Nationwide First Public Alternative School 'Songgang High School' Opens First Freshman Enrollment

Aerial view of Damyang Songgang High School, a public alternative school. Photo by Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Jun-kyung] Songgang High School, a public alternative school newly established in Damyang for the first time nationwide, has begun recruiting its first batch of freshmen ahead of its opening in March next year.

According to the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education on the 19th, Songgang High School is accepting applications for new students from the 16th to the 24th, with 15 spots available for the first grade.

Eligibility to apply includes prospective and graduated middle school students. Applications can be submitted in person or by registered mail to the Department of Democratic Citizenship Life Education at the main office. Those who pass the first document screening will take an interview exam at the Jeonnam Education Training Institute on the 1st of next month.

For detailed admission information, please refer to the Songgang High School website and the announcements section of the Provincial Office of Education website.

Songgang High School is being newly established on the site of the former Bongsan Elementary School Yangji Branch in Yangji-ri, Bongsan-myeon, Damyang-gun, with a total investment of 7.8 billion KRW, including 4 billion KRW from the Ministry of Education’s special grant, 2.8 billion KRW from the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education, and 1 billion KRW from Damyang County Office.

The total floor area is 32,521㎡, and interior and exterior finishing work as well as civil engineering are currently underway. The overall progress rate is 60%, with completion scheduled for January next year.

Lee Byung-sam, Director of the Department of Democratic Citizenship Life Education, said, “We hope that Songgang High School will be a place where students with diverse talents who have difficulty adapting to the formal education system can nurture the strength to live their lives by realizing their dreams and talents and prepare for the future with hope.”

Meanwhile, the Jeonnam Provincial Office of Education plans to conduct transfer and admission screenings early next year for current first- and second-year high school students separately from this new student recruitment, and will announce the application guidelines on the Songgang High School website later.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.