ABOUT
Korean American Outreach Group (KAOG) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization established in 2015 with the mission of outreaching to vulnerable communities in order to share resources that improve individual lives.
KAOG provides technical assistance, consultation, and training to support local community organizations, coalitions, and health service providers to develop community health programs and policy initiatives. By partnering with universities and local public health departments, KAOG has been successful in assisting with a wide range of outreach initiatives to underserved Asian American communities.
KAOG ensures the delivery of culturally and linguistically responsive services to traditionally underserved, multicultural communities by utilizing its strong ties with community leaders, faith-based organizations, and ethnic media. We are committed to building and expanding a culturally diverse staff that enables us to effectively serve our targeted communities.
Founder & President of the Board of Directors
Soo Yee M.S.Ed., CHES
Ms. Soo Yee is an educator, consultant, strategist, and Certified Health Education Specialist (CHES). Ms. Yee completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland. After attending Johns Hopkins University’s Nursing Program, she earned Master’s degree in Health Education from Baylor University.
Ms. Yee devoted eight years as a Community Health Specialist for Fairfax County Health Department. She is a Certified Master Trainer of the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program (CDSMP) as well as the Diabetes Self-Management Program created by Stanford University; this qualifies her to develop and conduct CDSMP workshops and train community leaders. She has implemented CDSMP in Korean, Chinese and Vietnamese communities.
Ms. Yee has also served on a panel discussion, representing Virginia State on the national panel for “Improving Lives: AoA Health and Dementia Grantee Meeting.” She presented the “Reaching Diverse Populations” session.
In addition, Ms. Yee has completed the Fundamentals of Emergency Management, by the National Emergency Management Training Center and contributed to the preparation of HHS’s Office of Minority Health’s Facilitator Guide to the Cultural Competency Curriculum for Disaster Preparedness and Crisis Response. She was involved in the full scope of the H1N1 Pandemic emergency situation, including community preparedness and response. She linked community organizations with federal, state, and local service providers.
During her time as a Community Health Specialist, Ms. Yee became deeply committed to serving vulnerable communities with limited English by helping them navigate through the complex government health systems. In her spare time, she shared her knowledge and expertise in community outreach strategies for numerous projects relating to public health, including projects sponsored by Johns Hopkins, University of Maryland, National Korean American Medical Association, Hepatitis B Initiative-DC, and American Red Cross.
Ms. Yee is also the Founder and Executive Director of Oxford Academy, a prestigious program that she established in 2007 to assist Korean American students in preparing for their entrance into top-notch colleges and universities in the US.
Ms. Yee currently oversees the operations of KAOG as well as staff training, ensuring quality program services.
KAOG Team
Hyeong-il Kwak
PhD, Youth Advocacy and L.E.A.D Advisor
Dr. Kwak provides support for students in the Youth Advocacy and L.E.AD. program by mentoring students who are interested in pursuing scientific research for the purpose of health advocacy. Dr. Kwak supports students who study science and medicine by identifying research opportunities for youth while serving as an advisory on scientific educational activities. Dr. Kwak has over 15 years of scientific research experience and is currently conducting research at the National Cancer Institute at the National Institution of Health (NIH). He has received multiple awards and honors for his scientific presentations and has over 21 published research collaborations. Dr. Kwak has strong knowledge of toxicology and veterinary medicine; he works closely with leading international researchers.
J.C. Kim
PhD, Youth Advocacy and L.E.A.D Advisor
Dr. Kim serves as a mentor for team building activities. His consistent involvement in teaching and research in collegiate sport, sport policy, international sport business and research methods help in guiding our students to the right resources and opportunities such as athletic scholarships. Furthermore, Dr. Kim’s numerous positions and published research articles assist our students in developing the proper mindset needed in the sports field – discipline, team spirit, commitment and drive. In addition to being the Associate Professor at a university level Sport Management Program, the editorial review board member for the Journal of Sport Safety and Security and the college professor of the Marketing Department, Dr. Kim hopes to further utilize his strong, sports knowledge by helping the Korean community in the U.S. to advance.
Hee Young Park
Youth Advocacy and L.E.A.D Recruiter
Ms. Park has over 10 years of experience planning and executing international education programs. In addition to KAOG’s Youth Advocacy and L.E.A.D program, Ms. Park serves as a Program Manager for the Global Education Center, Seoul National University in Seoul, Korea where she leads and coordinates study abroad, internship and fellowship opportunities for Korean youth. She has in depth expertise in monitoring and evaluating education trends that guide the development of new programs for international students. In addition, Ms. Park conducts third party outreach with a focus on businesses around education initiatives to solicit potential partners. Prior to working with education organizations, Ms. Park was a reporter and education program coordinator for the Korea Daily Newspaper in Washington, DC, covering topical news stories on education.
Juliann Park
Public Information Officer
Juliann crafts the most accurate messages for our Korean American target audience through a variety of channels. She builds and maintains a fortified relationship with our audience through our KAOG website and social media platforms. In addition, she integrates print and digital layouts to attract and inform the Korean American community. Her desire to get more personally involved with her Korean community and her love for helping others serves well in accomplishing the goals of KAOG.
Shu-Ting Liang
Chinese Health Educator
Shu-Ting educates the public with good food choices and daily recommended intake of nutrients for Chinese population with a background of certified dietitian in Taiwan. Her research was about the association between self-directed and non self-directed violence such as bully and suicidal thinking and injury rate among adolescent students in central America. Besides her profession, her strong organizational and interpersonal ability helped KAOG to build up trust and connection with Chinese-speaking population.
Mi Yun Ju
Public Information Officer