Ahn Min-seok: "Children's Future Begins with Breaking Down Barriers Between Education Office and Local Government"

The Gyeonggi Province Office of Education (Superintendent Ahn Min-seok) is hosting "regional barrier-breaking breakfast roundtables" bringing together 25 offices of education and 31 municipal and county local governments across the province to break down the wall between educational and general administration and resolve regional educational issues.

The provincial education office will hold breakfast roundtables beginning with the western region on the 24th, followed by the southern region on the 25th, the eastern region on the 26th, and the northern region in September, with Gyeonggi Province Superintendent Ahn Min-seok, local education superintendents, and mayors and county governors participating. They will jointly identify collaborative projects tailored to regional characteristics and needs and establish implementation plans.

The first western regional roundtable held on the 24th took place at the Ansan Office of Education. Eight municipal and county leaders from Anyang, Gwacheon, Gunpo, Uiwang, Siheung, Bucheon, Gwangmyeong, and Ansan, along with six regional education superintendents, participated in the roundtable.

The roundtable focused on exploring ways to strengthen cooperation between education offices and local governments centered on △school complex facilities and school facility access, △improvement of student commuting conditions, △promotion of 'RAS Gyeonggi Arts and Physical Education,' △phone-free and reading education, and △coordination of childcare and community resources.

Particularly significant is the shift away from the education office's approach of presenting uniform projects, instead having education superintendents and municipal and county leaders directly identify 'barrier-breaking projects' based on regional characteristics and student needs, and discuss implementation plans.

At the roundtable, Superintendent Ahn Min-seok stated, "In the face of children's issues, there can be no distinction between the work of the education office and the work of local government," adding "Education superintendents and mayors and county governors must meet directly to jointly solve regional educational and childcare issues."

The Gyeonggi Province Office of Education plans to concretize regional collaborative projects discussed at this roundtable and establish a sustainable regional education cooperation system implemented jointly by education offices and local governments.