Jim Yong Kim facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Jim Yong Kim 김용
Kim in 2018
12th President of the World Bank Group
In office July 1, 2012 – February 1, 2019
Chief Executive	Kristalina Georgieva
Preceded by	Robert Zoellick
Succeeded by	Kristalina Georgieva (Acting)
17th President of Dartmouth College
In office July 1, 2009 – June 30, 2012
Preceded by	James Wright
Succeeded by	Philip J. Hanlon
Personal details
Born	(1959-12-08) December 8, 1959 (age 65) Seoul, South Korea
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Younsook Lim
Children	2
Education	University of Iowa Brown University (BS) Harvard University (MD, PhD)

Kim at the World Economic Forum in 2013

Jim Yong Kim (Hangul: 김용; born December 8, 1959), also known as Kim Yong, is an American doctor and expert on human societies. He was the 12th president of the World Bank from 2012 to 2019.

Kim is a leader in global health. Before joining the World Bank, he was a professor at Harvard Medical School. He also helped start and lead an organization called Partners In Health. From 2009 to 2012, he was the President of Dartmouth College. He was the first Asian American to lead an Ivy League university.

In 2013, Forbes Magazine named him the 50th most powerful person in the world.

Early Life and Education

Jim Yong Kim was born in Seoul, South Korea, in 1959. When he was five years old, his family moved to the U.S. He grew up in Muscatine, Iowa. His father was a dentistry professor, and his mother had a PhD in philosophy.

Kim went to Muscatine High School. He was the top student in his class and also the class president. He played quarterback on the football team and point guard on the basketball team. After attending the University of Iowa for a year and a half, he moved to Brown University. He graduated from Brown in 1982 with a degree in human biology.

He later earned his medical degree (M.D.) from Harvard Medical School in 1991. In 1993, he received a PhD in anthropology from Harvard University. He was one of the first students in Harvard's special MD/PhD program that combined medicine with social sciences.

Career Highlights

Partners in Health: Helping People (1987–2003)

In 1987, Kim helped start an organization called Partners In Health (PIH). He co-founded it with Paul Farmer and others. PIH started by creating new healthcare programs in Haiti. These programs focused on the needs of local communities. They also trained community members to help deliver healthcare.

By the early 1990s, the program in Haiti was helping over 100,000 people. PIH found ways to treat serious diseases like tuberculosis at a very low cost. For example, curing a tuberculosis patient at home cost $150-$200. This would have cost much more in a U.S. hospital. Kim played a key role in creating these treatment plans. He also helped get cheaper, more effective medicines.

PIH expanded its work to Peru in 1994. By 1998, their success in treating common and serious illnesses was noticed. The World Health Organization (WHO) began to support this community-based care model. They encouraged its use in poor communities worldwide. PIH had great success treating multi-drug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). This led international groups to renew efforts to stop the disease. In 2002, the WHO adopted similar treatment methods that PIH used in Peru. Kim's work with PIH was the first large-scale effort to treat MDR-TB in a poor country. These efforts have since been copied in over 40 countries.

PIH now employs more than 13,000 people in 12 countries. Kim left PIH as executive director in 2003. His work with PIH is shown in the 2017 film Bending the Arc.

Working with the World Health Organization (2003–2006)

In 2003, Kim joined the World Health Organization (WHO). He became an adviser to the director-general. In 2004, he was named director of WHO's HIV/AIDS department. He had already created successful programs to fight HIV/AIDS at PIH.

Kim oversaw all of WHO's work on HIV/AIDS. He focused on helping developing countries improve their treatment, prevention, and care programs. This included a big plan called "3x5 initiative." The goal was to get three million people in developing countries on AIDS treatment by the end of 2005. This goal was reached in 2007. However, WHO says it helped speed up AIDS treatment in AIDS in Africa. By 2012, the program had treated over 7 million Africans with HIV.

Teaching at Harvard University (1993–2009)

Starting in 1993, Kim taught at Harvard Medical School. He became a professor of medicine, social medicine, and human rights. When he left in 2009, Kim was the head of the Department of Global Health and Social Medicine. He also led the Division of Global Health Equity at Brigham and Women's Hospital. He was also director of the François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights at the Harvard School of Public Health.

During his time at Harvard, Kim wrote many articles for important scientific journals. These included New England Journal of Medicine and The Lancet. He also contributed to several books. As an expert on tuberculosis, Kim led or served on many committees about international TB policy.

The cover of The Dartmouth newspaper, announcing Jim Yong Kim as Dartmouth's 17th President.

Leading Dartmouth College (2009–2012)

In March 2009, Kim became the 17th president of Dartmouth College. He was the first Asian-American president of an Ivy League school. He started several new programs at Dartmouth. These programs used his experience in healthcare and international affairs.

In January 2010, Kim helped Dartmouth students and staff work with Partners In Health. They responded to the terrible 2010 Haiti earthquake. This effort was called the Dartmouth Haiti Response. It raised over $1 million in donations. It also sent 18 tons of medical supplies and 25 volunteer medical workers to Haiti. Hundreds of student volunteers also helped on campus.

In April 2010, Kim started the National College Health Improvement Project (NCHIP). This project brings together experts to find ways to improve student health. In May 2010, Kim helped get a $35 million donation. This money was used to create the Dartmouth Center for Health Care Delivery Science. This center created a new field of study. It helps researchers and doctors work together internationally. Their goal is to create new ways to provide high-quality, low-cost healthcare.

Leading the World Bank (2012–2019)

Barack Obama announces Dr. Jim Yong Kim as his choice to lead the World Bank.

On March 23, 2012, U.S. President Barack Obama announced that he wanted Kim to be the next president of the World Bank. On the same day, Kim wrote a letter to the Dartmouth community. He said the World Bank was "one of the most critical institutions fighting poverty and providing assistance to developing countries." He accepted the nomination.

On April 16, 2012, the World Bank officially elected Kim as its president. He was the first World Bank leader who was not from politics or finance. He was also the first to have worked directly on health issues in developing countries.

When he became president, Kim said the World Bank would work harder to support growth. He wanted to focus on solutions that were proven to work. He also wanted to make sure the voices of developing countries were heard.

On September 27, 2016, Kim was chosen again to be the World Bank president. His second term started on July 1, 2017. However, on January 7, 2019, Kim announced he would step down early, on February 1, 2019. He later joined a company called Global Infrastructure Partners.

Personal Life

Jim Yong Kim is married to Younsook Lim, who is a pediatrician (a doctor for children). They have two children.

Kim enjoys many sports, including basketball, volleyball, tennis, and golf. He speaks Korean, which he learned when he was 24. He also speaks Spanish.

Awards and Recognition

Kim has received many honors for his work.

• In 2003, he received a MacArthur Fellowship. This is a special award given to talented people.
• In 2005, U.S. News & World Report named him one of America's 25 Best Leaders.
• In 2006, Time Magazine listed him as one of the top 100 most influential people in the world.
• He is a member of the Institute of Medicine of the United States National Academies.
• In 2010, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

See also

In Spanish: Jim Yong Kim para niños