{"639289":{"#nid":"639289","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Brandon Kang: Teaching Assistant of the Year","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EManaging the role of an undergraduate teaching assistant (UTA) on top of a normal class load can be challenging. A UTA\u0026rsquo;s responsibilities can range from grading homework assignments to responding to student emails late at night. This past year, one notable UTA went above and beyond to help students: Brandon Kang, now an alumnus of the H. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISyE), who served as a UTA for ISyE statistics and regression courses.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ENot only did Kang win ISyE\u0026rsquo;s 2020\u0026nbsp;Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Assistant Award, he also received the 2020 Undergraduate Teaching Assistant of the Year Award from Georgia Tech. According to Kang, he wasn\u0026rsquo;t expecting either. \u0026ldquo;It\u0026#39;s incredibly gratifying and very humbling. After receiving both awards, I realize that I\u0026#39;m in a position where I can make an impact on someone\u0026rsquo;s life, and I don\u0026rsquo;t take that for granted,\u0026rdquo; Kang said.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;Brandon was my UTA\u0026nbsp;for ISyE 4031 during the fall 2019 and spring 2020 semesters,\u0026rdquo; said ISyE Lecturer Gamze Tokol-Goldsman. \u0026ldquo;Brandon exceeded all my expectations by far and was that \u0026lsquo;once-in-a-lifetime\u0026rsquo; UTA who makes teaching a breeze. I have never seen such an organized, prompt, dependable, courteous, and responsible teaching assistant -- and the students loved him! I was so impressed so that I nominated Brandon for the ISyE Outstanding UTA Award.\u0026quot;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EKang\u0026rsquo;s motivation for teaching stems from his interest in helping others. He founded the Georgia Tech organization Seoulstice, a K-Pop dance team. \u0026ldquo;One of the main reasons why I wanted to be a UTA was inspired by my experience leading a dance team. I teach choreography, and it\u0026#39;s always a really good feeling when I help someone become better at dancing,\u0026rdquo; Kang said.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EBeyond grading assignments and holding office hours, Kang implemented additional resources for his students. With permission from Tokol-Goldsman, he introduced review sessions before exams that allowed students to go over fundamental concepts and practice problems. Additionally, he made software notes in Python to facilitate the class\u0026rsquo;s understanding of the regression course material. This, along with his passion for teaching, set him apart from other teaching assistants.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003E\u0026ldquo;My biggest takeaway from being a UTA is being able to understand different perspectives,\u0026rdquo; Kang said, \u0026ldquo;I am constantly improving my communication skills.\u0026rdquo;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EOutside the classroom, Kang has had two data science internships that have given him valuable experience. \u0026ldquo;I can always take my experience back to the classroom and show how regression applies to real world situations,\u0026rdquo; Kang explained. This summer, he interned\u0026nbsp;with Roblox before returning to Tech to pursue a master\u0026#39;s degree in analytics. Career-wise, his goal is to invest his skills and experience into the data science field.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EBeing a UTA is an experience Kang will use for a lifetime, professionally and personally. The biggest takeaway for him is being able to communicate and present information in a clear, concise way. \u0026ldquo;The best feeling as a TA is knowing that you made a positive influence on someone\u0026#39;s life and at the end of the day, you helped someone. That is the best part,\u0026rdquo; Kang concluded.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EBrandon received undergraduate teaching awards from both ISyE and the Institute.\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Brandon received undergraduate teaching awards from both ISyE and the Institute."}],"uid":"28766","created_gmt":"2020-09-18 15:39:45","changed_gmt":"2020-09-18 15:50:34","author":"Shelley Wunder-Smith","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2020-09-18T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2020-09-18T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"639290":{"id":"639290","type":"image","title":"Brandon Kang","body":null,"created":"1600444174","gmt_created":"2020-09-18 15:49:34","changed":"1600444174","gmt_changed":"2020-09-18 15:49:34","alt":"Brandon Kang","file":{"fid":"243069","name":"Brandon Kang_SQ.jpg","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Brandon%20Kang_SQ.jpg","image_full_path":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/Brandon%20Kang_SQ.jpg","mime":"image\/jpeg","size":87442,"path_740":"http:\/\/hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/Brandon%20Kang_SQ.jpg?itok=_LzMkjUY"}}},"media_ids":["639290"],"groups":[{"id":"1242","name":"School of Industrial and Systems Engineering (ISYE)"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"185888","name":"Brandon Kang"},{"id":"426","name":"isye"},{"id":"168660","name":"UTA"},{"id":"185889","name":"Gamze Tokol-Goldsman"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:thunter39@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ETaylor Hunter\u003C\/a\u003E\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003ECommunications Assistant\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n\r\n\u003Cp\u003EH. Milton Stewart School of Industrial and Systems Engineering\u003C\/p\u003E\r\n","format":"limited_html"}],"email":["thunter39@gatech.edu"],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}