First Trial Complete Defeat in Autonomous Private High School Lawsuit, Jo Hee-yeon Expected to Withdraw Appeal

Statement Expected This Afternoon
Low Chances of Winning Lead to Likely Withdrawal of Appeal
Move to Ease Burden Ahead of Third Term

Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is announcing a comprehensive support plan for general high schools, including support measures for co-growth with autonomous private high schools transitioning to general high schools, at a press conference held at the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education on the 17th. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, is expected to acknowledge a complete defeat in the lawsuit against autonomous private high schools.

According to education circles on the 27th, Superintendent Cho is scheduled to announce his position regarding the lawsuit involving autonomous private high schools this afternoon. Both inside and outside the education office anticipate that the appeal will likely be withdrawn.

Since eight autonomous private high schools in Seoul were stripped of their status in 2019, they have been engaged in lawsuits against the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education. After winning all cases in the first trial in May, they requested Superintendent Cho to withdraw the appeal. Due to a decline in new students and worsening financial conditions, and with the planned conversion of autonomous private high schools and foreign language high schools to general high schools by 2025, there is no need to waste administrative resources. At that time, however, Superintendent Cho did not change his stance on the appeal.

In a recent briefing, Superintendent Cho stated, "The second trial for autonomous private high schools has begun, and we are gathering various opinions regarding the appeal," adding, "This is not only an issue for the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education but involves multiple educational stakeholders, so we are listening broadly and will announce our position soon."

It is interpreted that Superintendent Cho changed his position because the chances of winning the second trial are low and political considerations also played a role. The second trial rulings for Kyunghee High School and Handae High School are scheduled for February 3, and for Paichai High School and Sehwa High School on February 10. On the 12th, in the second trial lawsuit of Haeundae High School in Busan, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education lost. The court judged that notifying new evaluation criteria and indicators just before the autonomous private high school evaluation was an abuse of discretion by the education office. The education community expects similar results in Seoul.

Although the second trial ruling date for Paichai High School and Sehwa High School was the 27th, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education requested the court to postpone the ruling date, which is also related to this situation. Superintendent Cho is reportedly highly likely to run again in the upcoming Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education election in June.

If elected, it will be his third term. Analysts suggest that he needs to alleviate the political burden caused by the defeat. Additionally, the number of autonomous private high schools converting to general high schools is increasing, reducing the need for confrontation. Last year, three schools in Seoul?Dongsung High School, Hangaram High School, and Sungmoon High School?applied for conversion from autonomous private high schools.

Oh Se-mok, representative of the Autonomous Private High School Community Alliance, said, "Even looking at the first trial ruling, it was a clear blunder by the education office, and I believe they cannot lose in the second trial either," adding, "Given the anticipated conversion of autonomous private high schools to general high schools, it was puzzling why they appealed and wasted energy."

Song Ki-chang, professor of the Department of Education at Sookmyung Women's University, explained, "Both the procedures and evaluations were flawed, and ultimately, they were bound to lose," adding, "If they lose in the appeal trial as well, the damage will be significant, so it seems they are seeking alternatives."

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