PP: What is your favorite thing about EARJ?
JD: My favorite thing about EARJ is going home at the end of the day so I don’t have to see you guys ever hahaha. My favorite thing about EARJ is the potential of the opportunity, EA is a school with a rich and long deep history with many alumni still in the community, and even some that work here, like Mr. Paulo for example.
PP: Where else have you lived and worked in the world? What place did you enjoy the most?
JD: I’ve moved here from South Korea, where I’ve lived in three different places for three and a half years. Before, I lived in the United States. I was born and raised in the States in Phoenix, Arizona, so altogether this is my second country outside of my home.
PP: Did you go to college, and what advice would you give to people when choosing one?
JD: I went to Arizona State University (ASU) – go devils loud and proud. My advice to those who are starting the college application process now is to do your research. The name doesn't matter, at the end of the day, it’s what the school offers and what you’re looking for and invested in. The school itself is a name, like “I want to go to Harvard”, cool, and what? If it doesn’t offer the course you’re interested in, it’s pointless. So do your research before, it’s not about the name, it’s the program that you’re interested in.
PP: How have different cultures you’ve interacted with and experienced changed your perspective on the world?
JD: Brazil is an open country, the culture is amazing. I consider myself an extroverted person and this is a very extroverted culture – not to generalize. I like always having something to do. Korea has a traditional culture, it’s not inactive, not that you can’t go out and do things, but it has a traditional culture that teaches you to understand your elderly. When you think of the hierarchical system and how you have to approach certain conversations, it’s always about respect. Brazil has helped me with being open and Korea helped me with being respectful and understanding the dynamics within conversations, workplaces, and social life. The States is home, it is its own beast; it’s where I learned to interact. Teaching there, I didn't start off at a school like EA or the one in Korea, I started off teaching low-income students. I went into classrooms with no books, when I opened up a book the pages fell out. I went to a school where a police officer was assigned to every class, in an elementary school, not a high school or a middle school. I had students who lost their siblings to gun violence, and students whose parents were never there. I didn't come from that background, I wasn’t low income, my parents were middle class, I was supported as a kid. So teaching taught me to empathize. Then I went to Korea, and taught über-rich kids; their parents were doctors and lawyers, they would be picked up by their drivers in Benz and range rovers, and I was startled. In my first year, I had a culture shock, it was just black and white. I took that experience and started teaching in public schools in Korea. In public schools you don't really get a say, as a foreign teacher, the government just puts you somewhere. I taught in a school close to the border and it was in the middle of nowhere, which was really interesting because I saw the difference in the dynamics in that country. I was learning to empathize with another culture and see how different lives can be. I went from that to an international school, it’s like night and day but you’re diving into the light. On my first day, I had co-teachers come up to me and be like “oh that’s such and such” around the famous parents and I was like “yeah I taught their kid a couple of days ago”. It was interesting, going from different countries, taught me empathy and how to work with other people and understand other people's experiences.
PP: How has your experience living in Rio been?
JD: I love it, it’s fun, I mean it’s Rio. I've always wanted to live in Rio. I loved soccer as a kid and I loved Cobi Jones - he was the only person I knew, but my number one was Pelé of course. When my mom got me this picture of Cobi Jones and one of Pelé, I was like who is Pelé? She was like, he’s Brazilian, and I never saw anyone like me playing soccer. At first, I was confused, but then I learned that he was the greatest. Then I was like “I want to be like Pelé, I want to go to Brazil” and I started seeing all of these cultural references to Brazil. I would love to be in Rio, and it’s just interesting how the world works out because here I am.
PP: What is something not many people know about you?
JD: I have a dog, I guess. Just a fun fact if you ever decide to travel around the world: don't get a dog, it’s the most expensive thing ever and it's worse than taking a child - even though I don't have one. I have a sheltie, she's a princess, my wife loves her to death and also doesn't love her because all she does is stay at home. She's like a cat, we call her “cat”sie and her name is Cassie. She kind of sits all day spoiled in the air conditioning. I also like sneakers, I’ve purchased a bunch of them. I actually have the Gibson guitar dunks on right now, which I’ve had since junior year. This is back before you whipper-snappers knew what sneakers were, we would actually trade sneakers like trading cards, before stock x and everything saturated the market, so I haven't been able to make any purchases recently.
PP: What advice would you give yourself 10 years ago?
JD: Ten years ago, where was I ten years ago? I’ll relate it to a high school context; take it slow, not necessarily slow but take your time. Be strategic, design it, plan it – and that's the irony of it, wanting to be a designer, I didn't really sit back and think about it, I tried to rush everything. In university, I pushed myself. Something that a lot of students feel is that you have to rush it, whether it's parental, self, peer, or societal pressure. Take your time, you’re not gonna get another chance, and if you do it and make a mistake, that mistake can cost you. So you always want to be wise about it, sometimes it feels like the wrong decision but in the end, it works out, take your time.
PP: What message do you have for EARJ students?
JD: Stop running over the first, second, third graders, and preschoolers, please, I teach middle and high, however, I get the feedback from lower school that high schoolers are not being very cognizant, mindful, and respectful to our lower school peers. Just be aware of your surroundings and who's around you. One thing I learned around the world is to set an example. Whether you like it or not, someone is gonna be looking up to you, especially in a school environment. Kids look up to you as if you're God. Make sure you're taking wise principled decisions, be balanced, and make sure you're balancing academics with your social life, take academics seriously.
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