We are pleased to share that Junseo Park—an undergraduate student from the Runstad Department of Real Estate—has been named to the 2026 Husky 100 cohort! He joins a group of 100 outstanding undergraduate, graduate and professional students who actively make an impact on campus.
I nominated Junseo Park for his strong work ethic, initiative and consistent contributions that went beyond what was expected of him as a student employee at the Tateuchi East Asia Library. Over more than two years, he was reliable, professional, and careful in completing his assigned work, while also taking the initiative to improve services and support the library in meaningful ways. In all of his work, he showed responsibility, good judgment, and a willingness to collaborate with others.
About Junseo Park, BSRE ‘26
Junseo is an interdisciplinary honors student from Republic of Korea and Maple Valley, Washington, graduating this spring quarter with a Bachelor of Science in Real Estate and two minor degrees in Entrepreneurship and Architecture.
“I’ve always been drawn to the built environment, especially the way it shapes how people live, work and interact” says Junseo, “Real estate sits at the intersection of design, economics and society. It can create opportunity, but also inequality, so I wanted to understand it not just as an asset class, but as a system that impacts people’s lives.”
In the department, Junseo is an engaged member of the real estate community on and off campus. He is a member of the UW Real Estate Club, which gives students insight into diverse career paths through engaging speaker sessions and property tours. He is also involved with several national real estate organizations, including the Urban Land Institute, NAIOP-WA and Corenet Global. He interned at JIGO, helping the local start-up launch early-stage GTM execution for an AI-enabled commercial real estate platform. He is now working at GIGR, San Francisco-based startup building an AI-enabled ad generation and automation pipeline.
Junseo’s Impact at the UW
Junseo’s impact at the UW is far-reaching.
He served as President of the UW Korean Student Association, where he launched and scaled programs like Damso, initiated a weekly cultural exchange, led partnerships across the university and organized a career symposium connecting students with professionals and mentors.
One of Junseo’s significant contributions was leading one of UW Libraries’ largest cross-departmental cultural projects. While working under UW Tateuchi East Asia Library Director and Korean Studies Librarian Hyokyoung Yi, he established the Manhwa (Korean Graphic Novel) Café, a collaborative pop-up space developed in partnership with the Libraries, Korean Student Association and Associated Students of the University of Washington (ASUW) that celebrates East Asian graphic literature.
“I nominated Junseo Park for the Husky 100 for his strong work ethic, initiative and consistent contributions that went beyond what was expected of him as a student employee at the Tateuchi East Asia Library,” says Hyokyoung. “He developed the idea to create the Café on his own after noticing that students were not fully using an important part of the collection at the Libraries. What began as a one-time initiative grew into a new student wellness area in the library—the ‘Chill and Recharge Space’ —offering a comfortable place to relax among graphic novels.”
Due to this project, Junseo was awarded the Mary Gates Leadership Scholarship for demonstrating innovation, cross-cultural engagement and impact on campus community-building.
Further Engagement On- and Off-Campus
On top of this extraordinary work, Junseo has held multiple other influential roles, including serving in ASUW as a Senator and as a Resident Advisor for UW Housing & Food Services. He is also active in the Venture Capital Club in the Foster School of Business. Additionally, he has freelanced as a Korean–English Interpreter & Cultural Liaison, providing Korean–English interpretation, protocol assistance and cultural liaison support for a variety of organizations and high-profile events in Seattle, such programs hosted by the UW Center for Korea Studies, Seattle International Film Festival, Korean & US government agencies.
Reflections as a Husky
When I first arrived at the University of Washington as a first-generation immigrant, I did not have a clear roadmap or the networks that often guide students toward opportunity. Through classes, mentors and leadership experiences across campus, I gradually discovered that the work that matters most to me is creating spaces and systems that connect people and expand opportunity for others. Those experiences taught me resilience, communication and empathy, and ultimately shaped my path toward venture investing, where I hope to support people and ideas that create lasting impact.
Across his work at the UW, Junseo has focused on building initiatives that create lasting value for others. Reflecting on his time at the UW, Junseo says, “One of my proudest accomplishments has been creating initiatives that outlast my time at UW. What started as small ideas has grown into sustained communities and spaces.”
Junseo attributes part of his success as a Husky to the people he met along the way. He emphasizes that professors—specifically Vani Rao, Akhtar Badshah, and Arthur Acolin—have provided mentorship that has shaped how he thinks and learns.
“More than any single book or concept, people have been integral to my learning,” he says. “At the UW, professors are one of the most valuable resources if you take the time to engage beyond the classroom.”
“Junseo is an outstanding example of the next generation of real estate leaders,” says Chair of the Runstad Department of Real Estate Shannon Affholter. “He brings together academic excellence, leadership and a deep commitment to community, applying what he learns to create meaningful impact both within the real estate field and across campus.”
Congratulations, Junseo, on being named to the 2026 Husky 100!