"Taxpayer Money Down the Drain?" Overseas Korean Schools a "Hotbed of Corruption"

Ministry of Education Uncovers 91 Cases Over Three Years... Severe Disciplinary Actions and Criminal Investigations Requested
Moonsoo Kim: "Criminal Acts Threatening Students' Right to Learn and Safety"

Moonsoo Kim, member of the Democratic Party of Korea.

A slew of shocking accounting irregularities and mismanagement have been uncovered at overseas Korean schools and education centers, which are operated with taxpayer money.

According to data submitted by Moonsoo Kim, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Suncheon, Gwangyang, Gokseong, and Gurye in South Jeolla Province, to the Ministry of Education for the National Assembly audit on September 19, a total of 91 cases of improper conduct were identified at 28 institutions worldwide over the past three years.

The problems revealed in the audit materials go far beyond simple administrative errors and are considered serious. At the schools, numerous cases were found where basic duties directly related to students' right to learn and their safety were neglected, including: ▲misappropriation of school operating funds, ▲poor management of student records, ▲failure to establish a School Violence Countermeasures Committee, and ▲inadequate handling of bullying reports.

Furthermore, at the education centers, chronic accounting irregularities were rampant, such as: ▲personal use of business promotion funds, ▲improper payment of overtime allowances, and ▲negligent management of gift certificates and cash.

The most serious cases involved Jeddah Korean School in Saudi Arabia in 2022 and Paraguay Korean School in 2024. The former principal of Jeddah Korean School was found to have forged documents to embezzle approximately 23 million won in housing rent, using a method where money was funneled back through a subcontractor’s account. Toward the end of his tenure, he also used classrooms and the library as personal living quarters and had cleaning staff prepare his meals, among other private acts. Moreover, he withdrew 31 million won, which had been set aside for retirees, without authorization and diverted it to kindergarten construction expenses; however, the construction was so poorly executed that the facilities were left unusable for students. The Ministry of Education ordered severe disciplinary action and recovery of the funds, and referred the case for investigation.

At Paraguay Korean School, an unprecedented situation occurred in which most of the income and expenditure resolutions and supporting documents for the 2020-2021 fiscal years disappeared. Travel allowances were paid in excess without supporting documents, and expenses were even paid for trips that had not been officially ordered. There were also cases where insurance premiums for a school bus that had already been sold were paid with school funds, or where cash advances were taken out using the school’s credit card and misappropriated. Around 2 million won in leftover funds from parents’ payments for school transportation and after-school activities were not refunded but instead diverted to the school’s general accounts. The Ministry of Education imposed two severe disciplinary actions and ordered corrective measures and recovery of the funds.

Moonsoo Kim criticized, "Overseas Korean schools and education centers are wasting taxpayer money and betraying the trust of students and parents. Such dysfunctional operations are not mere mistakes, but serious criminal acts that threaten students’ right to learn and their safety."

He further pointed out, "The education authorities must use this audit as an opportunity to strengthen oversight and management of all overseas Korean schools and education centers, and actively work to establish measures to prevent recurrence."

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