58 Unused Closed Schools in Gyeongbuk Left Idle... Superintendent Lim Jongsik Vows to Revitalize Them as Community Spaces

732 Schools Closed Over 43 Years
No Clear Utilization Plan in Sight

The rapid decline in the school-age population is a reality that our society is facing. The phenomenon of "school closures," where schools that were once filled with children's laughter now shut their doors, is no longer unfamiliar. Gyeongbuk is no exception. As of the article's publication date, 15 cities and counties in the region have been designated as areas with declining populations, and in some areas, there are even concerns about potential extinction.

In response to this situation, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education (Superintendent Lim Jong-sik) is seeking change by viewing closed schools not merely as abandoned spaces, but as new sources of vitality for the community and important assets for future education.

Current Status of Closed School Utilization in Gyeongbuk

From 1982 until March of this year, a total of 732 schools were closed in Gyeongbuk. Of these, 495 schools were disposed of through sales or other means. As of July 2025, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education owns 237 closed schools. Among these, 76 schools are being used internally as educational facilities, while 103 are being leased to local governments or residents. However, there are still 58 closed schools for which no utilization plan has yet been found.

In the past three years, 10 schools?including 8 branch campuses and 2 main campuses?have been closed. In September, an additional 4 schools, including Wolgok Elementary School Samgye Branch (Andong), will close. Given the ongoing decline in the school-age population, the number of school closures is expected to continue increasing.

Although closed schools are important assets for the Office of Education, if they remain unused for extended periods, they can have negative effects such as safety issues due to building deterioration, the potential for becoming crime-prone areas, and increased management costs.

In particular, closed schools in agricultural, fishing, and rural areas face significant challenges in finding new uses due to location and accessibility constraints.

Lim Jong-sik, Superintendent of the Gyeongbuk Office of Education, emphasizes, "Closed schools are spaces where our children's precious dreams once grew. Closing their doors should not be the end; instead, they must be reborn as spaces that create new value and breathe together with the local community."

The Gyeongbuk Office of Education plans to utilize closed schools as multipurpose spaces that provide students with creative and future-oriented education, expand opportunities for culture, arts, and experiences for local residents, and contribute to revitalizing the local economy.

To achieve this, the Office has established three main directions: internal utilization, cooperation with the local community, and building sustainable utilization models through systematic research.

Abandoned Closed Schools in the Gyeongbuk Region

First, closed schools with good locations and educational demand are given top priority for internal use as educational facilities. To this end, the Office produces and distributes annual promotional materials on closed school properties to identify potential uses, and, when necessary, proactively converts these spaces into various educational facilities such as experience centers or training institutes.

Second, for 10 long-term unused closed schools that have neither internal utilization plans nor requests from local governments, the Office designates them as key management targets and actively pursues leasing or sales. In addition, through public contests for closed school utilization, the Office collaborates with community groups to explore new uses. Last year, four schools were selected through such contests and leasing contracts were signed to increase utilization. The Office is also considering institutionalizing these contests on a regular cycle of every two to three years.

Finally, to revitalize unused closed schools, the Office is conducting a research project on "Efficient Utilization Strategies for Closed School Properties" to identify specific plans for their use. The goal is for this research to go beyond a simple report and to develop practical utilization models that reflect the diverse opinions of local residents, applying them in the field so that closed schools become focal points for the community.

Building on this vision, the Gyeongbuk Office of Education plans to develop closed schools into hubs of education, culture, and the economy, creating spaces where students and local residents can thrive together.

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