Christine (Seung Won) Hong earned a bachelor’s degree in educational technologies in her native South Korea and she worked as a training specialist after her graduation. A firm believer in the idea that learning is a continuous part of life, she just naturally loves to help others. However, she experienced a common challenge once she joined the workforce in a training role. Christine explains, “I discovered that the world of work does not always match up well with theory. Managers may be resistant to change and new training methods, and employee buy-in can be difficult to obtain. I wanted to create beneficial organizational change, but most of the time the opportunity to do so just didn’t exist for me in the roles that I had.”
Christine’s personal goal was to have a career where she could help bridge the gap between academic theory and actual workplace practices, so she decided to pursue graduate-level education to develop the necessary knowledge and skills to achieve her objectives. She applied to several universities, but chose Illinois because so many Korean students told her about their positive experiences at the U of I. She received her M.A. in Human Resource Education from the College of Education, and an invitation to a student luncheon proved to be an important turning point in her career. When she heard alumna and donor Dr. Donna Riechmann speak about her practitioner experiences in the human resource development field, Christine was so encouraged by Donna’s presentation and she decided to pursue the next stage of her professional development in the College of Education.
As the luncheon concluded, Christine sought the opportunity to talk with Dr. Riechmann about how obtaining a Ph.D. might fit in with her career goals: “She told me ‘it will definitely help you to achieve what you want to accomplish.’ At that moment, as I was in the process of making important decisions about my life and career, her feedback was precious to me. She helped me to more clearly visualize how I could make my dreams a reality, and her support gave me the determination that I needed, to give it a try.”
Christine’s research interests involve the transfer of training and team learning and her time in the College of Education has not only given her the opportunity to focus on master’s and doctoral level learning, it’s given her the chance to do hands-on work as a graduate assistant, in online learning tech support. Today, as so many U of I students do, she’s also adding to new knowledge and best practices in the field.
For example, during the inaugural year of the student-run College of Education Graduate Student Conference in 2010, Christine assessed the quality and impact of the event using both qualitative and quantitative methods. Her final report was shared with multiple stakeholders including Dean Mary Kalantzis, College of Education staff, and her fellow planning committee members. When she describes the chief purpose of the Conference, she notes that “The spirit of this conference was, and is, to get us all out of our individual silos and programs, to bring us together as students so that we can share best practices with one another, hear from leaders in the field, and create an integrated community of practice so that we can learn with each other.” Christine believes in the goals and benefits of the Conference so much that she joined the 2011 planning committee. The second conference was also a tremendous success and Christine had the opportunity for a face-to-face visit with Donna Riechmann: “It was a very meaningful experience to meet Donna at the 2011 conference. She came to campus for a board meeting, and I took pictures with her, and had a chance to say ‘thank you’ for her generous donation to the College.”
What’s next for Christine? Once she completes her Ph.D. studies, she’s planning to come full circle and stay engaged with the campus both as a scholar and as a human resource development practitioner. Smiling, she says “Here, I have lots of resources and great colleagues!”
