Now, Not Far Away, Let's Go to 'Jinhae Naraeul School'!

Changwon-si and Gyeongnam Office of Education Sign Agreement for Special School Establishment

Scheduled to Open in March 2025, 29 Classes and 200 Students

On the 15th, Changwon City in Gyeongnam and the Gyeongnam Office of Education signed a business agreement related to the establishment of a special school in Jinhae-gu.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Lee Seryeong] Changwon City in Gyeongnam Province and the Gyeongnam Office of Education signed a business agreement on the 15th to establish the tentatively named ‘Jinhae Naraeul School’ and to support the residents of the school site.

Jinhae Naraeul School is a special school for children with disabilities, promoted to alleviate the inconvenience of commuting long distances for students in the Jinhae area who travel to Changwon and Masan, and to optimize the scale of special schools in the Changwon area.

The school will be built to accommodate about 200 students across a total of 29 classes, including kindergarten, elementary, middle, high school, and specialized courses.

After receiving approval for the urban planning facility project implementation plan in June, construction will begin, with the school scheduled to open in March 2025.

Changwon City and the Gyeongnam Office of Education agreed to cooperate on ▲ the establishment of Jinhae Naraeul School ▲ support for the convenience of residents around the school site ▲ road maintenance and promotion for traffic safety between the school and the village.

According to the city, local special schools include the public Changwon Cheongwang School in Seongsan District, the public Gyeongnam Hyerim School in Masan Hoewon District, and the private Changwon Dongbaek School located in Masan Happo District.

All three schools are concentrated in the Changwon and Masan areas, and special education students in Jinhae District commute distances ranging from as short as 40 minutes to as long as 1 hour and 10 minutes.

A city official said, “The establishment of a special school in Jinhae will relieve overcrowding in special schools in the Changwon area, improving commuting conditions for students in Jinhae District and the capacity conditions of existing special schools.”

Superintendent of Education Park Jong-hoon said, “I felt heavy-hearted after watching the documentary film School Road, which portrayed the difficulties of disabled students who spend 1 to 4 hours commuting to school each day,” adding, “We will work together to create a prestigious city that provides stable educational conditions for all students, including those with disabilities.”

Mayor Heo Seong-mu said, “I am very pleased that Changwon Special City and the Gyeongsangnam-do Office of Education have collaborated to establish the first special school in Jinhae District,” and added, “We will create a warm welfare city where we live together by fostering an educational environment for the underprivileged.”