Jennifer Kim was nominated by her colleague, Kymberley Brinkley.
Ms. Kim displays leadership at Dallas International School (DIS) on a daily basis, whether it be in meetings with administration, advocating for students and teachers, or working on changing the format of transcripts to better present students to universities. She takes the initiative to help students create more activities and extracurricular clubs to not only get them more involved, but for the purposes of setting them up for success in the future as they learn leadership skills and work toward building community within DIS.
Every day, the counseling office is a safe space for students. Many students drop by between classes to simply chat or to ask questions about college essays or schoolwork. Ms. Kim has created a space where kids naturally want to congregate and connect. Currently, Ms. Kim is working on bringing more focused curriculum to DIS to help kids with character development and further her school’s efforts to meet students' academic and social/emotional needs.
Ms. Kim works diligently to advocate for students, with fixed attention on making wise choices, ensuring that kids are her main focus.
"I passionately believe that Jennifer makes a deep impact on every person she encounters at DIS - students, teachers, parents, and administrators alike," Brinkley said. "Students at Dallas International School feel cared for, fought for, and prepared as they embark on their lives after high school because Jennifer is leading the Counseling department."
Mrs. Kim is an excellent counselor, one who was helped me with many different challenges or obstacles, as well as helping me start a new club at DIS. I am very thankful for her and know that everyone at my school is extremely lucky to have her!
In the two years that I have had Mrs. Kim as a counsellor, I can confidently say that she is one of the best High School Counsellors a school could ever have. Mrs. Kim's almost unparalleled dedication to the success of her students both in and out of school have helped many students (me included) as they go through High School. Mrs. Kim's door is constantly open, and her friendly attitude is contagious, and students regularly come into her office, be it for help with high school, college applications, or even simply to chat! One of her most valuable traits is her ability to see the light at the end of the tunnel. She has been there at my every success and failure in my senior year of high school, and gave me the motivation to push through to the end of the year. Mrs. Kim is very deserving of the award she is being nominated for, as her contributions to the Dallas International School community have been and will continue to be instrumental to student success at our school.
As a student at DIS, Mrs. Kim helped me go through a stressful and confusing college application process. As an alumna, she now continues to help me with opportunities, and guide me when needed. In the short year I have known her, Mrs. Kim has helped motivate me and direct my abilities into achievable goals. And as she helped me, she helped others in our community, and for that reason, she is greatly deserving of the Life Changer of the Year award.
Mrs. Kim is not only an excellent counselor but an amazing person who has a postive impact on everyone at DIS. She has worked tirelessly to ensure the success of our student government which is now flourishing thanks to her. She is also an incredible college counselor who has pushed and guided our seniors through the college application process to go to the best school possible, all while preparing the juniors and even the sophomores for the journey ahead. She is also a very positive asset and resource for the DIS student body, as she is always searching for new ways to improve student life and push all of the students to be the best that they can be. Mrs. Kim leads by example as she is extremely driven but also kind, which would explain the fact that students feel comfortable around her and come to her not only regarding college applications but also to talk, ask questions, or even have a good laugh. Mrs. Kim has single-handedly changed the college counseling department at DIS and still manages to find time to be a positive presence in students' lives, and I truly believe that I can speak for the entire student body when I say that I am eternally grateful for her role and presence at DIS.
To have met Jennifer Kim is to have met the very best counselor a school needs.
We are the lucky ones: She has impacted and continues to change lives at DIS, students and parents alike.
In her always friendly and positive manner, Jennifer Kim carefully listens and sincerely cares. She straightforwardly answers your questions and is undeniably resourceful.
She demonstrates her commitment to her profession in small and big ways, during and after high school.
As a parent, I am profoundly grateful for Ms Kim!
I'm so thankful that Mrs. Kim came to Dallas International School when she did. She took a senior class that was wavering and uninformed about a lot of the college process and gave us the tools, the support, and the real advice we needed not only to get into the universities we wanted but also to dream bigger and see how to continue our ambitions once on campus. Mrs. Kim was always a great encouraging, uplifting presence that I could go to for anything, she'd help me with any college questions I had but would also be there to talk whenever. She is a valuable resource and support for the high school students at DIS and pushes them to follow through and realistically attain their goals. She's definitely helped shape and change my life!
I just would like to say that Mrs. Kim is a very good college counselor and helped a lot of our students to enter to some good universities.
She is really an asset to our school.
One of the best college counselors I know of!
Dr Kim is very knowledgeable in the field she works in. She helped me and many others tremendously in choosing our way forward after graduating from High School.
She is a valuable asset to DIS, an incredible help to the students and an all round great person.
Mrs. Kim pushed my peers and I to achieve our potential and to succeed during our intense college application process. She was both supportive of our aspirations and clear about what each of us had to accomplish in order to achieve our goals. She was always ready to dedicate her personal time to helping me with college essays and she did not fail to be a listening ear as I figured out what I wanted to do after high school. Her office was always a safe space for my peers and I to go to between classes and during breaks to talk and laugh about anything. To this day, Mrs. Kim continues to support me in my college endeavors and to congratulate me on my new accomplishments. Mrs. Kim was truly a driver of change in the college counseling department at DIS and she continues to passionately care for and push students to do their best and to find their own path after high school.
Ms. Kim has been an excellent college counselor this year. Not only does she provide helpful information on high school and beyond, but she is also invested in the future of each and every DIS student. My classmates and I will always be grateful for her and her contributions to the school. Thank you, Ms. Kim!
