Chungnam Office of Education to Operate Dedicated School Violence Response Team

Emergency Expanded Executive Meeting Held to Discuss Response System and Recurrence Prevention Measures
Chungnam Student Guardian App to Be Distributed by July... Alarm Sounded in Case of Incident

Chungnam Provincial Office of Education held an expanded executive meeting on the 16th to discuss strengthening the school violence response system and measures to prevent recurrence. Photo by Chungnam Provincial Office of Education

The Chungnam Provincial Office of Education announced that it held an emergency expanded executive meeting on the 16th, attended by Superintendent Kim Ji-cheol, senior officials, and heads of city and county education support offices.

This emergency expanded executive meeting was convened to address recent school violence incidents. The agenda included supplementing weaknesses in the current school violence response system, emphasizing professionalism and accountability in handling cases according to proper procedures, and discussing a stronger response framework and measures to prevent recurrence.

The meeting focused on several key topics: the formation and operation of a dedicated school violence response team; establishing an organic and rapid response system among schools, education support offices, and the provincial office of education; enhancing student safety and improving access to the 117 reporting system through the Chungnam Student Guardian app; and implementing a focused period for reporting unreported school violence cases and conducting prevention activities.

The dedicated school violence response team will be led by the Deputy Superintendent and organized into three teams. These teams will work in coordination with external agencies and relevant departments within the provincial office of education to provide comprehensive support, plan preventive education, support case management, and offer psychological and healing assistance. The goal is to develop school-centered institutional improvements.

In the event of an incident, schools will immediately separate the victim and perpetrator students and implement emergency measures by the principal. At the same time, schools will promptly report to the education support office, which will actively support the school in protecting victims and managing the case, as well as facilitate information sharing.

Additionally, the provincial office plans to review the case handling processes of schools and education support offices to ensure there are no shortcomings, and will distribute the Chungnam Student Guardian app by July to enhance student safety and prevent school violence.

The Chungnam Student Guardian app is designed to sound an alarm in crisis situations such as school violence, alerting those nearby. It will automatically send the student’s location and a danger alert text to up to three people, such as guardians or teachers. The app will also feature a one-touch call function for reporting directly to 117 or 112.

During the focused school violence prevention period, which runs through July 15, students and parents who have not previously reported school violence will be encouraged to do so. The office will work to identify unreported cases, protect victims, and ensure strict action is taken against perpetrators.

Superintendent Kim Ji-cheol stated, "In light of the recent series of school violence incidents, we will do our utmost to foster an environment where even minor cases are reported immediately and to prevent any recurrence of school violence." He added, "We will strengthen school violence prevention activities involving the entire educational community, protect victims, and strive for fair and prompt handling of all cases."