Kim Gil-seong, Mayor of Jung-gu, Seoul, Communicates with Superintendent Cho Hee-yeon for Sustainable Elementary Care

Seoul Jung-gu and Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education Form Practical T/F to Discuss Concrete Measures Ensuring Jung-gu Students Continue Receiving Quality Education and Care Services

Jung-gu Mayor Kim Gil-seong (left) and Superintendent of Education Cho Hee-yeon met on the morning of the 9th.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jong-il] Kim Gil-seong, Mayor of Jung-gu, Seoul, and Cho Hee-yeon, Superintendent of Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education, met on the morning of December 9 to address the issue of elementary school care in Jung-gu.

At this meeting, Superintendent Cho promised continuous budget support for the exemplary elementary school care program in Jung-gu until the direction of the national care policy is decided, and agreed to work on establishing a supporting ordinance.

Additionally, the "Elementary After-School Program," which Jung-gu had been entrusted to operate for one year, will be run by the schools starting from March next year as the agreement period ends, with the district providing administrative and financial support.

The two institutions opened the dialogue and agreed to form a practical T/F team to discuss concrete measures to ensure that students in Jung-gu continue to receive high-quality education and care services.

Since Jung-gu began directly managing elementary care in 2019, it has faced serious structural and financial burdens. Over the past four years, 18.2 billion KRW of district funds have been invested, which is five times the amount spent when the education office operated the program.

Under the judgment that changes are necessary for the sustainability and scalability of Jung-gu's elementary care, the district has continuously requested since August that the education office and the national government jointly take action.

Furthermore, about ten parent meetings have been held to explain these difficulties and actively listen to opinions.

Kim Gil-seong, Mayor of Jung-gu, emphasized, "The common position of the district office and the education office is that high-quality elementary care must be maintained under any circumstances," and added, "I believe the education office will actively seek alternatives together to resolve the structural and financial issues faced by Jung-gu care and transition to a sustainable structure."

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