---
title: "Presbyterian College in Clinton Grows Korean, Asian Studies"
url: https://www.hereclinton.com/2026/10/21/presbyterian-college-clinton-expands-korean-asian-studies/
date: 2026-10-21T05:29:21-04:00
modified: 2026-10-21T05:30:35-04:00
author: "Vijay Figueroa"
categories: ["Education"]
site: "HERE Clinton"
attribution: "HERE Clinton"
---

# Presbyterian College in Clinton Grows Korean, Asian Studies

> CLINTON, S.C. — Presbyterian College in Clinton is widening the reach of its Center for South Korean and Asian Studies, building a sequence of Korean language courses, deepening ties with universities in South Korea and planning a new summer option in Japan, the college said this week. Ten students are enrolled in Korean 101 right

*Source: [HERE Clinton](https://www.hereclinton.com/2026/10/21/presbyterian-college-clinton-expands-korean-asian-studies/) — October 21, 2026 by Vijay Figueroa*

CLINTON, S.C. — Presbyterian College in Clinton is widening the reach of its Center for South Korean and Asian Studies, building a sequence of Korean language courses, deepening ties with universities in South Korea and planning a new summer option in Japan, the college said this week.

Ten students are enrolled in Korean 101 right now, and they can keep going into Korean 102 and Korean 201. The classes count toward the general education language requirement at PC and are taught online by Hannam University, the South Korean school whose relationship with Presbyterian goes back to 1994.

Last summer the college sent 11 students, its biggest group so far, to Hannam’s Korea Summer Studies Program in Daejeon, a city about an hour south of Seoul. Over three weeks they mixed classes, field trips, cultural activities and travel on their own with Korean students and peers from other American colleges.

History professor Dr. Roy Campbell directs the center. He wants Asian studies to become something that sets PC apart and eventually draws new students to the college, and he wants the programs open to majors well beyond history and languages, from biology to the arts.

College President Dr. Anita Gustafson made a recent trip to South Korea with Campbell. The PC group met with leaders at Hannam and at two women’s universities, Sungshin and Duksung, about closer collaboration. Presbyterian already offers student exchanges of a few weeks or a full semester, plus faculty exchanges, and Campbell sees joint research by professors and students, especially in the sciences, as a promising next step.

China stays in the mix through current partnerships and Chinese language classes. For Japan, the college is planning a summer program that would put PC students on a Japanese university campus for several weeks of study for credit. Campbell also intends to teach a course comparing how Korea, Japan and China dealt with Western influence in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

Back on campus, Korea Scholars at PC can live in a learning community at Carol International House, sharing the building with students from Korea and other parts of East Asia. Students in the program start with a first-year course on present-day Korean culture and then take a year of Korean online with native-speaking instructors. The college lists its Hannam summer program at three to six credit hours, with round-trip airfare covered. Anyone hoping to join must first be admitted to PC and then turn in a separate Korea Scholars application with a one-page essay.