The Very First Kim-Renaud Humanities Research Award Ceremony Takes Place N
- Date2025.05.27
- 14247
Established through a donation by Professor Young-Key Kim and Dr. Bertrand Renaud
Awarded to Dr. Yeri Hong (Philosophy) and Yeseul Park (Ph.D. candidate, English Language and Literature)
The College of Humanities (Dean Hye-Joong Jung) held the award ceremony for the inaugural Kim-Renaud Humanities Research Award on Thursday, May 22, at 2:00 p.m. in the reception room of the main building in the university.
This award was able to be held through a donation from Professor Young-Key Kim, Professor Emerita at George Washington University, and her partner, economist Dr. Bertrand Renaud. It started this year with the aim of promoting interdisciplinary research between the humanities and sciences and supporting young scholars. Professor Kim, who graduated from Ewha’s Department of English Language and Literature, worked 32 years as a professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Literatures at George Washington University. She has always been an advocate for Korean language and culture globally and continues to inspire others by supporting her alma mater’s students and promoting interdisciplinary research even after retirement.
(From Left: Dr. Bertrand Renaud, Dr. Yeri Hong, President Hyang-Sook Lee, Ph.D. candidate Yeseul Park, Professor Young-Key Kim)
The first Kim-Renaud Research Award’s theme was “AI and the Humanities.” The winners in the graduate division were Dr. Yeri Hong, who earned her Ph.D. in Philosophy at Ewha in 2021, and Yeseul Park, a current Ph.D. candidate in English Language and Literature at the university.
Dr. Hong was recognized for her paper titled“A Proposal for AI Ethics Education to Foster the ‘Questioning Human’: Applying Philosophical Pedagogy.”Her work presented a meaningful intersection between philosophical reflection and AI ethics education, showing the potential of a new, interdisciplinary educational model. In her speech, she said, “If philosophy begins with questions, then teaching how to question is the most difficult task in today’s education,” and added, “I will continue to explore the ways in which philosophy can be entwined with technology.”
Yeseul Park was recognized for her paper titled“Modeling Gender: Mansfield Park as Conduct Book?”Her research showed new perspectives on gender discourse through the perspective of digital humanities. In her acceptance, Park said, “It is deeply meaningful that my research, which aims to restore marginalized voices and explore literature’s social potential, has been socially recognized and supported through this award. I will continue to work so that the humanities can speak with meaningful relevance in real life.”
The award ceremony was attended by President Hyang-Sook Lee; donors Professor Young-Key Kim and Dr. Bertrand Renaud; Dean Hye-Joong Jung of the College of Humanities; faculty members who served on the award’s operating and selection committees; and the recipients. The event was emceed by Vice Dean Young-Hwan Lee of the College of Humanities. It included an introduction of the award by Dean Jung, donor remarks from Professor Kim, evaluation comments from Professor Lee, and the presentation of the certificates by President Lee.
In her congratulatory address, President Hyang-Sook Lee said, “The Kim-Renaud Research Award is not just a simple academic prize. It symbolizes Ewha’s commitment to addressing the contemporary challenge of entwining the humanities and sciences, and our belief in the future. Named after Professor Young-Key Kim who has left a priceless legacy as a guardian of the humanities, and Dr. Bertrand Renaud who has shared academic insight as an economist, so this award carries a powerful and insightful bond that goes beyond both disciplines and borders.” She further praised the awarded students, noting “this year’s winning research not only combines AI and the humanities but also paves a new way for the humanities themselves.”
This research award is especially meaningful since it honors Ewha’s deep humanities tradition while also recognizing scholarship that points to the future of the humanities in a 21st-century technological society. The College of Humanities at Ewha plans to continue to encourage interdisciplinary research in the humanities through the Kim-Renaud Research Award and to connect academia and society.