Sonia Kim was named to the Glenbrook High School District 225 Board of Education Feb. 8.
GLENVIEW/NORTHBROOK — Glenbrook School District 225’s newest Board of Education member brings a parent’s perspective and a Harvard University Ph.D. to her new position.
Sonia Kim of Glenview was appointed Feb. 8 by a unanimous vote of the current board to fill the vacancy created Jan. 25 when Cindy Wilkas resigned because she was relocating to Colorado, according to a news release from the district.
A former high school teacher and the managing director of marketing and educational programs at Northwestern University, Kim said the experiences of her three children help guide her when it comes to important issues that could come before the board.
“I’m really involved with my kids in their learning,” Kim said. “I used to be a teacher and I work with them on their skills. My masters in education was in teaching and curriculum so it comes natural to me.”
That masters’ degree was also from Harvard like her Ph.D. in cell and developmental biology. As an undergraduate, she was a biology major at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Kim said she also wants to use her new position to get the perspective of others with children in the two high schools as well as all residents of Northbrook and Glenview.
“Now that I am here I want to be the ears of the community,” Kim said.
Board Vice President Bob Boron said in an email Kim’s background brings a unique perspective to the board.
“Dr. Kim has a substantial background in science and education, and has taught at the high school level,” Boron said in the email. “In addition, she is involved in entrepreneurial pursuits, both individually and in her employment. This unique combination of skills will be of value to the board and the district.”
One issue Kim has developed is a sensitivity about watching her children go through school — she has one currently in the district and two more who will go to school there — is what she calls an overuse of technology where the burden of the process can overcome the value of the learning.
“My daughter was doing an assignment she had to submit online,” Kim said. “She got the answers right but (inputting) it was time consuming. For some reason it was not accepting the answers.”
Kim said she wants children to get the learning benefits from technology in a district where every student has an electronic device to use, but does not want them to get bogged down in the process of using the machine.
“I don’t want (students) to get caught in the glitches,” Kim said.
Science and technology are the essence of Kim’s work at Northwestern. She said she works with faculty members to learn of their inventions, oversees getting patents and then markets the use of the discoveries to the commercial world.
“I look to market the technology to commercial partners for licensing opportunities,” Kim said. “If we get it in the public domain the public can benefit.”
School safety and assuring Glenbrook North and Glenbrook South High Schools maintain their high standing on both the North Shore and in the country are high priority issues for her.