Stony Brook University SUNY Korea

Charis Asante-Agyei, Class of 2017, majoring in Technological Systems Management, is a proud alumnus of SUNY Korea. He flew all the way from Ghana with his dream to give back to his people what he learned in Korea. 

During his junior year, Charis and his friends from SUNY Korea went on the "African Mission 2016" to Burkina Faso. They planned and organized Science Camp with various fun activities for the children of Burkina Faso. During the camp, Charis said to the kids who were looking at him with such shining eyes: 

"I have a lot of dreams. One of my dreams came true today, and my dream was to give you guys hope… I want you to know that you can do anything you want to do, and then my dream will come true. So, help me make my dream come true."

With his dream of going back to his country and give value to the people, Charis began his graduate school at SUNY Korea after his graduation. Charis, who always puts his heart to his own country, became the first interviewee for SUNY Korea's Alumni series, History Makers. 

My name is Charis Asante-Agyei. I'm from Ghana, and I am a graduate of SUNY Korea.

Why did you choose to come to SUNY Korea?

We got to know SUNY Korea through the Korean Embassy and KOTRA which is the trade association arm of the Korean Government. And my head master suggested that I apply. 

How was your life in Korea in the beginning?

It took just a little getting used to. Food, Transportation, communication… As soon as I got used to those things, it became really convenient, really comfortable, really enjoyable too. 

What do you do now?

I have an internship with a construction equipment manufacturing company, and I'm in the R&D department, which is research and development. So, we are working on new projects that they plan to roll out. 

What's your favorite time of work?

Lunch breaks, where, with my team members we go out, just take a walk, release some stress, and get to know each other better.

How did your major help you?

Research and Development has a lot to do with understanding humanities; so, economics, marketing, and also it has to do with the understanding technological side of things. And TSM (Technological Systems Management) is sort of a merger of the two. So, I had a unique advantage. 

How did SUNY Korea affect your life? 

In my team, I am the only foreigner; I'm the only international person… But because of my ability to interact with people, they also value that, so they actually want to have people with a global mindset, so to speak. So… And SUNY Korea is really, really instrumental in equipping students with that mindset.

Did you achieve the goal you had before graduation? 

I had about three, and this is one of them. So, in a way yes. After this internship, I'll be beginning graduate school, continuing in a sense. That's another plan. Long term, I want to go back to Ghana, where I'm from and give value to the people. In the past 40-50 years, Korea was beginning to pick up the pace, that is where I think Ghana is right now. So many of the things that Korea has put in place, we can also sort of copy and adjust to suit our own situation. So that's what I want to do.

SUNY Korea is …

SUNY Korea is a [bright light]. After coming to SUNY Korea, you begin to see things that you couldn't see before. You begin to see things about yourself that you didn't know before. And I used light, not just for direction, but also because it shows you what to do. A lot more than this… But I think this also captures a really huge component of SUNY Korea.
So, SUNY Korea is a [bright light].

To watch the interview, CLICK HERE