The day that President Obama announced the nomination of College President Jim Yong Kim for the presidency of the World Bank, my Korean friends and family bombarded my inbox with messages even before I had even woken up. Unbeknownst to me, South Korean media outlets had been having a field day, reporting with nationalistic glee that a Korean-American had been elevated to such an important position in the international community.
Many Dartmouth students, alumni and faculty have questioned Kim's commitment to the College. Given the short duration of his tenure thus far, more vitriolic members of the Dartmouth community have lambasted his nomination as a sign that Kim had treated his current position as a mere stepping stone to loftier pursuits. Kim's college presidency has been fraught with contention, which is unsurprising, as one of his primary responsibilities had been to close a $100-million budget gap. His nomination also calls into question Dartmouth's role in his National College Health Improvement Project, as well as numerous long-term initiatives and committees initiated during his term.
Yet my disappointment in Kim is complicated by pride and hope in his taking a role on a stage wider than that of the College itself. Despite his hitherto contentious presidency, Kim has been one of relatively few mainstream Asian-American public figures. Before I even knew of Dartmouth, I had heard of Dr. Kim Yong Kim's Korean moniker since his ascent to the directorship of the World Health Organization's HIV/AIDS department. His subsequent presidency at Dartmouth as the Ivy League's first Asian-American president was one of the contributing factors in my decision to apply and ultimately matriculate to Dartmouth.
Many of my Asian friends chose to see an African-American president's nomination of an Asian-American educator and health professional as a testament to the nascent beginnings of a post-racial American society. While I hesitate to fully share in their optimism, I hope that the spotlight on Kim's nomination as well as other instances of Asian-Americans appearing in mainstream culture, such as Steven Chu's appointment to the U.S. Cabinet and the recent popularity of Jeremy Lin indicate the slow but inexorable breakdown of the "bamboo ceiling:" the existing stereotype of Asian-Americans as meek and passive figures in the periphery of mainstream American society.
A singular, stereotypical Asian-American identity is largely imaginary. Yet the myth of the Asian-American identity persists through both external influences, such as the media, as well as its internal acceptance by those who consider themselves Asian-American. These external and internal powers both collude and compete to provide various multilayered and tenuous definitions of what it means to be Asian-American and blur the line between authentic and inauthentic expressions of Asian-American identities. Kim's nomination has not only shuffled the perceptions of Asian-Americans in popular media, but perhaps among Asians-Americans, as well.
Of course, positive reflection on the Asian-American community is dependent on Kim's performance on the job. Like echoes of earlier concerns at Dartmouth, he has garnered criticism from analysts failing to earn the endorsement of The Economist, for example who have noted his apparent lack of experience in banking or finance, a conspicuous discrepancy compared to the comprehensive resume of current incumbent World Bank President Robert Zoellick, who previously was U.S. Deputy Secretary of State, U.S. Trade Representative and a managing director of Goldman Sachs.
With Kim's eventual ascent to the presidency of the World Bank all but certain, I wish him the best of luck in his new role and thank him for the work he has put into his term at Dartmouth, as controversial as it has been. Yet Kim should also be aware that his work at both Dartmouth and the World Bank both positive or negative will also have an impact on constructing the image of Asian-Americans as leaders in the national and global field. His success in his position will not only assist the beneficiary countries of the World Bank, but it could also allow him to serve as a role model for Asians as well as Asian-Americans to pursue leadership roles, not only in health or medicine in which Asian-Americans are overrepresented but also in national government and international administration.
