Memorials

In loving memory of Dr. Bong-Soo Lee (November 16, 1952 – March 6, 2015)

Bong-Soo Lee, residing in Tallahassee, Florida, passed away on March 6, 2015. He was born in Jinchon, South Korea and grew up in Seoul with parents Hee-Tae and Hwa-Soo Lee. He graduated from Seoul National University in 1975 and worked for the Korean government's Ministry of Government Administration and Ministry of Finance as a Deputy Director for seven years.

In 1981, he relocated to the United States for advanced education and family opportunities. He obtained a master's degree in economics from Washington State University and a Ph.D. in Economics from the University of Minnesota, studying under Christopher Sims, a future Nobel laureate. Lee spent his career as an academic finance professor at Iowa State University, University of Minnesota, University of Houston, and Florida State University, where he held the Patty Hill Smith Eminent Scholar Chair in Finance. From 2006–2007, he served as Dean of KAIST Graduate School of Finance in Seoul.

His scholarly achievements included publishing over 94 articles in peer-reviewed finance journals and editing publications including the Financial Review, Pacific-Basin Finance Journal, and Journal of Economic Development. Beyond academia, he chaired the pastoral council at St. Andrew Kim church in Houston, Texas, and led both the Korea America Finance Association and Korea America Economic Association. He enjoyed fishing, hiking, and ice skating.

He is survived by sons Chris and Paul Lee. A service occurred March 9th at Co-Cathedral of St. Thomas More. Memorial donations were directed to Catholic Charities of Tallahassee.