Congrats, Beong. Your job is gonna suck
Tomo Chien
February 05, 2026
Good morning. It’s Thursday, and this is the Beong-Soo Kim special edition. Here’s everything you need to know about our new president.
1.
Beong-Soo Kim has ascended to USC’s presidency at a fraught time for the university. Kim, formerly USC’s top lawyer, will be charged with steering the school through its lingering financial woes and navigating the next three years of the Trump administration — all while dealing with a beleaguered workforce whose morale is at a recent low.
2.
Expect some faculty to raise concerns about Kim’s academic credentials. The former federal prosecutor does not have a research background — a fact that he addressed in an interview yesterday. “The most important thing is to have a leader that truly values and respects and wants to advance the academic mission of the university,” he said.
3.
Kim, who has served as interim president since July and is USC’s first Asian American leader, is broadly popular among the school’s rank-and-file. “Kim is that rare mix of a listener and a fighter who believes in our core mission: learning, teaching, and creating to make a better world,” professor Jacob Soll wrote in a series of gooey testimonials gathered by USC.
4.
Years before Kim helmed one of the world’s foremost universities, he was an 18-year-old correspondent at The Harvard Crimson. The young muckraker was not particularly prolific, but did crank out some bangers. Read his coverage of rude construction noise, a conservative controversy, and the best playground in the world.
5.
President Kim: We’re all very happy for you and are wishing you the best. To celebrate your promotion, I took advantage of a GoDaddy discount to purchase beongsookim.com, which now redirects to morningtrojan.com. I am willing to ransom it for exemption from my WRIT 340 requirement. You know where to reach me.
