on women leadership; tuition reset which brought down the published tuition from $36,000 to $21,000; and a curricular realignment that brought the number of majors from 42 to 16. In the fall 2018 following the restructuring, first year enrollment went up 42 percent."Editorial: More accolades for Sweet Briar"
" The Roanoke Times", Sept 20, 2018. Retrieved on April 4, 2018.


Works

She has authored and edited seven books, several published mostly under the name Meredith Woo-Cumings. They include ''Race to the Swift: State and Finance in Korean Industrialization'' (Columbia University Press, 1991), which was published under the name Jung-en Woo; ''Past as Prelude: History in the Making of the New World Order'' (Westview Press, 1991); ''Capital Ungoverned: Liberalizing Finance in Interventionist States'' (Cornell University Press, 1996), ''The Developmental State'' (Cornell University Press, 1999), as well as the co-authored report of the Presidential Report, "Building American Prosperity in the 21st Century: Report of the Presidential Commission on United States-Pacific Trade and Investment Policy" (Government Printing Office, 1997). Her book ''Neoliberalism and Reform in East Asia'' (2007) was the result of a project sponsored by the United Nations Research Institute for Social Development and the Rockefeller Foundation. She also published a book of essays under the title, ''Something New Under the Sun: Education at Mr. Jefferson's University''. She was executive producer of '' Koryo Saram: The Unreliable People'', a film about Stalin's ethnic cleansing of Koreans during the Great Terror. It premiered at the Smithsonian Institution, Washington DC, and won the Best Documentary Award from the National Film Board of Canada in 2008. * * * * * * *


References


External links


Meredith Jung-En Woo
at
University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Woo, Meredith Jung-En 1958 births Living people American women political scientists American political scientists Bowdoin College alumni Colgate University faculty Columbia University faculty South Korean emigrants to the United States American writers of Korean descent Northwestern University faculty University of Michigan faculty University of Virginia faculty School of International and Public Affairs, Columbia University alumni Heads of universities and colleges in the United States Women heads of universities and colleges Sweet Briar College faculty American women academics