I am originally from Seoul, South Korea but I grew up in GA for most of my teenage years until I decided to move away from the 'southern part' of the country in 1997. Anyway, I began swimming when I was 4, and I used to swim competitively when I was in 5th and 6th grade in elementary school. I continued to swim for my high school in GA.

As I was going through my first phase of adolescence, like so many other kids, I had many dreams. For one, I used to dream about becoming an industrial engineer by studying ISE at college and I almost made it happen until I changed my major from ISE to TC (Technical Communication) during my junior year at Mercer University. But most of all, I dreamed about being in the US, speaking to Americans, studying with them, and working with them. Soon, I realized that my dream was coming true-I was on my way to South Kent School, in Conneticut. What a dream!

When I arrived in CT, I felt like I was finally out of the well. It was the first time I truly understood the meaning of the word "blessing." I ended up going to Shamrock High School in Decatur, GA and it was the first time I experienced the racism, segregation, and what America is all about. While I was in high school, I became not only intellectually richer but wiser.

After I decided to go to Mercer University for my undergraduate studies, I first majored in ISE as if I was destined. Soon, I realized that it was a bit banal and I needed a venture and challenge. Even though I didn't like ISE, I wanted to stay in the engineering field for some reason. Then I found TC, only handful programs in the US with concentration in usability and UI design. I was so crazy about TC that I even spent 5 years by taking part in numberous in/out of school projects, conferences, and internships!

While I was at Oregon State University, I realized that I needed a hands-on experience in order to successfully formalize and conceptualize knowledge that I obtained from a higher education. After one year at OSU, I boldly decided to take a leave of absence indefinitely and went back to Korea. While I was working in Korea, I recharted my future and here I am at the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University. It was a big step up from TC-even though there were similarities between TC and HCI, HCI was full of interesting ideas and challenges. I am very certain that I will spend the rest of my life devoting and exerting my energy to the HCI field.

I met my lovely wife, Yeonjung (a.k.a., Kris), in 1997 while we were at OSU. It was the time I truly understood the meaning of "love at first sight." We finally got married in 1998 and currently have 2 year old son, Hojoon (a.k.a., Shawn). I can't tell you enough how wonderful person she is.

Being a husband and a father, everything was different. I had a responsibility to take care of my own family. At the same time, it was a real challenge to balance family and work or study in order to harmonize our marriage. Here at Carnegie Mellon University, I try to balance my work and family by trying not to schedule any meetings on Saturday and Sunday. But it's not easy to coordinate group projects during weekdays alone when the only available time for all group members to meet is the weekend!

BTW, I once heard someone saying that getting into the best graduate school is the real challenge. I say, think again. After I accomplished both, unless you experienced the marriage and the birth of your first baby, you haven't climbed to the top of the mountain yet. A word to my single friends, buckle-up and be ready for the most challenging part of your entire life.