[Exclusive] "No Plan" in Closed School Reports... A Result of Slow Administration [Extinction] ③

A Comprehensive Review of 100 Closed School Reports from 2021 to 2024
Utilization Plans Hastily Sought Only After Closure
Many Sites Remain Unused Without Clear Plans
"Closed School Sites Should Be Utilized from a Mid- to Long-Term Perspective"

Editor's Note"It takes a village to raise a child." This is a well-known Nigerian proverb. However, the sentence can be reversed and still make sense: to sustain a village, children are needed. This is the reality facing villages in Korea today. Villages that do not raise children are paying the price. As people stop coming, these areas become neglected, dark, and fall into silence. We aim to directly examine the impact that abandoned school buildings have on their local communities.

The reality in South Korea, where abandoned schools have been left neglected for an average of 20 years and cover an area equivalent to 625 soccer fields, is the result of lax administrative handling by educational authorities. According to the Special Act on the Promotion of Utilization of Closed School Properties, superintendents of city, provincial, and autonomous district education offices are required to establish utilization plans for closed schools. However, for about 100 schools that have recently closed, local educational authorities have either stated that they "have no plans" or have failed to properly implement plans. Experts point out that the abandonment of closed schools is due to the slow administrative response of educational authorities, who only begin preparations when the closure is imminent.

Dobong High School, which closed in February 2024, has been repurposed as Dobong Elementary School starting this March. A notice informing of a store closure is posted in front of the school. Photo by Yoon Dongju

According to data obtained by Asia Economy on the 5th from the office of Kang Kyungsook, a lawmaker of the National Innovation Party, and provided by 17 local educational authorities nationwide, these authorities produced "closed school property utilization plans" for a total of 100 closed schools between 2021 and 2024. During this period, 103 schools were closed across the country.

The local educational authorities are required to specify future utilization plans for closed schools, detailed implementation plans, estimated budgets, and expected effects in their reports. For example, the North Jeolla Provincial Office of Education prepared a utilization plan report in 2023 for the Daeya Elementary School Gwangsan Branch, which closed that same year. According to the report, the North Jeolla Office of Education decided to build Gunsan Jieum School, a special education school, on the site, specifying that a budget of approximately 39 billion won would be needed. Gwangju, Daejeon, Ulsan, Sejong, and Jeju did not establish related plans as no schools closed in those regions during this period.

The problem arises when schools are closed but no proper plan is established. A full review of the 100 closed school reports revealed that many local educational authorities showed no intention to address the issue, often stating "no plan" in their reports. For example, after Hwanghwa Elementary School and Daemyeong Elementary School closed in 2022, the South Chungcheong Provincial Office of Education stated in its utilization report that "there is no specific utilization plan," adding, "There is a high possibility that the property will be leased or sold after internal review or consultation with local governments, so preservation and management are necessary." Last year, the report stated that sales were being pursued, but the properties have not yet been sold and remain unused.

Some closed schools did not have reports at all. The North Jeolla Provincial Office of Education did not establish utilization plans for Bian-do Elementary School and the Shinsido Elementary School Yamido Branch, while the Gangwon Provincial Office of Education did not prepare a plan for Hajang High School. According to the Local Education Finance Information site, the Bian-do Elementary School site remains unused, while the Shinsido Elementary School Yamido Branch and Hajang High School are being used internally. A North Jeolla Provincial Office of Education official explained, "There is nothing in particular to utilize at the Bian-do Elementary School site," adding, "However, since the area around Bian-do Elementary is by the sea and has a good view, it is being preserved for the future, not abandoned." The Gangwon Provincial Office of Education stated that the Hajang High School site was immediately repurposed for Hajang Middle School, so no report was prepared.

No Plans for Unused Closed Schools... Sometimes Plans Are Made Two Years After Closure

In some cases, plans were hastily made only after the school had already closed. According to a closed school property utilization plan drafted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education in 2023, the office established a basic plan for the use of the closed Yeomgang Elementary School site in Gangseo-gu, Seoul, in November 2020. The school had closed in February 2020, so the basic plan was made nine months after the closure. In 2021, a feasibility study was conducted for the establishment of Yeomgang Herb Kindergarten, and in January 2022, a basic plan for the kindergarten was drawn up.

The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education only prepared a utilization plan in April 2023 for the Bucheon Deoksan Elementary School Daejang Branch site in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, which had closed in February 2021. The process of coordinating opinions was delayed from the start. The Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education sought opinions from relevant departments in October 2022 regarding the utilization of closed school properties, and in February 2023, the Bucheon City Sports Promotion Division expressed interest in using the site. The site is currently being used as an archery school and a training space for Gyeonggi-style sports teams.

Even when plans are made, they are often not properly implemented. Of the 103 schools closed between 2021 and 2024, 49 remain unused, which demonstrates this issue. The site of Yeomgang Elementary School, which was to be converted into a kindergarten after closure, was flagged for corrective action during the 2022 administrative audit. The reason was concern over low enrollment rates due to a decline in the number of young children. As a result, in January 2023, the plan was changed to relocate the main office of the Early Childhood Education Promotion Center to Jongno-gu, Seoul. The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education is still in the process of preparing a plan for the relocation of the Early Childhood Education Promotion Center's main office.

The site of the closed Seogok Elementary School in Busan is also facing difficulties in utilization as the original plan has not proceeded as intended. Initially, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education planned to build an alternative school for 60 middle school students struggling to adapt to regular schools. However, the plan to create the alternative school is now indefinitely on hold. This is because the site selection is being re-examined. A Busan Metropolitan Office of Education official explained, "An alternative school needs to have a dormitory or experiential learning center, but the Seogok Elementary School site is somewhat lacking," adding, "We are looking for another site, but no concrete proposal has been made yet."

Plans for Closed Schools Change Frequently... Prompt Discussion Is the Answer

The sooner plans for closed school sites are discussed, the greater the likelihood of finding new roles for them. Boge Elementary School and its Gayul Branch, as well as Seosam Elementary School, located in Bogae-myeon, Anseong-si, Gyeonggi Province, were consolidated in 2021 and are currently being used internally. For the Gayul Branch, discussions on future utilization began in July 2018, and for Boge and Seosam Elementary Schools, discussions began in November 2019. For Boge and Seosam Elementary Schools, a local consultative body was formed, and in December 2020, a joint forum was held with parents and other stakeholders.

Local educational authorities also agree on the need for mid- to long-term guidelines that prepare plans in advance of school closures. In March, the South Jeolla Provincial Office of Education announced that it would make it mandatory to establish utilization plans before school closures in order to reduce the number of unused closed schools. Representative Kang stated, "The Ministry of Education and education offices can anticipate school closures by monitoring trends in student numbers, but they are not sufficiently prepared," adding, "Utilization plans for closed school sites should be established proactively from both short- and long-term educational perspectives."