▲ Seoul Superintendent of Education Jeong Geun-sik, who serves as the chair of the National Association of Superintendents of Education, along with other regional superintendents, holds a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Hall on the 25th to voice their opposition to the government's proposed reform of the local education finance subsidy system.
Superintendents from 16 regional offices of education across the country have launched collective action in opposition to the abolition of the internal tax linkage system for local education finance subsidies.
During an emergency press conference held at the National Assembly Communication Hall today (the 25th), the National Association of Superintendents of Education stated, "If the government does not completely reexamine the subsidy reform from scratch, we will take all possible actions to protect local education finance and the future of education." They added, "We will further expand solidarity and joint responses with educational organizations, including teachers, parents, and educational civic groups."
The association warned, "Going forward, the 16 regional offices of education will jointly respond to the overall discussions between the government and the National Assembly regarding the subsidy reform, and we will take active measures to ensure that the voices of the education field are substantially reflected. We make it clear that the stronger the government pushes ahead with the reform without consulting the education sector, the stronger our response will be."
First, the association decided to boycott a scheduled meeting of budget directors from regional offices of education set for today.
"This boycott is a clear warning against the government's unilateral policy-making approach, which treats regional superintendents as mere implementing agencies rather than parties to policy decisions," the association emphasized. "We will no longer stand by and watch acts that exclude regional superintendents or ignore educational autonomy while deciding and notifying policies."
The association argued that the current reform plan was unilaterally prepared by the Ministry of Economy and Budget without gathering opinions from regional superintendents or the broader education community.
"The government's unilateral push for reform despite opposition from the direct parties in the education field and system ignores educational autonomy and attempts to subordinate education to politics," the association stated, demanding the establishment of an official consultative body involving the education field.
"Even as the school-age population declines, basic financial demands for school operations, facility management, and staff labor costs persist, while new educational demands such as artificial intelligence (AI) and digital education, customized student learning, mental health, and care and safety are actually expanding," the association repeatedly argued, calling for the maintenance of the current system that automatically allocates 20.79 percent of internal tax revenue to subsidies.
Previously, the Ministry of Economy and Budget announced a reform plan to abolish the internal tax linkage system and instead reflect current economic growth rates and declines in the school-age population in calculating subsidies.
Daegu Superintendent of Education Kang Eun-hee criticized the plan in a post-briefing following the press conference, saying, "Even if the current economic growth rate is 5 percent, it is difficult to cope with labor costs and inflation that increase every year. This reform plan, based on simple calculations, overlooks how we should educate and nurture future generations."
Ulsan Superintendent of Education Cho Yong-shik stated, "Regional offices of education have covered expenses for students such as meals, school uniforms, and field trips. We cannot agree with the criticism that we have managed education finances loosely simply because we spent money on areas that a welfare state should naturally take responsibility for."
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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