In Memoriam: Dr. Kyoung-Ah Nam

april 2019 dr. kyoung-ah nam in memoriam Apr 15, 2019

For all who have known and loved Dr. Kyoung-Ah Nam, our beloved interculturalist, proud citizen of South Korea, and long-time resident of the USA, it is with heavy heart that we share with you the tragic news of her passing due to illness.

Kyoung-Ah Nam was an Assistant Professor in the School of Global Innovation and Leadership at San Francisco State University.  Prior to joining SFSU she held the position of Assistant Professor in the International Communication Program at American University’s School of International Service in Washington, DC. A South Korean native, she specialized in training and coaching North Americans working with partners in Korea, Japan and China and vice versa. Having worked and/or traveled in more than 35 countries in the past 15 years, Kyoung-Ah had an appreciation for cultural diversity that even extended to her hobbies, which included swing dancing and yoga.

Kyoung-Ah received her Ph.D. in Comparative and International Development Education from the Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development at the University of Minnesota and her M.A. in Intercultural Communication and Journalism from the University of Oregon. In addition, she held a Certificate in Human Resource Development and was a Qualified Administrator of the Intercultural Development Inventory (IDI). 

During her career, Kyoung-Ah had the opportunity to work on projects for a wide variety of organizations, including Samsung (Seoul), Ogilvy & Mather (Los Angeles), the United Nations (New York), UNESCO (Bangkok), 3M Corporation (St. Paul, MN) and Boston Scientific Corporation (Minneapolis, MN). She maintained an active intercultural and business consulting practice.

Kyoung-Ah was a member of numerous professional organizations, including the International Academy for Intercultural Research (IAIR), the International Education Association (NAFSA), Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) and the American Association of Teachers of Korean (AATK). She was an Advisory Council Member for the Intercultural Management Institute and served on the Scholarship Committee of SIETAR USA (Society for Intercultural Education, Training and Research). She will be sorely missed as a colleague and friend.