Alumnus fulfills dream with $1M gift

Updated 10:00 AM August 16, 2004

Alumnus fulfills dream with $1M gift

By Eleanor Shelton
International Institute

Elder Sang-Yong Nam has earmarked a $1 million gift to be used by three programs within the University in support of greater understanding and collaboration between the U-M community and Korea.

A $500,000 gift to LSA will establish the Elder Sang-Yong Nam and Mrs. Moon-Sook Nam Endowment Fund. The funds will be used in support of the Korean Studies Program, part of the International Institute.

Nam also is giving $200,000 to the A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture + Urban Planning (TCAUP) to establish the Elder Sang-Yong Nam and Mrs. Moon-Sook Nam Fund for a student and faculty exchange program with Chung-Ang University, and for merit scholarships for architecture and urban planning students from other Korean institutions as endorsed by the Korean Institute of Architects (KIA).

The third Nam gift of $300,000 has enabled the Museum of Art to acquire the Bruce and Inta Hasenkamp collection of Korean art.

In 1964, all Nam wanted to do was come to the United States and continue his advanced studies. With the help of several people from Ann Arbor and U.S. government workers in Korea, Nam's dream was fulfilled when he was accepted into the City Planning Program at TCAUP.

"I was thrilled when I found out that I was accepted. From that day on, I was a Michigan man," Nam says. "From that first moment, I loved the University of Michigan."

After graduating in 1966, Nam took a job as senior planner for the Washtenaw County Metropolitan Planning Commission. In 1974, he bought his first piece of commercial real estate, and by 1980, the Nam Building Management Co. was born. Today he owns 452 rental units in 50 buildings throughout Washtenaw County. Nam also was instrumental in the development of the Korean Studies Program at the University.

"Elder and Mrs. Sang-Yong Nam have been a great support to the Korean Studies Program in both their enthusiasm and resources," says Meredith Woo-Cumings, director of the Korean Studies Program.

Nam is a lifetime member of the U-M Alumni Association, the President's Club—where he is recognized in the prestigious Presidential Societies at the Angell Society level that acknowledges cumulative gifts to the University of $1 million or more—and the John Monteith Society. He is active in the Rotary Club and is an adjunct professor at Yanbian University of Science and Technology in China.

"We arrive empty handed and we leave empty handed," Nam says. "If I make more money, I'll give more money away."

To find out more about the Korean Studies Program, visit http://www.umich.edu/~iinet/ksp/geninfo.html.

Alumnus fulfills dream with $1M gift

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