Seven schools applied in the public contest to establish an international school in Yeongjong International City, Incheon.
On the 17th, the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority announced that as of the deadline on the 14th, seven foreign school corporations from the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, and other countries had submitted business proposals for the Yeongjong International School (foreign school corporation) project.
Unlike the previous method, which was pursued through a private contract, this international school attraction project will select the operator based on an international public contest and expert evaluation. The evaluation criteria comprehensively included the reputation and operational capability of the main school, financial status, resources and academic plans of the branch school, and student recruitment strategies.
The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority previously restricted eligibility for the contest to foreign school corporations operating early childhood, elementary, middle, or high school educational institutions abroad, including countries, local governments, and non-profit corporations. The authority plans to select a preferred negotiation partner through evaluation of the business proposals in March to April and to sign a business agreement within the year.
The international school is scheduled to open in 2028 and will be located on a 96,000㎡ educational research facility site in the Midan City area of Yeongjongdo, Unbuk-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon. Incheon Urban Corporation (iH), the developer of the Yeongjong Midan City project, will provide the site for the international school. Based on attracting the international school, iH plans to improve living conditions for foreigners, promote investment attraction, and accelerate the revitalization of Midan City.
Currently, there are two international schools in Songdo within the Incheon Free Economic Zone, Chadwick and Calvin Manitoba, and Dalton Foreign School in Cheongna. The Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority plans to sequentially establish additional international schools within the Free Economic Zone, including Songdo, in line with the progress of the Yeongjong international school project.
Yoon Won-seok, head of the Incheon Free Economic Zone Authority, stated, "If the first international school is established in Yeongjong, it will become a new growth engine for Midan City and Yeongjong International City," and added, "We will actively support the establishment of a world-class K-12 school."
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