Concerns and Issues in Won Buddhism

Bokin Kim, Ph.D., President Emerita, Won Institute of Graduate Studies (PA)

Dr. Bokin Kim was the second president of the Won Institute of Graduate Studies, a small specialized graduate school in Glenside, PA. Dr. Kim is an ordained Won Buddhist minister and one of the founding members of the Won Buddhist Temple in of Philadelphia. Won Buddhism is a reformed Buddhism founded 100 years ago in Korea with thirty temples in the United States. Dr. Kim completed her PhD in religion at Temple University (PA) and her undergraduate work in Korea. She is an expert on Won Buddhism and author of Concerns and Issues in Won Buddhism, which is one of the few books that provides an extensive overview of Won Buddhism for an English-speaking audience.

Dr. Kim was the pivotal influence in the founding of the Won Institute of Graduate Studies, which started with seven pioneering students in 2002. She served as Academic Dean from 2002-2010. Under her academic leadership the Institute is regionally and programmatically accredited and has organized many national and international conferences dealing with an array of issues, including visions for Won Buddhism, women’s spirituality, medicine and spirituality, trends in Buddhist studies, and meditation studies.

Dr. Kim was appointed as the second President in 2011 and ushered in the second decade of the Won Institute. Under her leadership the Institute has renewed its mission of promoting the wellbeing of individuals and society by offering quality graduate-level education emphasizing spiritual and personal development and professional achievement. Dr. Kim has clarified and reaffirmed that mission by identifying Integrative Education as the Institute’s educational philosophy and identity.

Dr. Kim’s vision is for the Institute to become a recognized leader in delivering Integrative Education by integrating academic studies with spiritual cultivation; through innovative teaching and research in the areas of Won Buddhist edification, meditation practice, and acupuncture and herbal studies by operating successful clinics based on integrative medicine and a variety of acupuncture.

Dr. Kim moved to Hawaii and is residing at the Internation Retreat Center of Hawaii in 2024 after retiring the Institute in 2023. Dr. Kim loves watching sunsets at the beach and is thankful for warm weather of Hawaii. Dr. Kim would like to keep her rhythm of life like tides: steady and changing.