Soseul Park (she/her)

Ph.D. in Education

At UCLA, my role as a teacher allows me to use multilingual skills to foster cross-cultural communication. With over a decade of experience as a Spanish, English, and Korean interpreter and language instructor, I specialize in building connections across diverse communities, particularly marginalized and underrepresented ones. One of my recent accomplishments was developing Tennessee’s inaugural Korean language curriculum, reflecting my commitment to advancing language education.

My doctoral goal at UCLA is to revitalize Korean language and culture within Korean descendant communities who primarily speak Spanish and Indigenous languages such as Mayan Yucateco. Since founding Korean Mérida in 2013, I have offered Korean courses, organized workshops to connect Mayan speakers and Koreans, and coordinated cultural events, such as a Squid Game, inspired by Netflix show in Yucatán supported by local schools and government institutions. My academic affiliation with UNAM in Yucatán further strengthens this mission, as it provides a platform to help reclaim and preserve the Korean language and heritage more than 120 years after the first Korean migration to the region. Korean Merida Timeline (2013-2025) is attached here.

Degree Program

Ph.D. in Education

Expected Graduation Year

2029

Interests

Faculty Advisor

Teresa L. McCarty

Education

Ph.D. University of California, Los Angeles (2025-2029)
MAT Austin Peay State University (2020)

Awards, Honors, and Fellowships

Awards/Scholarships/Fellowships

University of California, Los Angeles, Gordon and Olga Smith Scholarship of $30000, 2025
University of California, Los Angeles Teaching Assistant Scholarship, 2023, 2024
Austin Peay State University Teaching Assistant Scholarship, 2018, 2019, 2020
Merit-based Scholarship, Pukyong National University, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011
Project-based Travel Grant to California – 2nd place, Pukyong National University, 2011
Sisain Magazine University Award – Best Article of the Year under the University Category 2010

Service to the School, Rossview High School

2018 Fall – 2023 SPRING CMCSS Translator and Interpreter for Korean Families
2018 Fall – 2023 SPRING Korean Language Curriculum Development Lead Teacher
2021 Fall – 2023 SPRING After School Program – Korean Language and Culture Tutoring

Grants/Awards Committee, Austine Peay State University

2022 – World Language Caroling Event Korean Organizer with the Foreign Language Department
2022 – APSU World Language Fair Korean Coordinator
2021 – APSU Virtual World Language Fair Korean Coordinator
2019 – World Language Caroling Event Korean Organizer with the Foreign Language Department
2018 – 2023 Asian Studies Minor Supporter and Study Abroad to Korea Coordinator

Grants/Awards Committee, Rossview High School

2022 – Korean Cultural Festival and Korean Food Competition coordinator and judge, field trip to Korea town in Atlanta coordinator with Korean Education Center in Atlanta
2019 – Korean cultural Festival coordinator and judge, Korean essay contest coordinator and judge, Field trip to Korea town in Atlanta coordinator with Korean Education Center in Atlanta
2019 – 1st Korean Cultural Festival coordinator and judge, Korean essay contest coordinator and judge
2018 – 1st Field trip to Korea town in Atlanta coordinator with Korean Education Center in Atlanta

Service to the Profession, Community Service

2024 – Community Programs Office at University of California, Los Angeles – Departmental Intern
2023 – City of Clarksville, Tennessee, Asian Pacific Islander Festival Committee – Korean Booth, National Anthem in Korean, Korean Performance Coordinator
2016 – Present BBB Korea – Spanish-Korean Voluntary Interpreter
2015 – Gwangju Summer Universiade Organizing Committee Interpreter – Brazil
2015 – 2024 Oficinal Económica y Comercial de la Embajada de España en Seúl – Spanish Interpreter for the Spanish Embassy

Certificate

2023 Certificate of Korean Language Teacher (Level 1), Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Credential ID 23-14-0006
2023 Single Subject Teaching Credential, California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, Credential ID 230209024
2022 20th International Conference of Korean Educators Abroad, Ministry of Education of Republic of Korea Credential ID 2022-234
2021 Classroom Organization & Management Program, Vanderbilt Peabody College
2021 BU Wheelock STARTALK Teacher Academy, Boston University
2021 Other World Language Pk-12 Teacher License, Tennessee Department of Education, Credential ID 000723595
2018 Teaching Korean as a Foreign Language Program Certificate, Washington University in St. Louis
2017 Diplomas de Español como Lengua Extranjera B2 – Instituto Cervantes
2016 Certificate of Korean Language Teacher (Level 2), Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Credential ID 1622832

Select Presentations

Select Publications

Park, S., Harden, C., & Lee, A. (2024). Incorporating cultural activities in K-16 Korean curriculum in Tennessee: Enhancing motivation and engagement. Tennessee Educational Leadership Journal, 50.