HANAM — The long-sought separation of the Gwangju-Hanam District Office of Education, a key pledge of Hanam Mayor Lee Hyun-jae, is set to be realized after Gyeonggi Province Superintendent of Education Ahn Min-seok designated the city as the country's first site for establishing a separate, independent district education office.
Ahn made the announcement on the 15th at a town hall meeting with parents held at the Hanam Comprehensive Welfare Town, the city said. "Hanam is the most thoroughly prepared place in the country for a separation," he said. "I promise the creation of the Hanam District Office of Education as the nation's first case of separating a district education office into an independent body."
Ahn also instructed officials on the spot to move up the official opening to September next year, six months earlier than the originally planned March 2028. The change is expected to speed up efforts to ease overcrowded classrooms in Hanam, where enrollment has surged with the development of the Misa, Gamil and Wirye new towns, and to deliver education administration services independently.
Behind the outcome was a push by Mayor Lee, who accommodated the provincial education office's requests and built out infrastructure in advance. Lee made the creation of an independent district education office his top priority and continued to lobby the central government and the Gyeonggi Provincial Office of Education.
In January this year, the city set up a temporary office on the sixth floor of the welfare town complex. When an on-site inspection team from the provincial education office asked for more space, the city immediately secured an additional 30 pyeong, bringing the total work space to 180 pyeong, or about 595 square meters. It also provided rights to use 200 parking spaces at a nearby arts and culture center and covered the full cost of managing the building, removing administrative and financial obstacles to the opening in advance.
At the event, Lee proposed an unconventional measure to address overcrowded classrooms, one of Hanam's main concerns: operating a shared school district with Seoul's Songpa District for a set period, across administrative boundaries. Ahn said he would "actively cooperate with the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education" and promised to set up a task force for a "Hanam-style model for easing overcrowded classrooms."
"The promise to create the Hanam District Office of Education is the fruit of the passion of the residents and parents who joined us here, and of Hanam's early efforts," Lee said. "We will work closely with the provincial education office so that the early opening proceeds without a hitch, and build Hanam into a premier education city where it is good to raise children."
Earlier in the day, Ahn took part in the "Oasis Morning Exercise" program at Gamil Elementary School and joined a school campaign greeting students arriving at Gamil Middle School before holding the town hall meeting with parents.
A "Hanam-style RAS Gratitude Tree" display introducing the city's achievements in reading, arts and physical education drew attention at the venue. Hanam is supporting 192 programs at 49 schools in the city this year with about 2.1 billion won ($1.5 million), pursuing education projects to develop a range of student capabilities.