Dr. Soo Bock Choi
1928 - 2006
After a wonderful and meaningful life, Dr. Soo Bock Choi died quietly on March 2, 2006 at 5:40 a.m. at St. Mary's Hospital in Huntington, WV. He had been diagnosed with cancer last summer, and, except for the last three weeks, lived his life almost as fully as he ever had.
Dr. Choi retired as a Distinguished Professor Emeritus of International Politics at Marshall University in 1996 after over 32 years of teaching there in the Political Science Department. During his tenure, he taught over 15,000 students, was involved closely with numerous university committees and associations, received numerous awards and citations for his teaching and service to the university and community, spoke often in public arenas, and researched and wrote extensively in the areas of political science and thought.
One of his happiest and most satisfying achievements was his creation of the MU International Student Club and its annual cultural festival over 42 years ago. Initially, there were only 11 members from the entire university representing its international community; today, membership flourishes with over 1,000 festival participants and attendees this past November. The creation of this club and festival manifested Dr. Choi's firm belief that students could learn a great deal by interacting with others from a variety of backgrounds and cultures.
Among other things, Dr. Choi also established Marshall as a center to administer law school admission tests; with former mayor Bobby Nelson, he proclaimed Korean Day in 1992 with an exhibit and both the American and Korean flags flying over City Hall; was officially recognized by the State Legislature for his contributions to the community; and was instrumental in inviting and welcoming Asian dignitaries and officials to the Huntington area and Marshall campus. He remained a dynamic and vital figure in the university and Huntington area after his retirement in 1996.
In 1927, Dr. Choi was born in a small farming village in southeastern Korea
where educational opportunities were limited. Rather than conform to the limitations
of the time and place in which he was born, Dr. Choi maximized his educational
opportunities to the fullest. After completing his high school education - no
small feat then - he attended the prestigious Seoul National University (College
of Arts and Sciences). The Korean War disrupted his education there. He was
in the Korean Army for five years, becoming Captain and the only Korean officer
to be awarded the U.S. Bronze Star for ground combat against the enemy.
Determined to come to America, in 1955, he enrolled in Stetson, where two of
his professors were from West Virginia (Fort Gay and Charleston). He obtained
his B.A. a short time later in 1956. In 1957 he received his M.A. from the University
of Kentucky. After marrying Chin Choi in 1959, he obtained his Ph.D from the
University of Maryland in 1963. The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.,
maintains his doctoral dissertation on political in hermetic Korea.
In 1963, after being recruited by several universities, Dr. Choi began teaching
at Marshall in the areas of politics and Western political thought. He was the
first Asian professor appointed a full-time member of the MU faculty. As a professor,
Dr. Choi was affiliated with numerous other university organizations, including
the Pre-Law Program, the University Honors Program, College Democrats, the Student
Senate, minority student organizations, the political theory club, and the East-West
Cultural Exchange.
Many students and fellow professors, as well as many others from all walks of
life, will remember Dr. Choi as an interested and fully engaged participant
in life. He was continually interested in the lives of others - their interests,
their goals, and their role in the community. He felt that teaching was unequivocally
his greatest accomplishment and contribution to the university and the Huntington
area. And he sincerely wanted to be remembered as a teacher who combined knowledge
with community service. As a life-long student and teacher of political theory
and philosophy, Dr. Choi understood that students learn by doing a variety of
things: by reading, writing, thinking, participating, and, above all, by questioning.
In teaching, Dr. Choi asked questions, he did not answer them; he moderated
class discussions. He led the students, re-directed them, helped them untie
knotty problems, and asked more questions, always mindful that not all questions
may be answerable. In this way, Dr. Choi led many on the quest for truth, enlightenment
and intellectual stimulation. His calling was to educate, and that is what he
did.
Dr. Choi's wife and two daughters remember him with great love and affection.
Written by Eumi Choi, daughter of Dr. Soo Bock Choi.
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