Hwaseong City Launches First Gifted Education Program... Nurturing 117 Future Science Talents

Hwaseong City Holds Entrance Ceremony for the 1st Gifted Education Center Cohort
"STEM+I" Program with Professors from Seoul National University and Seoul National University of Education Begins in Earnest
Advanced Curriculum Leveraging Local Infrastructure, Including Creativity Camp

Hwaseong Special City in Gyeonggi Province has launched its first gifted education program to discover and nurture outstanding future talent in the region.

At the ‘2026 Academic Year Hwaseong City Talent Development Foundation Gifted Education Center Entrance Ceremony’ held at Dawonieumteo on the 16th, students, parents, and officials are taking a commemorative photo. Provided by Hwaseong City.

The Hwaseong City Talent Development Foundation Gifted Education Center announced on the 17th that it held the "2026 Academic Year 1st Entrance Ceremony" at Dawon Link Center on the 16th with great success, officially commencing its educational operations.

The entrance ceremony was attended by 117 students admitted in the science and information tracks, as well as their parents and academic experts, totaling over 200 people, who celebrated the beginning of Hwaseong Special City's gifted education initiative. The event included a welcome speech, congratulatory remarks, and an entrance authorization declaration, followed by an introduction to the curriculum and academic schedule, and concluded with a special lecture designed to broaden students' perspectives.

In particular, the special lectures, which received great acclaim from both students and parents, were divided into elementary and middle school sessions to enhance their professional depth. Ilwoo Park, Director of the Science Gifted Education Center at Seoul National University of Education, gave a lecture for elementary students on "How Did the Color Blue Change the World?", while Dae-Hong Jeong, Director of the Education Cooperation Center at Seoul National University, delivered a lecture for middle school students on "Doing Science Like a Scientist," presenting visions for the students' futures as scientists.

The curriculum encompasses not only inquiry-based subject programs but also a multidimensional schedule that connects theory and practice, including ▲research ethics education (June), ▲special lectures on humanities and career paths (July), ▲a creativity development field camp (July), and ▲career exploration in collaboration with advanced companies (August). In particular, the advanced company site exploration program themed "Future Talent Embracing Hwaseong" is expected to provide high-level educational experiences utilizing local infrastructure.

On November 21, the program will culminate in a graduation ceremony, which will feature the "Learning+α Presentation," where students will present their creative outcomes.

Meanwhile, the selection process for the first cohort drew strong interest, with 251 elementary and middle school students in the area applying. The city finalized the admission of 117 students after conducting an aptitude assessment in April and in-depth interviews in May, ensuring fairness in educational opportunities by also offering social integration admissions for equal opportunity and multi-child families.

On the 16th, at Daweon Iumteo, the student representative is taking the entrance oath at the "2026 Academic Year Hwaseong City Talent Development Foundation Gifted Education Center Entrance Ceremony." Provided by Hwaseong City

Park Noyoung, Head of Education Support, stated, "This gifted education center was designed to reflect Hwaseong City's commitment to directly discovering children's talents and taking joint responsibility to help them fully blossom. We will do our utmost to provide an in-depth research environment in collaboration with top universities in Korea, such as Seoul National University and Seoul National University of Education."

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