Dongducheon City, Two Years as an Educational Development Special Zone... A Major Shift Toward an Education City
Dongducheon Revives from Population Crisis to an "Education Renaissance"
A Cradle for Global Talent... IB Education Belt and "Dream Fulfillment Club"
Mayor Park's Philosophy Shines: "Dongducheon Survives When Education Thrives"
Dongducheon City in Gyeonggi Province, which once faced the risk of population extinction due to COVID-19 and the relocation of US military bases, is now attracting attention as it pioneers a new path for the city through "education." In February 2024, Dongducheon City was designated as a "Pilot Area for Educational Development Special Zone," emerging as a leading force in educational innovation in northern Gyeonggi Province.
The operation training of SWAI Leading Schools held on December 18, 2024. Provided by Dongducheon City
According to Dongducheon City on August 2, Mayor Park Hyungdeok has made education the top priority of city administration since taking office in the 8th popularly elected term in 2022, based on the philosophy that "Dongducheon survives when education thrives." He has been leading a full-scale educational renaissance with a cumulative education budget reaching 57.6 billion KRW.
The most notable achievement is the introduction of the International Baccalaureate (IB) education program. Starting with four schools in 2023, Dongducheon City established a system of IB candidate, interested, and authorized schools at a total of six schools by 2025, completing an integrated IB education belt from elementary to high school.
In particular, Dongducheon Elementary School, after being designated as a candidate school in 2023 and receiving administrative and financial support, became the second school in northern Gyeonggi Province to obtain IB World School authorization in June this year, becoming a symbol of educational innovation in the region.
The "Dongducheon Dream Fulfillment Club," a student-led overseas training program, has been expanding annually and is establishing itself as a platform for nurturing global talent. The program started with three teams (21 students) in 2023, expanded to five teams (40 students) in 2024, and will further expand to seven teams (56 students) in 2025.
Each club consists of six students and two supervising teachers, and the city provides up to 56 million KRW in activity funds per team. This year, 17 clubs applied, and after a blind review, seven clubs were finally selected. They are exploring a variety of themes such as science, music, coffee, international exchange, and environmental exploration. Notably, "Doremi Classe" from Sadong Elementary School was selected for the first time as an elementary school team, drawing attention.
With many dual-income families, Dongducheon City is operating the "DDC Saessak Care Classroom" to address gaps in public childcare services.
The scene of the 'Idamcho DDC Seedling Care Classroom' business agreement ceremony held on July 15, 2024. Provided by Dongducheon City
In December 2024, the city opened the "DDC Saessak Care Classroom No. 2" in Saengyeon-dong, the old downtown area, expanding out-of-school childcare hub centers. In addition, by the end of this year, the city plans to remodel Classroom No. 1 to provide a pleasant care space for local children.
In July 2025, the "DDC Saessak Care Classroom No. 3" was opened in the Misogwan building at Idam Elementary School. This facility remodeled six previously unused classrooms (totaling 644 square meters) into child-friendly spaces, and was established as Dongducheon City's first in-school group care center with support of 500 million KRW from the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.
This project is a leading model case in Gyeonggi Province, where the local government, the education office, and the school collaborated to create an in-school care center. The city also introduced the "Dongteuli" smart safety shuttle bus, connecting elementary schools and hub centers, thereby establishing a comprehensive care system both inside and outside schools. Through this, the city has created key infrastructure to address childcare gaps for dual-income families.
Dongducheon City is also promoting the establishment of a global talent education center as a hub for northern Gyeonggi Province. The center will be located on the first and second floors of Science Tower in Songnae-dong, with remodeling work beginning in July this year and the opening scheduled for December.
The center will take advantage of its location near Jihaeng Station on Subway Line 1, and will be designed as an open educational space where students can learn foreign languages and experience various international cultures in their daily lives. The center will include five general classrooms, an English experience center, a cooking class, a media language classroom, an intensive study room, and an auditorium. Based on these facilities, the city plans to operate diverse programs to enhance language skills for both general and multicultural background students. Mayor Park Hyungdeok expressed his commitment to developing a unique global education city in Dongducheon through close cooperation with related organizations.
'Industry-Government-Academia Agreement Ceremony for the Development of Specialized High Schools through Partnership' held on January 23. Provided by Dongducheon City
Additionally, attracting the (provisional name) Dongducheon Convergence Technology Education Center of Korea Polytechnic University is considered one of Mayor Park's major achievements in the field of education. After receiving approval for establishment from the Ministry of Employment and Labor in December 2024, the project was confirmed and is scheduled for completion by 2027, aiming to train about 1,500 industry-specialized professionals annually for the region.
Dongducheon City is actively implementing various policies to create a student-centered future education environment and to improve educational welfare. In 2024, in cooperation with local Dongyang University, the city operated 191 sessions of SW/AI leading schools at seven schools using Arduino, drones, and JetBots.
Additionally, the city operated a cultural content entrepreneurship training program covering webtoons, games, design, and digital media content, including 149 sessions of content creation education, 72 field experience sessions, and six expert mentoring sessions, providing local students with opportunities for specialized education in future industries.
Furthermore, the scale and amount of the "Love for Hometown" scholarship for nurturing local talent are being continuously expanded. In 2025, the city plans to award scholarships totaling 660 million KRW to 337 students, including 100 high school students and 237 university students, creating an environment where students can focus on their studies. In addition, the "Dongducheon-style Free School Uniform Support Project," the first of its kind in the country, provides an additional 300,000 KRW per person for school uniform expenses to all second-year middle and high school students and transfer students, easing the financial burden on parents. These educational welfare policies, ranging from educational programs to scholarships and school uniform support, are further solidifying Dongducheon's foundation as a "city ideal for raising children."
Mayor Park Hyungdeok emphasized, "Investment in education is the most powerful key to opening the city's future," and added, "With the conviction that 'Dongducheon survives when education thrives,' we will leap beyond the educational development special zone to become the nation's top premium education city."
The 'Creative Character Education Experiential Learning' held on May 27. Provided by Dongducheon City
Mayor Park further stated, "The past three years have been precious time spent designing Dongducheon's future together with citizens, and now we have crossed the threshold of change. During the remainder of my term, I will build on existing achievements to establish more sophisticated policies and a solid foundation, making the city slogan 'Renew Dongducheon, Empower Citizens!' a reality."
Mayor Park Hyungdeok's education innovation project is being realized as a tangible reality felt by all Dongducheon citizens, and the two years of achievements from the pilot educational development special zone project are serving as a turning point, opening the new century for Dongducheon.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
