Korea University Diversity Council

The importance of diversity-based education and research is emphasized more than ever to cultivate globally talented individuals with diversity competence and leadership in our diverse society. Korea University’s Diversity Council has been running a Changemaker Program every year since 2020, firstly, to cultivate talented individuals with mature awareness about diversity in the dimension of cognition-emotion-action, and secondly, to spread diversity values in the student society of Korea University through their voluntary projects and activities.

1. Purpose of Program

□ Higher education institutions can foster democratic citizenship and competitiveness as globally talented individuals of students through diversity education. Above all, higher education provides a crucial path for the members of society to be free from closed-minded attitudes and practices of discrimination against differences and to acquire the value of tolerance which underlies democracy. In addition, diversity as a core value of education has a critical effect on the growth and empowerment of students. For it can deepen the depth and breadth of student experience and teaches how to cooperate with ‘people different from me’ for the common goal. Diversity-based education is essential to developing integrative problem-solving ability and has also a positive influence on creativity. The exposure to new ideas and perspectives and convergence between different approaches leads to innovation beyond existing ideas and the creation of new knowledge.

□ In order to establish a diversity-based educational environment, leading universities abroad offer diversity-related courses and recommend students to take those courses. They stress not only the regular curriculum, but also the extracurricular activities, and especially support autonomous activities of minority groups, encouraging interactions between various groups.

□ <Changemaker to Spread the Value of Diversity> program has two main goals. 

  First, in the program, participants can develop a mature diversity awareness on their own in the dimension of cognition-emotion-behavior. Changemaker students will have cognitive capabilities related to diversity required for global society through lectures and self-study of this program. In autonomous activities, participants explore/discover diversity issues in student society and identify main issues, thereby forming a better bond of emotional sympathy. Furthermore, planning and carrying out activities to spread the value of diversity, which is shared with society and its members, will lead them to have behavioral experience and at the same time to strengthen their cognitive-emotional foundation.

  Second, as peer educators related to diversity, participants implement creative cognitive, emotional, and behavioral change activities so that they can spread diversity values and bring about positive changes in the student society. Through education and autonomous activities, Changemaker students as peer educators related to diversity will plan and execute activities needed to share main issues with members of university and society, carrying out communicative activities to promote them. In this process, Changemakers will think and analyze what changes have been made before and after the activities to spread diversity values and recognize the model of talented individual required to spread the value of diversity in this society, thereby acting according to it.

2. Planned Contents of Changemakers Program

A. Duration of Program: One year

B. Eligible Participants/Number of Recruited Participants: About 14 undergraduates currently enrolled at Korea University

C. Details of Program

□ The Changemaker program to spread the value of diversity consist of three stages. The first stage is the education through which participants recognize the value of diversity, the second stage is to identify issues through autonomous activities, and the third stage is to develop the sharing activities which participants have themselves planned and to spread the value of diversity socially. The education program and autonomous activities in Changemakers program will be changed/developed every year.

3. 2020 Changemakers Activities(Part of Activities)

<Various Extracurricular Activities>

< Diversity Values Spreading Activity “Dream Wear Campaign”:mainly in Instagram > 

< Activity Report and Completion Ceremony > 

☞ 2020 Changemakers Instagram for Dream Wear Campaign

    https://instagram.com/dream_wear_ku?igshid=hixca7in34di

1) This program is supported by Program Scholarship of Korea University Seoul Campus and Sejong Campus and University Innovation Support Project of National Research Foundation of Korea