Amy Britton, Community Board Member

Amy studied Organizational Communication and Broadcast Journalism at the University of Wisconsin, Eau Claire and completed her degree at the University of Minnesota. The restaurant and hospitality industry has been calling since she was 18. She’s been with D’Amico and Partners, a Minneapolis based company, for the past 27 years. As the Director of Operations for the D’Amico & Son’s division, Amy is responsible for the financial success of 9+ properties in Minnesota and Florida. This includes budget writing, marketing and branding, negotiating maintenance contracts, developing policies and procedures, writing training programs and supporting menu development.  Amy’s favorite part of her job, though, is actually working in the restaurants and staying connected with the guests and employees.  Amy was the founding PTO president at Sejong Academy for the first 2 years the school was open. Her son is a Korean American adoptee and previously attended Sejong. Amy is committed to the language and cultural immersion that Sejong offers to all of its students. Contact Amy at abritton@sejongacademy.org

Jorden Carlson, Secretary and Teacher Board Member

Jorden teaches middle school Social Studies at Sejong Academy. She was born and raised in Minnesota. She earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in History from St. Catherine University in Saint Paul. She then worked for the YMCA of the Greater Twin Cities as a program director for five years. She worked with many youth programs, including summer camp and Youth in Government.  Jorden returned to school at St. Catherine University to obtain a teaching license in Secondary Social Studies Education and is currently finishing her Master's degree. Her favorite things include coffee, spending time outside, reading, and Nebraska football. Jorden's favorite quote is from Anne Frank, "How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment to improve the world." She tries to live by this and inspire her students in this way. Contact Jorden at: jcarlson@sejongacademy.org

Erik Funk, Parent Board Member

Erik grew up in Evanston, Illinois and moved to Minnesota in 1992 to attend Hamline University where he studied Sociology and History. A lifelong Entrepreneur, Erik has owned and operated his own businesses for more than 25 years, most notably in the hospitality and live music industries. Currently he is an active real estate investor focusing on commercial investment property. He has adopted two sons from Korea, both of whom are Sejong Academy students. He enjoys learning about Korean culture with them and seeing their Korean language skills flourish through school. Erik has been involved in the Sejong parent community for the past three years and is currently serving as President of the Sejong Academy Parent Teacher Organization. Contact Erik at efunk@sejongacademy.org

Jihee Jina Kim, Teacher Board Member

Ms. Jina was born and raised in Seoul, South Korea. She received a BA in Hotel Management  and English Literature in Korea. While in college, she was a volunteer English teacher to young, impoverished children in France. This teaching experience made her change her entire life path. So, Ms. Jina moved to the States and again started a long school journey. She graduated from Concordia University-St.Paul with a BA in Child Learning Development - Early Childhood Education and will complete an MA in Teaching Elementary Education from Hamline University in the fall of 2017. She believes in creating a safe environment for all students and in bringing relatedness for the students to fully reach their potential in the classroom. Her goal as an educator is to spark curiosity in the minds of students! Aside from education, she likes to travel to everywhere to experience new cultures and to find new delicious foods to try out as well! Contact Jina at: jjkim@sejongacademy.org

Grace Lee, Board Chair and Parent Board Member

Grace is a second generation Korean American, born and raised in Dallas, Texas. She has a Bachelor’s of Business Administration from The University of Texas at Austin and has 20 years of experience in both profit and non-profit organizations - Fortune 500 companies, the local church, local schools, local government, community groups and social services organizations.  Grace has a Masters of Divinity from Princeton Theological Seminary, a Public Affairs Leadership Certificate from the University of Minnesota's Humphrey School of Public Affairs and a Strategic Diversity and Inclusion Management Certificate from Georgetown University.  She was appointed by Governor Dayton to serve on the Council of Asian Pacific Minnesotans and currently works at Ramsey County. She is the parent of two children, one who is a Sejong white tiger! Contact Grace at glee@sejongacademy.org

Brad Tipka, Ed.D., Ex-Officio

Brad is an educator with over twenty years of experience as a teacher, teacher-trainer and school leader. He studied K-12 English Education/ESL at St. Cloud State, completed his Master’s in TESOL at the School for International Training and his Ed.D. from the University of St. Thomas is Educational Leadership.  Prior to Sejong Academy, Brad was Director of Lincoln International High School in Minneapolis. He has also served as an Instructional Specialist/Coach at Noble Academy in Minneapolis. Brad spent five years teaching in Korea including positions at Dong A University in Busan and Seoul National University of Technology. Brad also served as an English Language Teaching Fellow with the US Department of State for three years in Indonesia and Malaysia. Brad believes in the transformational power of intercultural experience and language study. He is passionate about Korean language and culture and believes the study of Korean language and culture will be an amazing educational option for students in Minnesota.  Contact Brad at: btipka@sejongacademy.org