Ms. Kim is the best counselor I have ever met. Not only is she the nicest person who always has a smile on her face, but she is also one person that will always believe in you. When I had doubts about flying to Germany for an interview for my university program, because I thought I would never get a spot anyways, she was the one who motivated and prepared me for my trip. Ms. Kim did not only change my experience at DIS to a remarkable time, but she also changed me as a person and helped me to shape my future in an amazing way while never losing patience or her positive, bright attitude.
Jennifer Kim has been a boundless source of inspiration and wisdom for our DIS students. She is a tireless advocate for students and parents as we navigate the college admissions process. She is courageous in telling us what we need to know, not what we want to hear - while maintaining a caring and compassionate demeanor. Jennifer is forward thinking and earnest in her uncompromising commitment to ensure that our children have the optimal advantage for college admission. It is absolutely amazing how she and her small team can juggle the needs of our students in a manner unique to each student's profile and abilities. Her loving kindness towards the students make them want to push their capacity for learning and doing their best. She is a game changer for the DIS community, and in collaboration with parents and teachers, she is instrumental to our children's mental well-being and academic success.
Ms. Kim truly is the sunshine of Dallas International School. She is that kind of person who can make you believe in yourself and build up your confidence! Without her I would have not been able to go through the intense application process to get into a veterinary school in Europe. I am very, very grateful that she was always there for me and went through my ups and downs with me, no matter what and no matter when. She definitely is a life changer!
Ms. Kim helped me out so much in time of need. Last year, I was having lots of trouble with my life. I was living in a condition and with people that were not the best for me and Ms. Kim encouraged me until the end and helped me figure out what I needed to do to get out of the situation I was in. I am in a better place in life because of her. Even though I left DIS and she is no longer my school counselor, her words still inspire me to do my best and to not give up. She has made a tremendous impact on my life and who I am as a person.
Mrs. Kim is an extraordinary counselor and asset to DIS. On top of that, she is also the Advisor of the Student Government Association (which I am Vice President of) and has worked tirelessly this year to help us build and improve our organization. She backed and encouraged us through our setbacks and is the reason we have been so successful this year. Mrs. Kim has been a guide and mentor to students in need of advice regarding classes, opportunities, extracurricular activities, and plans for the future. Her office is a calm and safe space many students visit between and after classes to sit, talk, or even do homework. This is undoubtedly because her positive attitude and intelligence make students want to be around her. Mrs. Kim motivates students to work harder and have a brighter attitude at school despite the challenging and stressful environment we are in on a daily basis. She leads by example and strongly represents the saying "Good leaders don’t create followers, they create more leaders", which she has quoted to my fellow officers and me on several occasions. She helped and guided all of our seniors through the college application and admission processes so that they could achieve their goals and attend the schools they hoped to. Mrs. Kim goes above and beyond in her duties as head of the Counseling Department and I speak for all DIS' students when I say how grateful we are for her role at our school.
Ms. Kim is my college counselor and the head of the counseling department at my school although she does so much more. Ms. Kim does mostly everything herself since her help is currently limited. Before she came to our school, the counseling department was kind of a mess but she hopped right on the task and exceeded my expectations because I thought it was just going to be another person that would leave after a year and have accomplished nothing. Ms. Kim creates great relationships with my fellow students, and personally, I am very close to her and think of her as someone I can go to whenever. She has helped me with a lot of stress I have dealt with in the past and am still dealing with on top of all the work she does for the school. She finds time in her day to actually listen and try to do something, anything she can to help or make things better. And sometimes I just go to her for a good laugh. I honestly think of Ms. Kim as extended family and want to stay in touch with her for a long time. She is so encouraging and makes me motivated to go the extra mile even if I find myself being lazy at times. I hope her hard work and overall passion for the kids and her job is shown and rewarded.
Kim is an excellent college counselor.
Since Jennifer Kim came to our school at the head of the Counseling department, it has been a relief knowing she is taking care of the future of our students that the team worked hard to bring to a successful graduation.
I have closely participated in key projects with Jennifer Kim and have witnessed how sensibly and sensitively she deals with issues or avoids circumstances to turn into problems.
She fully embodies and demonstrates the global values that our international school advocates.
We are a small school so unfortunately Mrs. Kim will not have a crowd backing her, nonetheless, she has our enthusiastic and unrestricted support.
Jennifer Kim is a remarkable professional who is a fully dedicated and tireless advocate for her students. She invests all of her energy, passion and many talents into making sure that Dallas International School's students are best positioned to achieve their goals. Somehow she manages to provide each student with bespoke services for each application, essay, and scholarship--hard work personified. Jennifer provides vast wisdom and strategy to the increasingly complex and overly competitive university admissions process. She knows intimately each of her students emotions, skills, and goals, and she guides them with a steady hand and encouragement. Jennifer has made a tremendously positive impact on her students and their families. She is a true LifeChanger!
Jennifer is an outstanding educator focused on the wellbeing and success of our community. She has a significant impact on the futur of our children. Dallas International Schools students are really fortunate to have Jennifer and the rest of the DIS team :)
Glad to be a DIS Dad, and Glad to be the Head of School
Miss Kim gave us the time, care, patience and motivation we needed when it came down to our college applications. As a student that has known her for some time and that has witnessed her hard and continuous work with numerous other scholars over the years, I can say with certainty that she has heavily influenced the DIS community and has helped us grow intellectually. I am forever grateful for the work she has provided for me, for my sister, and for every other student that has had the chance to have her as a counselor.
