Busan Education Office to Fully Strengthen Student Mental Health Support... Taking Responsibility from Prevention to Recovery

Responding to the Rise in High-Risk Cases of Self-Harm and Suicide
Implementing the “Student Customized Support Plan”

In response to the rising number of high-risk cases such as self-harm and suicide due to students’ depression and stress, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education has announced a comprehensive plan to systematically support students’ mental health.

The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education (Superintendent Kim Seokjun) stated on January 22 that it has established the “2026 Student Customized Mental Health Support Plan” to help stabilize students’ psychological and emotional well-being, and will actively implement it with a focus on schools.

The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education recognizes mental health issues as a shared responsibility for both schools and the local community, rather than as individual concerns, and has decided to fully strengthen its support system starting this year. With indicators of emotional crisis among adolescents remaining high or even increasing, the need to shift policy from a post-crisis response to prevention and early intervention has grown significantly.

The core of this plan is to establish a school-centered integrated support system that provides comprehensive assistance for students’ mental health throughout the entire process: prevention, detection, intervention, and recovery. To this end, the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education has prepared a four-stage support system-'Mind Safety,' 'Mind Growth,' 'Mind Care,' and 'Mind Recovery'-and will reinforce support at each stage to prevent students’ emotional difficulties from escalating into crises.

First, professional counseling staff will be assigned to every school, and the Wee Class program will be operated stably to create an environment where students can receive counseling and assistance at any time. Crisis management committees, led by school principals, will convene monthly to continuously monitor for signs of crisis, and the 10th of each month will be designated as “Mindfulness Day” to encourage students to reflect on their emotional state as part of their daily routine.

Support focused on prevention will also be expanded. Through the “Mind Growth Project B30,” a social-emotional education program for all students, mental health education linked to the curriculum will be strengthened. The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education plans to develop and distribute five types of Busan-style social-emotional education materials (17 sessions each) to ensure systematic education tailored to the characteristics of each school level.

In particular, 145 “Mindfulness Schools” will be provided with student workbooks and teacher guides for class management, and intensive consulting will be offered for key grades: fifth grade in elementary school, first grade in middle school, and first grade in high school. Additionally, a Social-Emotional Education Week (May) and Life Respect Education Week (October) will be held, and relationship-based programs such as peer counseling, “One Meal Counseling,” and mindfulness clubs will be promoted to strengthen emotional support within schools.

Measures for early detection and immediate intervention will also be reinforced. Through regular emotional and behavioral assessments and the ongoing “Mind EASY” screening, students in need of help will be quickly identified. For students at high risk of self-harm or suicide, a customized recovery support program called the “Mind Pause Program” will be implemented. This program consists of four types and 16 sessions for secondary students, providing intensive support through on-site counseling visits.

Support for the recovery phase after a crisis will also be expanded. The school will strengthen visits by mental health professionals and provide treatment cost support, and a learning support platform called “Heart for You” will be established for students hospitalized long-term for mental health reasons to minimize learning gaps. In addition, an emergency crisis response manual will be prepared to ensure swift and consistent action in the event of a crisis.

The Busan Metropolitan Office of Education plans to further strengthen the student mental health safety net by enhancing the functions of the Wee Center and cooperating with local organizations such as the Mental Health Welfare Center and the Youth Counseling and Welfare Center. Furthermore, on January 22, through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) between the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education, Busan City, and UNICEF, a Busan-style mental health support system for children and adolescents-based on cooperation among schools, the local community, and international organizations-will be fully established.

Kim Seokjun, Superintendent of the Busan Metropolitan Office of Education, stated, “Students’ mental health is the foundation of learning and growth,” and added, “We will continue to strengthen the mental health safety net so that schools can be the first to respond and take responsibility for recovery after crises.”