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Pepperdine Hosts 24th Annual Korean American Student Conference

The 24th annual Korean American Student Conference (KASCON) comes to Pepperdine University this weekend for a two-day celebration of Korean American culture on Friday and Saturday, Mar. 5 and 6, featuring entertainment, seminars, and presentations. The event culminates in a trip to Downtown Los Angeles for the annual Asian-American talent showcase, Kollaboration 10. 

KASCON originated at Princeton University in 1987, and exists to inspire any undergraduate students, with an interest in Korean American issues, to help expand the Korean American voice.

"The conference is an opportunity to meet and interact with prominent Korean Amercan's who are impacting the community," says senior student Daniel Kim, an economics major who is acting as the executive director of this year's KASCON event. "Hopefully, this will empower and inspire the participants with motivation to advance the Korean American community."

K.W. Lee

Speakers at this year's event include the journalist K.W. Lee, who founded the Korean American Journalists Associations. Born in North Korea and educated in South Korea, Lee emigrated to America in 1950 and became the first Asian immigrant to work in mainstream U.S. journalism, where he covered a variety of social issues. His well-known investigative series about the wrongful murder conviction of Asian immigrant Chol Soo Lee led to Lee's acquittal and inspired the 1989 film, True Believer.

John Suh, the CEO of LegalZoom—a Los Angeles-based, online legal documentation service—will also present a lecture at the event. LegalZoom provides legal documents for a number of legal matters including the creation of wills, intellectual property, and business formation.

John Suh

As well as being an opportunity for cultural enrichment, KASCON 24 will also serve as a networking channel for any and all undergraduate students, by exposing them to a vast field of social and career opportunities. Seminars and career workshops will cover a variety of topics pertinent to the Korean American experience, including discussions about North Korea, Korean American representation in this year's US census, immigration reform, and starting a new business. Click here for a full list of speakers and panelists.

"The opportunity to host KASCON 24 is a privilege and an honor," says Don Lawrence, the director of the Office of Intercultural Affairs at Pepperdine. "It is wonderfully humbling to be aligned with the Korean American community for such a historic event at Pepperdine."

Seriously will perform Friday

Registration, Malibu tours, networking, and dinner, all follow the 1 p.m. start time on Friday, Mar. 5. Evening entertainment includes the comedian Danny Cho and a performance from the Asian American band, Seriously, who won the grand prize at Kollaboration 2006. The group, who recently released their latest single "Been So Long," will perform their self-described unique blend of blues/pop/rock music.

For more information, contact Hana Kim or Don Lawrence at (310) 506-6860.