Senator Shin was born in 1935 and adopted by an American GI during the Korean War at the age of 16.
Brought to the United States by his adoptive family, he began his education with a GED and has earned a Ph.D. in History from the University of Washington. He is recently retired from teaching at the college level for 31 years.
Shin and his wife, Donna, have two children, who are also adopted, and four grandsons.