Ki-In Park, founder and honorary chairman of Honam University Adult Education Center.
Dr. Park Kiin, founder and honorary chairman of Honam University under the Seongin Academy Foundation, passed away on the 24th at the age of 92.
The late honorary chairman Park Kiin was born on December 24, 1934, in Junghwasan-dong, Jeonju, Jeollabuk-do, as the second son among six siblings to father Park Byeongok and mother Lee Aeju. Together with the late Dr. Lee Hwaseong, who passed away in 2015, he established the Seongin Academy Foundation in 1978.
He completed a business administration program at Chonnam National University in 1968. Guided by his belief that "an academy is a peaceful greenhouse of life, where clear and warm sunlight blesses young lives," he founded Seongin Academy. He was awarded an honorary doctorate in education from Adamson University in the Philippines in 1995, served as a director of the Gwangju-Jeonnam 21st Century Development Council in 1994, and received an honorary doctorate in commerce from Chinese Culture University in Taiwan in 2003.
The late honorary chairman Park Kiin was a basketball player during high school and was also an all-around sportsman, excelling in shooting, tennis, table tennis, and golf. In March 1982, "to inspire students and instill courage and dreams," he founded a soccer team just four years after establishing the university, actively supporting player development and the advancement of soccer. Thanks to his special devotion to soccer, the Honam University soccer team achieved the remarkable feat of winning eight national championships, continuing its reputation as a leading soccer institution.
In addition, the late honorary chairman Park Kiin founded a boxing team in March 1985 and served as chairman of the Gwangju-Jeonnam Athletics Federation from 1987 to 1989, making significant contributions to the development of the sports community in Gwangju and Jeonnam.
He is survived by his eldest son Park Sanghak, eldest daughter Park Kyunghee, second son Park Sanggeon, who is chairman of the Seongin Academy Foundation and Honam University, and third son Park Sangcheol, president of Honam University.
The funeral will be held by the Seongin Academy Foundation and Honam University, with the memorial altar set up at the International Conference Room of the Honam University Central Library. The funeral ceremony is scheduled to take place at the Honam University Culture and Sports Center on the 28th.
Honam University, founded by the late honorary chairman Park Kiin, received approval from the Ministry of Education on June 15, 1978. It was elevated to a comprehensive university with five colleges in 1992, and in March 2015, completed its transition to a single-campus system by consolidating the Ssangchon Campus functions into the Gwangsan Campus.
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