[June 3 Election] Kim Daejung: "Erasing Military Vestiges, Streamlining 'Excess' with AI Administration"

Announcement of 'Two-Track' Pledge: Restoring Historical Justice and Enhancing Administrative Efficiency
Plan to Rename Five Schools Including Sangmu Elementary, Middle, and High… "Restoring May 18 Identity"
20% Reduction of Main Office, 50% Cut in Official Documents
"Establishing Field-Oriented Educational Administration"

Kim Daejung, candidate for Superintendent of Education of Jeonnam Gwangju Integrated Metropolitan City, has announced a sweeping reform plan aimed at eradicating the remnants of military dictatorship—a painful chapter in the region's history—and streamlining the bloated educational administration.

Kim Daejung, Candidate for Superintendent of Education of Jeonnam Gwangju Integrated Special City

"No Military Vestiges in School Names for Our Children"…Plan to Rename Five Schools

On May 15, Kim publicly stated his intention to promote the renaming of schools in Gwangju that currently use the name "Sangmu" (尙武).

The five schools under review for name changes are Sangmu Elementary School, Sangmu Middle School, Sangmu High School, Sangil Middle School, and Sangil Girls' High School. Kim cited as a core issue that these names originated from "Sangmu Chungjeong Operation," which suppressed civilian militias in May 1980, and "Sangmu Base," which served as the martial law command headquarters.

Kim, who witnessed the tragedy of the May 18 Democratization Movement as a student at Chonnam National University in 1980, stated, "It is clearly educationally inappropriate for children to be educated under names symbolizing military dictatorship in Gwangju, a city of democracy, human rights, and peace." He emphasized, "After sufficient consultation with school members and the local community, we will switch to names with clear historical significance, such as 'Chipyeong.'"

20% Streamlining of the Main Office…"Reduce Administration, Increase Support"·AI Digital System for a 'Paperless Teachers' Office'

Kim also presented a vision to break away from the "centralized bureaucratic system" to ensure a smooth early transition to integrated educational administration. As a first step, he announced a rigorous restructuring plan to reduce the main office's organization by more than 20%, focusing on policy and planning. The goal is to transfer excessive authority from the main office to local areas, maximizing autonomy at the school level.

To compensate for insufficient on-site support, he proposed the construction of a new education office in the eastern district and the addition of another education support office in the Gwangju area. In particular, he plans to introduce a "Regional Budget System" and a "Regional Staffing System" to enable customized educational autonomy reflecting the unique characteristics of each locality.

Kim also detailed plans to alleviate teachers' work burden through digital transformation. He set a goal to implement a "Digital Educational Administration System" to reduce current official paperwork by over 50%.

He intends to operate an "Academic and Administrative Risk Early Warning System" powered by AI analysis to minimize administrative burdens. Additionally, he plans to distribute laptops to all staff and establish regional smart work centers to improve work efficiency.

Kim Daejung stated, "The integration of Jeonnam and Gwangju education must be a process that creates synergy for future education," and added, "By streamlining the main office and implementing AI-based administrative innovation, we will provide the nation's highest level of educational service, allowing schools to focus exclusively on teaching."

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